President Donald Trump publicly defended Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth with a five-word endorsement—"he has done a great job"—even as Republican senators question Hegseth's leadership during the Iran war. Trump said advisers warned of an imminent Iranian threat and that pre-emptive strikes in late February aimed to avert a "point of no return." He also claimed Iran had sought talks, a claim Tehran denies. Amid divided domestic opinion and conflicting diplomatic signals, Trump has kept a confrontational stance toward Tehran.
Trump Issues Five-Word Defense Of Pete Hegseth As GOP Questions Pentagon Leadership
Photo Credit: Alex Wong/Staff / Getty Images
President Donald Trump issued a brief but firm defense of Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth, saying in five words that Hegseth "has done a great job," amid growing Republican unease over Pentagon leadership during the war with Iran.
Asked by reporters whether he was frustrated with Hegseth’s counsel early in the conflict, Trump reiterated his support and said senior advisers had presented urgent intelligence indicating Iran was preparing to strike the United States unless Washington acted first. Trump said those assessments warned the situation was approaching "a point of no return," and that pre-emptive strikes that began in late February were taken in response to that intelligence, triggering a wider regional crisis.
The strikes and subsequent escalation have disrupted global energy markets and drawn in Iranian-backed forces across multiple countries. At the same time, several Republican senators have openly questioned Hegseth’s stewardship of the Pentagon. Senator Thom Tillis of North Carolina told The Hill, "I don't have any confidence in him anymore. I think he's all over the place," and accused the defence secretary of lacking experience managing large organizations.
Diplomatic Signals Clash
Aboard Air Force One, Trump framed reported outreach from Tehran as evidence that U.S. military pressure was working, saying Iran had sought talks "through their surrogates and directly" and that "they want to meet, and we're meeting." Tehran, however, offered a different account: foreign ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baqaei said mediators may be passing messages but insisted that "at present we are not engaged in any negotiations with the United States," according to The Guardian.
"He has done a great job," Trump said of Hegseth in his five-word remark.
Despite mixed signals from both U.S. lawmakers and Iranian officials, Trump has remained combative toward Tehran. Reporting for this article draws on coverage by Devanshi Basu at Mandatory and reporting in The Guardian.
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