Republicans are increasingly turning against Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth following the party’s losses in Tuesday’s midterm elections.
They blame the Iran war he championed for helping drag the party down at the polls.
Among those demanding accountability is Republican Rep. Thomas Massie, who delivered a blunt warning to the embattled defense secretary.
The outgoing congressman plans to force an impeachment vote next week unless Hegseth resigns. “There is one contingency in which I won’t reintroduce the articles of impeachment: Hegseth resigns,” Massie wrote on X.
Massie, a Kentucky Republican who has frequently clashed with President Donald Trump, told CNN he plans to introduce articles of impeachment against Hegseth when lawmakers return next week. Multiple Republican sources told the network they expect the measure to pass.
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The threat comes as Democrats prepare to take control of Congress in January and have signaled plans to launch their own investigations. Vice President JD Vance has also pointed to the war as a factor in the GOP’s defeat.
The mounting criticism puts Hegseth under increased scrutiny within an administration that continues to defend its military campaign against Iran.
Although Trump has not publicly withdrawn his support for the defense secretary, some Republicans who blame the conflict for the party’s election losses are looking for someone to hold accountable for its political and economic consequences.
According to CNN, several Republicans privately accused Hegseth of overstating how quickly and easily the United States could win the conflict. They also criticized his continued support for escalating military action despite little indication that additional bombing was bringing Iran closer to surrender.
The war has dragged on longer than many initially expected, adding to concerns about rising costs at home and the administration’s handling of the conflict. Some Republicans now see Hegseth, one of the operation’s most vocal advocates, as an obvious target for the party’s growing frustration.
On Wednesday, Vance offered a blunt assessment of the election results, saying, “The reason we lost is the war.” Although he did not single out Hegseth, his remarks marked a notable acknowledgment from the vice president that the administration’s military campaign contributed to the Republican defeat.
Despite the criticism, Trump has continued to publicly stand behind his defense secretary. White House officials told CNN that the president personally likes Hegseth and has encouraged him to fight back against impeachment efforts and investigations into his leadership.
One White House official recalled Trump recently telling Hegseth, “You’re my best guy. You’re the best guy I have.”
During remarks Wednesday, Trump rejected suggestions that he planned to remove Hegseth, saying the defense secretary was “doing a very good job.” He also defended his decision to launch the military campaign, declaring, “If I had it to do again, I’d have to do it again.”
Trump’s public defense has not stopped speculation about Hegseth’s future, including reports circulating in Tennessee that he could leave the Pentagon for a seat in the U.S. Senate.
Political commentator Chris P. Jackson claimed in a post on X that Trump wants Hegseth out of the Defense Department and that Tennessee Gov.-elect Marsha Blackburn could appoint him to fill her Senate seat in January. He suggested Hegseth had already established residency in Tennessee and that the move could offer him a way out of the Cabinet before he faces potential impeachment proceedings.
Jackson acknowledged that the claim was unconfirmed, writing, “Nothing confirmed, but based on what I’m hearing, I’d put the chances of this happening at 75%.”
Trump was asked directly whether he was considering replacing Hegseth or wanted him to take Blackburn’s Senate seat. He denied plans to replace the defense secretary.
“No. I think he’s doing a very good job,” Trump said.
Asked whether he wanted Hegseth to fill Blackburn’s seat, Trump responded, “I think he would be popular if he did that,” before turning the conversation elsewhere.
ABC News correspondent Jonathan Karl also reported that Trump told him he intended to keep Hegseth in his current position. “I have every intention to keep him,” Trump reportedly said.
Trump acknowledged receiving calls from people who have expressed concerns about Hegseth but appeared puzzled by the criticism. “I get these calls, you know, about him. I don’t understand why,” he told Karl.
Hegseth has reportedly told the White House that he is prepared to defend the Pentagon’s decisions and take responsibility for its actions.
In a statement, chief Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell dismissed the prospect of congressional investigations and said Hegseth would continue carrying out Trump’s agenda.
“Secretary Hegseth is 100% committed to leading the Department until the end of President Trump’s term in office,” Parnell said.
Still, some Republicans believe the defense secretary’s position could become harder to maintain as lawmakers examine the war and its consequences.
“If the president is serious about anyone taking responsibility for it, it’s Pete Hegseth,” one Republican close to the White House told CNN. “Pete has been either dishonest or incorrect — neither of which are acceptable — about timelines, goals and objectives since the beginning.”
Massie, meanwhile, argued that the Republican losses cannot be explained by a single issue, even as the Iran war has become a major source of frustration within the party.
“You don’t screw up this badly an election with just one issue,” Massie told CNN. “It was completely avoidable if they’d just broken out of the cultish following of Donald Trump.”
Calls for accountability against Hegseth are extending beyond the threat of impeachment, with social media users demanding investigations into his role in the Iran war and U.S. military operations in the Caribbean. Some commenters argue that Hegseth should face congressional scrutiny even if he resigns, while others have called for him to face prosecution over military strikes they believe violated international law.
One commenter urged Massie to continue pursuing impeachment regardless of whether Hegseth steps down, writing, “Congressman, I urge you to investigate and submit the articles of impeachment against Secretary Hegseth whether he resigns or not. The American people have a right to know the details of the conflict against Iran and the Department of Defense’s actions in the Caribbean Sea.”
The commenter went on to accuse Hegseth of overseeing the destruction of U.S. military capabilities in the Persian Gulf, arguing that the consequences would take decades and billions of dollars to address. The post concluded that the defense secretary “needs to answer for that, whether he resigns or not.”
Others called for legal consequences over the Pentagon’s military operations. “Hegseth needs tried for his crimes ordered in international waters,” one person wrote. Another added, “He still has to be tried for war crimes. You can’t just bomb speedboats and schoolchildren extrajudicially.”
The comments reference two controversial military campaigns. A U.S. military strike in the Caribbean killed Colombian fisherman Alejandro Carranza in September 2025.
His family subsequently filed a complaint with the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights, alleging that the U.S. government unlawfully killed him. The petition accused Hegseth of ordering strikes on vessels without knowing who was aboard.
The Trump administration has defended its campaign against suspected drug-smuggling vessels, arguing that the operations are lawful and necessary to combat drug trafficking.
The reference to schoolchildren appears to be connected to the Feb. 28 strike on an elementary school in Minab, Iran, which killed more than 150 people. Amnesty International USA criticized the attack, with National Director for Government Relations and Advocacy Amanda Klasing saying the U.S. military failed to take all feasible precautions to minimize civilian harm.