Hegseth dares Trump to back him as impeachment fight erupts

Pete Hegseth came out swinging at the Pentagon on Thursday — his first news conference in six months — and aimed most of his fire at Republican Congressman Thomas Massie, who has filed articles of impeachment against him. Hegseth brushed him off as one disgruntled and defeated congressman, calling the effort a farce and a stunt. But the room, in effect, held one person he was really talking to: President Donald Trump.

Hegseth repeatedly lashed his fate to Trump's, insisting the military operations in Iran and Venezuela now at the heart of the impeachment case were ordered by the commander-in-chief, then ordered by myself. If standing with the president puts him in the firing line, he said, he'll take that company every day of the week. He even borrowed Trump's own words, calling the 2019 Ukraine call that sparked Trump's first impeachment a perfect phone call.

That loyalty play leaves Trump boxed in. Keeping Hegseth risks looking like the White House ignored voters' message; firing him risks reading as an admission that the Iran war has become a domestic liability. Either way, a scalp or a scapegoat may be needed for the president to move on, according to the BBC's analysis.

One possible ally is Stephen Miller, whose promotion to White House chief-of-staff offers less cover than it seems. Hegseth called Miller an incredible American patriot, and the two are close. But Miller reportedly won the job partly by arguing the White House needed to wind down the Iran war — a position that puts daylight between the Pentagon and the president.

Hegseth still holds Trump's backing, and Washington knows how fast that can vanish when a sacrifice is required. Congress votes on the impeachment proceedings loom, but the president's mood, not the chamber's math, will likely decide whether Hegseth keeps his job.