The White House on Thursday pushed back hard against rumors that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and Secretary of State Marco Rubio could be forced out of the Trump administration in a post-midterm shakeup, even as one Cabinet member's standing looked far shakier than the other's.
The denials came two days after Republicans lost control of both the House and Senate, a defeat that President Trump and Vice President JD Vance have both blamed largely on the unpopularity of the nine-month-old conflict with Iran. US media reports described growing calls, including from within the president's own party, to replace Hegseth over his handling of that conflict. One outgoing House Republican has threatened to force an impeachment vote against him as early as next week.
Hegseth posted a video statement defending his record and denouncing the effort against him. "You see, they attack me. They attack us because we are effective," he said. "It's not going to work. We will not back down." He went on to credit his tenure at the Pentagon with reviving military recruitment, rebuilding the defense industrial base and "rooting out diversity initiatives."
Two Cabinet members, two different pictures
Rubio's position looked considerably steadier. He told The New York Times that staying in the job through the end of Trump's term "has always been my plan," adding, "I love the work I'm doing. And plus I always laugh when they say he's going to leave his job. I go, 'Which one?'" referring to speculation he might instead be laying groundwork for a 2028 presidential run. Both the White House and the State Department dismissed the departure reports as "fake news."
Trump himself offered a mixed but largely supportive account of Hegseth's standing. In a phone interview with ABC News, he said he had "received calls about" the defense secretary but had "every intention" of keeping him in the job. Speaking to reporters at the White House later Thursday, Trump said "Pete Hegseth has done a fantastic job," pointing to the January arrest of Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro and the ongoing Iran war as achievements of his tenure. The Washington Post has separately reported that Trump may be weighing the ouster of Joint Chiefs Chairman Gen. Dan Caine or Centcom chief Adm. Brad Cooper, both of whom advised on the war.
Not every threat to Hegseth is coming from Trump's inner circle. Rep. Thomas Massie, a frequent Trump critic who first filed impeachment articles against Hegseth in September over the Iran campaign, told Politico he will trigger his resolution again as early as next week. Massie, who lost his own primary this year and is leaving Congress in January, argued on social media that Trump should act now while he still can. "He should do it while he can still get the replacements confirmed in the Senate," Massie wrote on X.
A narrowing window
That window is part of what makes the timing fraught: Democrats take full control of the House and Senate in January, meaning any Hegseth replacement Trump wants confirmed needs to clear the current, Republican-held Senate first. Hegseth has also been rumored as a possible candidate for an open Tennessee Senate seat, giving him a potential exit of his own choosing if the political pressure in Washington keeps building.
