Republicans quickly turn against US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth after midterm election defeat

(CNN) - US President Donald Trump may have been the one who made the decision to wage war on Iran, which led to a decline in voter support for the Republican Party and caused their terrible defeat in the midterm elections. But these historic losses are now precipitating the search for someone else to take responsibility: Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth.

The House of Representatives may vote, perhaps as early as next week, to impeach the top Pentagon official.

Many Republican lawmakers and their allies, who were terrified by the crushing defeat, are quick to hold Hegseth responsible for the election results. Behind the scenes, they argue, he played a key role in convincing Trump to attack Iran without an exit strategy, and without any plan to deal with the inevitable political fallout.

This fierce campaign comes despite Republican strategists in the House and Senate admitting - in private conversations - that the party's problems go far beyond the war issue, and has led to losses comparable to those witnessed in 2008, losses that may take years to compensate for. However, party leaders - and many of its members - still refuse to blame Trump directly for their crises.

Even among Republicans in the House of Representatives who weathered Tuesday's "storm," there are no signs that they will suddenly break with the president, at a time when there are still two years remaining in his term. But that loyalty does not extend to Hegseth, the confrontational Defense Secretary who has not succeeded in winning allies on Capitol Hill since taking over the Pentagon.

Republicans in the House of Representatives are expected to vote, within days, on an explicit rejection of the Minister of Defense. Representative Thomas Massie of Kentucky - a Republican lawmaker known for his opposition to Trump - told CNN that he intends to put forward a vote to impeach Hegseth as soon as Congress returns to session next week, while multiple Republican sources indicated their expectations that this resolution would pass.

A number of Republican Party members confirmed, in statements to CNN on condition of anonymity, that Hegseth - who was an ardent fan of the war - had greatly exaggerated the ability of the United States to resolve the conflict quickly and easily. They explained that this was the reason behind the shift in the position of many within their party against the Minister of Defense. They accused him of continuing to call for escalation, despite the absence of any indications that the ongoing bombing had pushed Iran toward surrender.

They added that the conflict has turned into a "quagmire" that implicates the United States in the Middle East indefinitely, and exacerbates the cost of living crisis, which led to the outbreak of a revolt by voters against the Republican Party in the midterm elections, while Vice President J.D. Vance issued a statement, on Wednesday, in which he said that "the reason for our loss is the war," without specifying a specific party that bears responsibility for this conflict.

A former senior Pentagon official said that "the turning point had begun" regarding the war and Hegseth, adding: "This was primarily a War Department-led effort, because you chose to resort to military action to resolve a foreign policy issue."

However, despite attempts around him to escalate pressure on Hegseth, Trump's confidence in his defense secretary has not wavered, even as Trump continues to poll his allies' opinions about the secretary's performance, according to what a number of White House officials told CNN.

Trump has personal regard for Hegseth, and has told aides that he believes he should fend off attempts to impeach him or launch investigations into his decisions.

"Just two days ago, the president was with him and said, 'You're my best man. You're the best person I can count on,'" one official said.

Another source familiar with Trump's way of thinking, speaking to CNN, said that Trump may feel an additional need to keep Hegseth in office if he decides to move forward with launching further strikes against Iran. Especially since the new majority enjoyed by Democrats in the Senate may complicate any efforts made by the administration to confirm the appointment of new members of the government.

In response to questions on Wednesday about Hegseth's job status, Trump defended the war effort and denied any plans to fire him, indicating that he believes the Secretary of Defense is "doing a very good job."

Commenting on his decision to go to war, Trump said: “If I had the opportunity to do it again, I would do it again.”

The White House also denounced the possibility of Democrats conducting investigations targeting the Department of Defense (the Pentagon). “If Democrats choose to push through sham investigations and adopt far-left policies, they are choosing to work against the American people,” spokeswoman Lauren Pace said.

However, some Republicans believe that the issue of Trump searching for a party to hold responsible for the losses in the midterm elections is only a matter of time, and they consider Hegseth a clear target in this context.