U.S. President Donald Trump said Monday that if Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth is impeached, he will stand by him. He said the Pentagon chief should keep his job because he “won two wars.”

Outgoing Republican Rep. Thomas Massie on Monday introduced a resolution to impeach Hegseth, citing, among other things, his actions during the war with Iran. A vote on the resolution is expected within two days. Trump criticized the initiative and, at an impromptu White House briefing, did not spare Massie harsh words.

– He shouldn’t be taking up the time of Congress, the Senate, or doing what he’s doing at all. He’s a total loser, Trump said.

– You could come to him with the greatest bill in the world, even one that Democrats voted for, and he would still be against it. And I would think: ‘What is wrong with this man?’ He’s a sick, really sick man. There’s really something wrong with him, the president continued.

– And now he’s attacking Pete Hegseth, too. He doesn’t like Hegseth. But really, what did Hegseth do wrong? He won a war. He led and won the war in Venezuela. (…) And in my opinion, he certainly won the war with Iran as well. Or at least he is definitely winning it. Iran would very much like to make a deal, and it has been decimated, Trump stressed.

He said that even if Hegseth is impeached, he will support him because he “won two wars.”

Referring to the conflict with Iran, Trump declared that “at this stage, military action probably won’t be necessary.”

– But we are at full combat readiness and prepared to act if anything changes, the U.S. president said.

– There are increasingly clear signs that the conflict is heading toward an end, Trump said. He has repeatedly declared in the past that the war would end soon.

From Washington, Natalia Dziurdzińska (PAP)