Comer says ‘there’s a lot of questions about Hegseth’ amid impeachment push

Rep. James Comer (R-Ky.), the chair of the powerful House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, said Friday “there’s a lot of questions” in the Republican conference about Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth as Rep. Thomas Massie (R-Ky.) prepares for an impeachment push next week.

“Well, that’s going to be a decision that President Trump’s going to have to make,” Comer said during his appearance on The Hill’s partner network NewsNation when asked if he wants a new face in the Pentagon.

“But I can tell you with a high level of confidence that … there’s a lot of questions about Hegseth. We have no idea what the strategy is moving forward in Iran. No one’s happy about Iran, and I think the Republican voters are more upset about what’s going on in Iran than the Democrat voters.”

Comer’s comments come as The Hill reported that Trump has been asking allies about Hegseth’s standing, and one of the sources said the Pentagon chief is in “a lot of trouble.”

Publicly, Trump has defended Hegseth, saying he was not considering replacing the Defense secretary and that Hegseth, a former Army National Guard major, is “doing a very good job.”

A senior Pentagon official told The Hill on Thursday the prospect of Hegseth being replaced is not “practical,” noting the difficulty of finding a replacement who could be confirmed by the Senate during the lame-duck session — and before Democrats take control of the House following the midterm blue tsunami .

“He is not terribly worried about being replaced,” the senior Pentagon official said.

Hegseth is also expected to face an impeachment salvo in the lame-duck session from Massie, who said he would reintroduce articles of impeachment against the Pentagon chief.

The Defense secretary ripped the impeachment push as nothing more than political theater from a “disgruntled, defeated congressman.”

“Just like they tried against President Trump twice. You see, their policies don’t work, so their obsession with political theater disguised as power drives them to try to destroy their opponents. It’s all about the politics of personal destruction,” Hegseth said in a video posted Thursday. “Didn’t work against President Trump, and it won’t work with me. You can rest assured of that.”

Massie, a vocal critic of the Iran war, has said he would not reintroduce the resolution, which is expected to have significant support from Democrats and some Republicans, if Hegseth resigns.

Comer also said Friday he has heard from Republican voters who are “mad” about the Iran war, which has dragged on for more than eight months, and are dissatisfied with the rise in gas prices.

“They are mad that we’re in this situation in Iran,” Comer told NewsNation host Markie Martin. “They’re mad over gas prices, and a lot of them stayed home. I do not think, at least in Kentucky, I don’t think that these upset MAGA people voted Democrat. They just didn’t vote. So we’ve got to regain their trust. I think we can do it.”