Donald Trump stands by Pete Hegseth in first public appearance after US Midterms thrashing

President Donald Trump has stood by Pete Hegseth in his first public appearance after the Republican Party was decimated in this week's Midterm elections. Sources said President Trump could still replace the Secretary of War as the GOP continues to deal with the fallout from Tuesday's vote. Democrats took control of the Senate and House of Representatives on Tuesday, winning seats in deeply conservative states that typically favour Republicans by double digits. The strength of the political upheaval prompted the White House to acknowledge the unpopularity of the US-Israeli war with Iran among Americans. Vice President JD Vance publicly questioned whether the Iran war was worth it, saying the stance cost Republicans control of Congress. It has led some in the GOP to point the finger at Mr Hegseth, who has been a vocal supporter of the war against Iran. Asked whether he was considering replacing Mr Hegseth, whom he has described as a champion of the war, President Trump told reporters: "No, I think he's doing a very good job." The response contrasted with fellow Republican President George Bush, who fired his Defence Secretary Donald Rumsfeld the morning after the 2006 midterm elections, when voter discontent over the Iraq war helped Democrats win control of Congress. However, one adviser to the President said Mr Hegseth "could be on the chopping block" because of the war, telling Reuters: "Someone is going to get blamed for this and you know it's not going to be him [President Trump]." President Trump has described Hegseth as a key proponent of the unpopular conflict, saying on March 23: "Pete, I think you were the first one to speak up, and you said, 'Let's do it, because you can't let them have a nuclear weapon.'" Asked for comment, the White House referred reporters to President Trump's public remarks on Mr Hegseth. The Department of War said Mr Hegseth was "100 per cent committed" to leading the Pentagon until the end of President Trump's term, which ends on January 20, 2029. LATEST DEVELOPMENTS Mr Hegseth has been a polarising figure in Washington and has made multiple enemies within his own Republican Party. One Republican lawmaker, US Representative Thomas Massie, filed articles of impeachment against Mr Hegseth earlier this year, accusing him of abusing his office by launching hostilities against Iran without approval from Congress. Republican Senator Thom Tillis told CBS News Mr Hegseth has "a reckoning" coming, adding his strained relationship with lawmakers was undermining the Trump administration's push for a $1.5trillion defence spending package in Congress. Senator Tillis said: "I think after the election, we need to determine whether or not he's the best person to bring those needs to Congress if he wants something done before the end of this Congress, which is only 60 days away." Democrats have promised to investigate Mr Hegseth and his handling of the Pentagon, and aides say that could include everything from his handling of the Iran war to his purges of top military officers, including the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. President Trump has regularly praised Mr Hegseth publicly and has given the former Army National Guard soldier significant leeway as he sought to reshape the Pentagon. However, the President publicly split with Mr Hegseth by pulling the plug on his plans to livestream the Army's firing-squad execution of Fort Hood shooter Nidal Hasan. Many fellow Republicans, along with religious leaders and international human rights observers, raised objections to the plan. Defence officials privately expressed relief that the livestreaming would not go ahead. In the early afternoon, after a morning of silence from the administration, the President abruptly called reporters to a ceremony at the White House where crews hoisted what he said was the final steel beam on the new state Ballroom. The President has spent much of his second term discussing construction projects, including a granite White House helicopter landing pad, a public golf course renovation and a 250-foot arch he plans to build beside the Potomac River. Just hours before polling stations opened across the US on Monday, President Trump dedicated most of his final television speech to discuss his administration's renovation of the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool. Pointing to the new ballroom's pillars, President Trump told reporters: "They're being carved out of beautiful limestone and they'll be Corinthian, Corinthian design, which is considered the creme de la creme." During the nearly 20-minute event, the President acknowledged that he had taken flak for spending so much time and energy on prestige projects, but he said the ballroom was needed for the glory of the country. He told reporters: "I like it. For me, it's relaxing." Follow related topics: