Why are US Republicans losing faith in War Secretary Pete Hegseth?

What the report says

Republican confidence in US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth appears to be weakening, according to Al Jazeera, as frustration grows over the open-ended war with Iran and broader concerns about how he is running the Pentagon. The report says criticism is coming from several Republican senators, though their complaints are not identical.

Among the flashpoints is Hegseth’s push to nominate Gen. Christopher LaNeve as Army chief of staff after earlier replacing Gen. Randy George. Senate Republicans including Joni Ernst and Roger Wicker questioned the nomination, while Wicker has also pressed the administration on the legal basis for US strikes on boats in the Caribbean that Trump said were linked to drug trafficking. The article says those requests for legal clarification were not answered.

Other Republicans have objected to Hegseth’s wider Pentagon agenda. Mitch McConnell criticized parts of the department’s large budget request, including the proposed Golden Dome missile-defense project, and argued that strained ties with NATO and other allies could weaken US deterrence. Al Jazeera also notes that Hegseth has faced earlier controversy over classified-information handling and over lethal strikes in Venezuelan waters that drew legal scrutiny.

Hegseth, a former Army officer and Fox News host, was chosen by Trump in 2024 and renamed by Trump as secretary of war. The growing GOP unease matters because it suggests support for one of Trump’s top defense appointees may be eroding at a moment of major military commitments and internal Pentagon change.