Hegseth doubles down on defense of war on Iran amid threat of impeachment

The war secretary seeks at least $350 billion in new funding for the war, dismissing the impeachment push against him as 'doomed to fail'

News Desk

NOV 6, 2026

https://thecradle.co/articles/hegseth-doubles-down-on-defense-of-war-on-iran-amid-threat-of-impeachment

US Secretary of War Pete Hegseth doubled down on the war on Iran in a video message on 5 November, even as top cabinet officials conceded that the war cost Republicans the midterm elections and speculation mounts over his possible dismissal.

“Regardless of how people feel about the war, which I believe is a courageous and historic effort that will ensure Iran never gets a nuclear weapon, we need to continue, as President Trump did in his first term, to rebuild our military,” Hegseth said in the video taken in front of the Pentagon.

He went on to urge lawmakers to approve a reconciliation bill of at least $350 billion for his department, calling the funding essential for keeping the US “ahead in a dangerous world.”

Hegseth also dismissed the impeachment articles filed against him as baseless, predicting they would collapse just as both attempts to remove US President Donald Trump had. 

Republican Congressman Thomas Massie plans to reintroduce the impeachment articles next week, warning that Hegseth faces hearings and trials once Democrats take control of Congress next year. 

Trump defended Hegseth in the Oval Office, crediting him with the US operation to abduct Venezuela’s president and boasting that seven months into the war on Iran, Washington controls “everything that we’ve wanted to control” in the country.

Despite Trump’s backing, sources say the president could still replace his war chief, and one advisor has warned that the Iran war has put Hegseth’s job at risk. 

The war secretary’s message comes after Vice President JD Vance admitted on 4 November that the war on Iran was the driving force behind the Republicans’ crushing midterm defeat, conceding that Trump himself had reached the same verdict and that many of the party’s 2024 voters had deserted it for the Democrats.

Vance said those voters demanded an end to the war, relief from the soaring cost of living, a return to “America First,” and an overhaul of Washington’s relationship with Israel as the price of their return. 

In his message, the US vice president challenged the war’s backers to make the case that “losing the Senate for the next six years was worth it.”