Trump asking advisers if Hegseth should stay after midterm losses, sources say
Washington — President Trump has been asking advisers around him and on the phone whether Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth should stay in his job, following Republicans' catastrophic losses Tuesday night, multiple sources familiar with the matter tell CBS News.
Some White House aides have predicted some of the blame for GOP midterm losses will be trained on Adm. Brad Cooper, the head of U.S. Central Command, and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Dan Caine, who both played big roles in guidance on the Iran war.
Still, other sources said the president hasn't decided to replace Hegseth. Before the election, Democrats were already trying to impeach Hegseth, and the likelihood of an impeachment effort could increase with Democrats holding strong majorities in both chambers.
Vice President JD Vance is blaming the war for the GOP defeat. "The reason we lost is the war," he said in a lengthy post on X Wednesday morning.
One source told CBS News that GOP Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis is being floated as a possible replacement for Hegseth, arguing DeSantis could go through Senate confirmation in the lame-duck period and then take the post when his term as governor expires Jan. 5.
Mr. Trump was asked Wednesday afternoon whether he was considering replacing Hegseth, and he told reporters, "No, I think he's doing a very good job." The president was also asked if he'd like to see Hegseth appointed to fill the seat that will be vacated by Tennessee Sen. Marsha Blackburn when she takes office as governor. "I actually think he'd be very popular if he did that," Mr. Trump said, "but I haven't heard that at all."
Asked for comment about reports that Hegseth's future as defense secretary was in question, White House spokeswoman Anna Kelly said in a statement that the president "has full confidence in Secretary Hegseth." In the statement, Kelly also praised the military operations in Iran and Venezuela and Hegseth's efforts to reverse the Biden Pentagon's prioritizing of "DEI and woke ideology."
