President Donald Trump is reportedly losing patience with the steady stream of controversies engulfing Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, even as he continues to publicly defend him.
According to a Friday report in The Atlantic, which cited several unnamed sources familiar with internal White House conversations, the president has become less inclined to shield Hegseth in private when advisers question whether he is suited for the role.
“[Trump] is starting to tire of the scandals surrounding Hegseth and does not push back when others suggest Hegseth is not up for the job,” an outside adviser to the White House and a former senior administration official told the outlet. One senior official described it as a “rough week for Pete.”
The White House and Pentagon did not immediately respond to requests for comment from The Independent.
Trump’s apparent frustration comes as the Pentagon faces growing scrutiny over a second strike on an alleged drug-smuggling boat in the Caribbean on 2 September. The follow-up attack, described by some as a “double tap,” was launched after two survivors were seen clinging to the wreckage of the vessel.
On Thursday, Admiral Frank “Mitch” Bradley, the Navy SEAL officer who heads U.S. Special Operations Command, showed lawmakers footage of the strikes and fielded their questions.
Representative Jim Himes, the top Democrat on the House Intelligence Committee, called the video “one of the most troubling things I’ve seen in my time in public service.” By contrast, Senator Tom Cotton, the Republican chair of the Senate Intelligence Committee, praised the operation as “righteous” and “entirely lawful.”
Hegseth, speaking on Tuesday, said the incident unfolded in “the fog of war” and insisted Bradley acted “within his authority and the law.”
The defense secretary is also under fire over his broader campaign against suspected traffickers, which has resulted in at least 86 deaths. Some lawmakers and human rights groups say the operations are illegal and are being used to pressure Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro. Republicans, meanwhile, have largely backed the strikes, arguing they are a necessary tool to curb the flow of illegal drugs into the United States.
Adding to the pressure, the Defense Department’s inspector general this week released findings from an investigation into Hegseth’s use of an encrypted Signal chat to share details about a strike on Houthi rebels in Yemen. The report concluded that the former Fox News anchor’s actions could have endangered U.S. personnel.
Appearing at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library on Saturday, Hegseth said he doesn’t “live with any regrets” about his use of Signal.
Trump has continued to praise his Pentagon chief in public, telling reporters on Tuesday that “Pete is doing a great job.” White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt has likewise defended the second September strike. Privately, however, the mood may be shifting, according to The Atlantic.
The outlet reported that Trump is displeased that some Republicans on Capitol Hill are using Hegseth’s record as a reason to challenge the White House — a sign of emerging cracks in what had been nearly uniform GOP loyalty.
This week, Senator Thom Tillis of North Carolina told CNN that Hegseth was wrong to claim the inspector general’s report on his Signal use had cleared him.
“No one can rationalize that as an exoneration,” Tillis said. “We know that mission information was outside of the classified setting that it was trusted to be in.”
On Friday, Senator Rand Paul of Kentucky called for Hegseth to testify under oath about the Caribbean boat strikes.
“I think that Congress, if they had any kind of gumption at all, would not be allowing this administration to summarily execute people that are suspected of a crime,” he told The Independent.
Despite the mounting criticism, many Republicans continue to back Hegseth and argue the Pentagon is functioning effectively under his leadership. And one senior administration official told The Atlantic that Trump is in no position to dismiss his defense secretary and endure another bruising Senate confirmation fight.
“The people around the president have always sensed that Hegseth isn’t really qualified for the job,” the official said. “But he’s redeemed himself in the eyes of the president because he is truly devoted to Trump.”
“That goes a long way,” the official added. “Taking Pete, with all his baggage, is just how it’s gonna be.”
Trump, for his part, has given no signal that the strikes will slow. Instead, he has hinted they could expand beyond maritime targets.
“Very soon we’re going to start doing it on land too,” the president said on Wednesday.
