The White House denied rumors that U.S. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth and U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio could leave their positions as a result of post-election reshuffles in the Trump administration. UNN reports this, citing the BBC.
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U.S. media reported calls for Hegseth to be replaced, in particular because of his actions regarding the war with Iran, which is believed to have caused major Republican defeats in the elections.
One outgoing Republican congressman threatened to initiate a vote on Hegseth's impeachment as early as next week. The U.S. secretary of defense posted a video statement in which he defended his performance and condemned such attempts.
"You see, they are attacking me. They are attacking us because we are effective," he said. "It won't work. We will not back down."
Meanwhile, Rubio is denying reports that he is considering leaving his position ahead of the 2028 presidential election.
Rubio denied rumors of resigning to run for president06.11.26, 08:29
The White House and the U.S. State Department also denied reports of Rubio's possible resignation following this week's defeat in the midterm elections, calling them "fake news."
However, the future of the U.S. secretary of defense remains uncertain, the publication notes.
Both Trump and Vice President J.D. Vance blamed the war with Iran for the Republicans' defeat, which allowed Democrats to gain full control of the U.S. House of Representatives and Senate.
In a telephone interview with ABC News, Trump said he had received "calls" regarding Hegseth, but added that he intended to keep him in the position.
Later on Thursday, November 5, he told reporters at the White House that "Pete Hegseth has done a fantastic job" and listed some of his achievements, including the arrest of Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro in January and the war with Iran, which has been ongoing for nine months.
Trump said he does not plan to fire Hegseth as secretary of defense04.11.26, 22:39
There were also rumors that Hegseth was interested in running for the vacant Senate seat in Tennessee.