GOP Sen. John Kennedy hedges on support for Hegseth

Sen. John Kennedy (R-La.) on Sunday dodged questions about Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth as other Republicans voice concerns over the Iran war and senior Defense staff turnover.

NBC News’s Kristen Welker asked the senator on “Meet the Press” if he still had confidence in Hegseth.

“Well, it’s not my place to have confidence in him,” Kennedy responded.

Welker pressed Kennedy, suggesting that as a senator, he should have an opinion on Hegseth’s leadership. The Louisiana Republican conceded, saying it was “clear” the Defense secretary has consolidated his power by firing “some pretty good people.”

“Whether they deserve it or not, I don’t know,” the lawmaker said. “I voted for him. I’d probably vote for him again until evidence is shown to me that he shouldn’t have fired these guys. But I’m not worried about the personalities.”

Kennedy said he was worried about two things, the first being that the U.S. needs “more butts, not just for Iran, but for the world.”

“And No. 2, we need to be partnering up with Ukraine to develop a new way to fight wars,” he added. “And that begins with drones. And No. 3, we need to give the military some more money.”

Kennedy noted that Congress would likely have to pass legislation in order to give more money to the Pentagon, something he anticipated Democrats would oppose.

The Defense Department recently came under fire by the House Appropriations Committee’s top Democrat for secretly attempting to divert billions in National Institutes of Health funding to bolster its own budget without congressional approval.

“And that’s the way I see it,” Kennedy said Sunday. “You may disagree, but that’s what makes the world go around.”

Senate Republicans will expect Hegseth to answer for the departures of several senior military officials, including Army Secretary Dan Driscoll — who resigned last week.

Hegseth and the Trump administration are also set to ask senators for more than $70 billion in emergency national security spending to cover the growing costs of the Iran war.

Lawmakers like Sen. Thom Tillis (R-N.C.), formerly of the Senate Armed Services Committee, have voiced frustration with Hegseth’s leadership, calling it “inept management.” Tillis also urged President Trump to fire the Defense secretary and “find a new leader at the Pentagon who will retain and empower our military talent rather than diminish it.”

Senior Senate Armed Services Committee member Sen. Mike Rounds (R-S.D.) said he was “disappointed” about Driscoll’s resignation. House Armed Services Committee Chair Mike Rogers (R-Ala.) said he was “tired of all the churn” within the Pentagon and called for “stability” in its senior ranks.

Hegseth is reportedly eyeing several Driscoll replacements — including Pentagon spokesperson Sean Parnell, assistant secretary of the Army Marc Andersen, assistant secretary of Defense Derrick Anderson and Rep. Brian Mast (R-Fla.), chair of the House Foreign Affairs Committee and an Army veteran.