Defiant Pete Hegseth lashes out in fiery video saying impeachment 'won't work with me' as ouster chatter reaches climax

Pete Hegseth broke his silence on impeachment threats in a fiery new video following chatter that he could be ousted from the Trump administration after the GOP suffered historic losses in the midterm elections.President Donald Trump admitted after Tuesday's bloodbath for Republicans that voters did not agree with the war in Iran - largely orchestrated by Hegseth, the Secretary of War. Now insiders say that Hegseth could take the fall for the 'bluenami' that handed Democrats control of Congress.And he's facing two potential impeachment efforts - the first orchestrated by anti-Trump Republican Thomas Massie, who plans to force a vote in the House - and a second by incoming Democrats with subpoena power. And there's also chatter that Trump could fire him from his Cabinet, which the president has denied. But a very defiant Hegseth posted a video on X standing in front of the Department of War claiming he's not going anywhere. 'We don't back down,' the Secretary of War said in his address. 'And that especially applies now.''The next few months and years are critical for our department and our Republic.'He went on to claim that the president's war against Iran was a 'historic and courageous effort,' regardless of 'how people feel' about it.In his address, Hegseth also accused Democrats of being 'obsessed' with leading a personal vendetta against him and calling for his impeachment but insisted it 'won't work' with him. After his Chief of Staff Susie Wiles (right) and even Secretary of State Marco Rubio had been named by GOP operatives hungry for a scapegoat, it seemed Trump had settled on a different name 'The President was blindsided by the tweet,' a White House official told the Daily Mail, saying Trump had not authorized Vance's statement before it went outThis follows news that the White House is being rattled by calls from GOP operatives who are hungry for a scapegoat to blame for the midterm humiliation.After Trump's Chief of Staff Susie Wiles and even Secretary of State Marco Rubio were floated as potential victims, Hegseth's name was quickly in the mouths of many Republicans as most likely to be let go.According to White House insiders who talked to the Daily Mail, Trump has been canvassing a handful of close advisers, asking whether Hegseth should keep his job or be let go.'Trump is making phone calls, contemplating it,' said a senior Republican. But on early Thursday, Trump insisted he has 'every intention to keep him.' He conceded the Pentagon chief has critics in his ear. 'I get these calls, you know, about him. I don't understand why,' Trump told ABC News.However, the president also acknowledged that it would be easier to confirm a new Defense Secretary before Democrats take control of the Senate in January. Republican sources further alleged that Trump is ‘encouraging’ Governor-elect Marsha Blackburn to appoint Pete Hegseth to her Senate seat.If Blackburn resigned, Governor Bill Lee appointing Hegseth could allow Trump time to confirm a new Pentagon chief before the new year.The case against Hegseth is not the Iran war itself – now being blamed in many conservative quarters, including by the Vice President JD Vance, for Tuesday's drubbing – but what the President was told about it, according to one source, who described Trump repeatedly learning of important operational updates from the Persian Gulf after the fact. 'The President was blindsided by the tweet,' a White House official told the Daily Mail, saying Trump had not authorized Vance's statement before it went out.At the same time, the fight for the 2028 Republican presidential nomination is engaged in full force.Just over a year before the first nominating contests, Republicans are shopping for their first presidential nominee who isn't Trump since 2012. Vance's chances of becoming the nominee appear to have diminished in the blink of a day. What is emphatically clear is that if he wants to be elected president in 2028, he will have to fight fiercely for it.'The reason we lost is the war,' Vance wrote on X Wednesday, citing a pollster's findings about Trump voters who defected to Democrats.This is a developing story...