Senator Thom Tillis has publicly reversed his support for Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, moving from backing his confirmation and defending that vote to calling it his "biggest regret" and urging him to resign. The North Carolina Republican, who has increasingly broken with President Donald Trump and members of his administration since announcing his retirement, made the latest comments in a CBS 60 Minutes interview tied to the release of his new book. CBS reported that Tillis now considers his vote to confirm Hegseth his "biggest regret" and believes the Pentagon chief should step down.
The comments mark the latest chapter in Tillis' increasingly public break with the Trump administration, a rift recently centered on Hegseth, the Iran war and the administration's approach to military leadership. Newsweek reached out to Tillis' office, the White House and the Pentagon for comment on Monday. Tillis was among the Republicans who voted to confirm Hegseth as defense secretary in January 2025.
At the time, Tillis praised Hegseth's military service and said he looked forward to working with him on Trump's "peace through strength" agenda. "Pete has a unique perspective as a veteran of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and is unquestionably passionate about modernizing our military and supporting the brave patriots like himself who serve our nation," Tillis said before voting to support his confirmation. Even after concerns began emerging about Hegseth's tenure, Tillis initially stood by that decision.
In a July 2025 interview with CNN's Jake Tapper, Tillis criticized Hegseth as "amateurish" over a pause in weapons shipments to Ukraine and questioned his management abilities. But he nevertheless defended his confirmation vote. "That's from somebody who doesn't understand large organization dynamics," Tillis said of Hegseth's handling of the issue, adding that he did not regret voting to confirm him with the information he had at the time.
At the same time, however, Tillis signaled growing doubts. "With the passing of time, I think it's clear he's out of his depth as a manager of a large, complex organization," the senator said. "I don't think his probationary period has been very positive." Tillis' criticism accelerated throughout 2026.
In May, he issued one of the sharpest Republican warnings yet after reports that General Chris Donahue could be sidelined as part of a Pentagon restructuring. Tillis accused Hegseth of making "impulsive decisions not grounded in reality or good judgment" and said the defense secretary was surrounding himself with "yes-men" rather than experienced military advisers. "If the rumors are true that Hegseth is trying to sideline General Chris Donahue, one of our nation's finest warfighters, by downgrading U.S.
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