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President Donald Trump is defending War Secretary Pete Hegseth as outgoing Rep. Thomas Massie, R-Ky., targets the Pentagon chief for impeachment.
The president issued a Truth Social post on Monday slamming the congressman as “a total loser” while asserting that the war secretary “should be praised, not impeached.”
“Defeated Republican Congressman Thomas Massie, a total loser, is trying to Impeach perhaps the most popular and successful military official in the Country, Secretary of War, Pete Hegseth,” Trump declared Monday on Truth Social.
HEGSETH IMPEACHMENT VOTE LOOMS AS HOUSE REPUBLICANS PRIVATELY WARN IT COULD PASS
Rep. Thomas Massie, R-Ky., speaks on impeaching U.S. Secretary of War Pete Hegseth outside the U.S. Capitol on Nov. 9, 2026 in Washington, D.C. (Andrew Harnik/Getty Images)
“With recruitment at an ALL-TIME HIGH, from an all-time low under Sleepy Joe Biden, and TWO VICTORIES, Venezuela and Iran, Pete Hegseth should be praised, not Impeached. Congress, stand up for Pete!!!” he added.
Massie did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s comment request on Tuesday.
Hegseth shared a screenshot of the president’s post and thanked him.
REPORTER’S NOTEBOOK: HOW MIDTERMS MAY CHANGE THE HOUSE IMPEACHMENT EQUATION FOR HEGSETH
President Donald Trump speaks with Secretary of War Pete Hegseth at the Pennsylvania Defense and Innovation Summit at U.S. Army War College on July 15, 2026, in Carlisle, Pennsylvania. (Alex Wong/Getty Images)
“Thank you Mr. President. Like you, we will never back down,” Hegseth wrote.
Massie, who has served in the House of Representatives since late 2012, lost the GOP primary earlier this year in Kentucky’s 4th Congressional District to Trump-backed challenger Ed Gallrein, a former Navy SEAL who went on to win the seat during the general election.
“My effort to impeach Secretary Hegseth is a much gentler version of what’s coming when the Democrats assume control of the House and Senate next year,” Massie said, according to a press release. “They will hold hearings and trials. President Trump should replace Secretary Hegseth now while he can still get a replacement confirmed in the Senate.”
WHY THE HOUSE LET OUT EARLY IS A MATTER OF DEBATE AFTER JOHNSON SAYS CHAMBER HAS ‘DONE ITS WORK’
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Hegseth said Monday there will be a press conference at the Pentagon on Tuesday morning.
Alex Nitzberg is a writer for Fox News Digital.
