“Troops Deserve Better”: Rep. Eugene Vindman demands Pete Hegseth's resignation over Trump loyalty

Congressman Eugene Vindman demanded the resignation of Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth on Thursday, accusing him of prioritizing President Donald Trump's public image over the safety of American soldiers. Sharing a clip of his questioning during the Hegseth House Armed Services Committee hearing, Vindman said the defense secretary is clearly worried about the president's image and that the troops deserve better. 

At a House Armed Services Committee hearing, Vindman questioned Defense Secretary Hegseth about the ongoing war in Iran, pressing him on who authorized the initial strike and how command decisions were made. He mentioned the six Army soldiers, including a constituent of his, who were killed by an Iranian drone strike, asking if Hegseth took responsibility for those deaths. He then went on to take up the issue of Hegseth complaining about the media wanting to make the president look bad when something tragic happens. "Is it about the soldiers, or is it about the president looking bad?" he asked. When Hegseth said, "It's not just the media that wants to make him look bad, it's you," Vindman said it was "reprehensible" for him to make that statement. Sharing the clip of the questioning on X, the Congressman wrote: It’s clear that @SecWar cares more about protecting the president’s image than our soldiers. He must resign. Our troops deserve better."

So far, according to Al Jazeera, the U.S. military has confirmed 13 combat-related deaths across the Middle East and one "health-related" incident. On March 13, the U.S. military’s Central Command (CENTCOM), which is responsible for the operations in the Middle East, announced six crew members of a refueling aircraft were killed in a crash in Iraq. Furthermore, about 373 U.S. service members have been wounded in the conflict, and U.S. Navy Capt. Tim Hawkins confirmed to TIME on April 7 that the “vast majority” of those have been minor injuries. Meanwhile, critics have argued that there could be a potential cover-up on the death toll, as Iranian forces claim the numbers are much higher. 

This is not the first time that Vindman has questioned Hegseth's leadership. Earlier, when the defense secretary announced that "no quarter will be given", Vindman argued that it was a violation of international laws and it could endanger U.S. troops. "I’ve trained hundreds, conservatively probably thousands, of soldiers on the law, and everybody—even privates—knows that that’s illegal. And now this is a pattern from Pete Hegseth. This administration—they learn by trial and error," Vindman said in an interview on MS NOW. He added that the president and Hegseth don't have the knowledge or experience to carry out an operation, and "It is actually painful to watch the cavalier attitude toward American conscience".  "It is obscene," he added. 

Meanwhile, on Thursday, the U.S. Central Command said the American forces had "responded with self-defense strikes" on Iranian targets after three Navy destroyers came under fire, despite the ceasefire agreement. According to CBS News, the U.S. military targeted two Iranian ports, Bandar Abbas and Qeshm. The development adds to the tension in the region as Iran is in the process of reviewing the latest U.S. proposal to end the war. Tehran is also attempting to formalize its control over the Strait of Hormuz, which has been nearly shut down since the U.S. launched a blockade.