President Donald Trump said Monday he would “stand by” Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth if the House moves to impeach him over U.S. military operations in Iran and the Caribbean. Trump credited Hegseth with the January operation that captured former Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro and defended his handling of the ongoing campaign against Iran.
“Really, what has Hegseth done?” Trump said. “He won the war. He was in charge. He won the war in Venezuela, as I said, 48 minutes. It was flawless — nobody killed. And he certainly, I think, won the war in Iran.”
BREAKING: President Trump grades Hegseth's news conference as ''A' PLUS, PLUS, PLUS' amid impeachment fight pic.twitter.com/22ui5jcYis
— Fox News (@FoxNews) November 10, 2026
Trump spoke at a White House press briefing hours after Rep. Thomas Massie, a Kentucky Republican, filed articles of impeachment against Hegseth. The articles accuse the defense secretary of unlawfully starting hostilities with Iran and overseeing strikes on boats in the Caribbean that allegedly killed civilians suspected of drug trafficking.
NEW: “No Secretary of War or Secretary of Defense has ever been impeached for carrying out lawful military operations.”
Secretary Pete Hegseth pushes back against an impeachment threat, pointing to 250 years of American history and military operations under presidents from both… pic.twitter.com/nHtjV4JFyg
— Fox News (@FoxNews) November 10, 2026
Trump called Massie, who lost his Republican primary to a Trump-backed challenger, a “stone cold loser.”
“Massie is a loser,” Trump said. “He shouldn’t be taking up the time of Congress or the Senate or anything that he’s doing.”
Although Trump credited Hegseth with winning the war in Iran, he said the U.S. naval blockade of Iranian ports in the Strait of Hormuz would remain in place. American forces, he added, were “locked and loaded, ready to go” if further military action became necessary.
Hegseth dismissed the impeachment effort last week as a sham led by “a disgruntled defeated congressman along with all his Democrat allies.” Democrats are set to take control of both chambers in January. If the House votes to impeach Hegseth, the case would go to the Senate for trial.
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