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The White House denied rumors that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and Secretary of State Marco Rubio might leave their positions, as part of expected changes within the Trump administration following the elections.
American media have reported that there are demands to replace Hegseth, especially against the backdrop of his management of the war with Iran, which is said to be the reason the Republican Party suffered heavy losses in the elections.
In this context, a Republican member of Congress - who is about to leave office - threatened to push for a vote to remove Hegseth, perhaps as early as next week. Meanwhile, the Minister of Defense posted a video clip in which he defended his record, denouncing these moves.
“They are attacking me, and they are attacking us because we are achieving effective results,” Hegseth said. “They will not succeed, and we will not back down.”
In parallel, Rubio denies reports that he is considering leaving his position in preparation for running for the presidency in 2028.
Rubio said in an interview with the New York Times that working with Trump until the end of his term was "always part of my plan."
Rubio said: “I love the work that I do. I always laugh when it is said that he is leaving his position, so I wonder: What position do they mean?”
“Rubio is almost as bad for the world as Trump” - article in The Guardian
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Both the White House and the US State Department have denied reports indicating that Rubio may depart following the Republican Party's losses in this week's midterm elections, describing the reports as "fake news."
As for the Minister of Defense, he faces a more uncertain political future.
Both Trump and Vice President J.D. Vance have blamed the “Iran War” for Republican losses, which gave Democrats complete control of the US House of Representatives and Senate.
In a phone interview with ABC News, Trump said that he had received "communications about" Hegseth, but at the same time stressed that he had a "firm intention" to keep him in office.
Later on Thursday, Trump told reporters at the White House that “Pete Hegseth did a great job,” reviewing what he saw as his accomplishments, including the arrest of Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro in January and the Iran War, now in its ninth month.
Furthermore, The Washington Post reported on Thursday that Trump may consider firing General Dan Kaine, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, or Admiral Brad Cooper, commander of US Central Command (CENTCOM). Both officials played a pivotal role in providing advice on the Iran war that broke out eight months ago.
Meanwhile, Republican Representative Thomas Massie - one of Trump's harshest critics - stated that he is continuing with his plans to push for Hegseth's impeachment.
Massie told the Politico news site that he would present his decision to dismiss the Secretary of Defense early next week.
He recommended through the "X" platform that the president should take the initiative to replace Hegseth before the formation of the new Congress in January, which will be under the control of Democrats.
“He should do this while he can still secure Senate confirmation of the replacements,” Massie wrote on the stand.
There were also reports that Hegseth was interested in running for a vacant seat in the Tennessee Senate.
In a video statement, Hegseth denounced what he described as “false articles of impeachment” directed against him by “a disgruntled and defeated congressman, with the help of his allies from the Democratic Party,” reviewing at the same time the achievements made by the ministry - under his leadership - in order to implement Trump’s agenda based on the “America First” principle.
He explained that these achievements include reviving military recruitment operations, rebuilding the defense industrial base, and rooting out diversity initiatives.
Speaking of the Democrats, Hegseth said: “Their policies don't work, so their obsession with 'political theatre' - which they hide behind in pursuit of power - drives them to try to destroy their opponents. It's all just politics based on the personal destruction of others."
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