Updated November 5, 2026, 6:38 p.m. ET
WASHINGTON — Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth vowed to fight any impeachment attempt and defended the decision to attack Iran, defying calls to resign after Republicans suffered devastating losses in an election widely interpreted as a public rejection of the war in Iran.
“We are not going backwards and that especially applies now,” Hegseth said Nov. 5 in a video speech. “The coming months and years will be crucial for our department and our republic.”
President Donald Trump has acknowledged fielding calls from people critical of Hegseth’s leadership, but has repeatedly said he intends to keep him as head of the Pentagon.
“I get these calls, you know, about him,” Trump said in an interview with ABC News. “I don’t understand why.”
Despite Trump’s public support, Hegseth’s political future faces some obstacles. Trump and Vice President JD Vance said the war in Iran was responsible for the Republican Party’s heavy losses in the midterms.
Hegseth, the public face of the war, has said he is committed to staying at the Pentagon through the end of Trump’s term. In his November 5 video speech, he defended the decision to attack Iran as a “courageous and historic effort that will ensure that Iran never obtains a nuclear weapon.”
“When we say that Iran will not have nuclear weapons, we mean it and we will work hard to achieve it under the leadership of President Trump,” Hegseth said.
Hegseth, one of the most controversial figures in the Trump administration, has been marked by a series of scandals and unforced errors. He has been condemned by both parties for pushing to livestream an execution, using a commercial messaging app to discuss a sensitive military operation and purging high-ranking military officers without cause.
Rep. Thomas Massie, Republican of Kentucky, said he would introduce articles of impeachment against Hegseth when lawmakers return to Congress on Nov. 9. Members of Congress expect enough Republicans to join Democrats in voting for impeachment.
“I think there are enough Republicans who want him gone,” said Rep. Adam Smith, Democrat of Washington, ranking member of the House Armed Services Committee.
Hegseth criticized the effort in the video speech, calling Massie a “disgruntled and defeated congressman” who joined Democrats in dropping “false articles of impeachment against yours truly.”
“Their policies are not working, so their obsession with political theater, disguised as power, pushes them to try to destroy their opponents,” he added. “It didn’t work against President Trump and it won’t work with me. You can rest assured.”
Later, on November 5, Hegseth’s aides flooded social media platform X with messages featuring the same five-word caption: “Stand up. Fight. Defend the Republic.” The official White House X account joined the social media posts, sharing a video praising Hegseth and his accomplishments at the Pentagon.
Once the new Congress is in session in January, Democratic lawmakers have pledged to aggressively investigate Hegseth and exert intense oversight of the Pentagon.
Democrats’ efforts to hold Hegseth accountable could conflict with the Pentagon’s efforts to seek $1.5 trillion in defense funding from Congress. Hegseth reiterated his call for lawmakers to pass “a reconciliation bill of at least $350 billion” on November 5.
“Pete Hegseth needs to be held accountable,” Senator Thom Tillis, Republican of North Carolina, told CBS News on November 4.
“He is one of the reasons we don’t have the defense funding or guarantee we need,” Tillis added. “After the election, we need to consider whether or not he is the best person to bring these needs to Congress.”
Gn headline
