War Secretary Pete Hegseth is refusing to take sides in a very public Republican blame game, even as he doubles down on the Iran war that Vice President JD Vance says cost the party the midterms. Asked about Vance's post, Hegseth said he appreciates the vice president, called him a substantive member of the team from the start, and said he won't get in the middle of a finger-pointing exercise. He then sided with President Trump, saying a decision "doesn't have to be necessarily popular, but it can be necessary." Hegseth argued that someone had to confront Iran's nuclear ambitions after 47 years of presidents who wouldn't, and he said Trump acted with Midnight Hammer and Epic Fury instead of wishing the problem away. He also claimed Iran has been building a conventional missile shield unlike any the world has seen, and predicted that history will judge Trump "very kindly."

The fight is not just about words. Vance said in a long social media post after Election Day that the war was the main reason Republicans were hit so hard, with the party losing Senate seats and governorships in states Trump and Vance won by double digits in 2024. Trump told reporters Vance's view was "largely true" because the war pushed gas prices up in the short term, but said he would do it all again because he believes it is the only way to stop Iran from getting a nuclear weapon. Critics counter that the war began in February without any obvious active threat from Iran, and reports say some Republicans have questioned Hegseth's future, though Trump says he intends to keep him. The big question now is whether the war becomes the defining fault line inside the GOP as the party looks ahead to 2028.