Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth is not in the running for Marsha Blackburn’s open Tennessee Senate seat, sources close to the governor-elect say, even as chatter grows about his future at the Pentagon.
A source close to Tennessee Gov.-elect Marsha Blackburn told NewsNation that Hegseth is not under consideration to fill her Senate vacancy, The Hill reported. The Associated Press, citing a person familiar with the matter, separately said the same thing and called the speculation “baseless chatter.”
Blackburn, a Republican, is focused on her transition into the governor’s mansion. That is the practical center of the story. The seat will open. The replacement will be a Tennessee decision. And people close to her are already drawing a clear line on Hegseth.
Her office has also taken calls from elected officials who oppose a possible Hegseth appointment, according to a source close to the senator. The message from that camp is straightforward: keep the Defense secretary where he is.
President Trump told reporters Wednesday he is not considering replacing Hegseth. He said the Defense secretary was doing a very good job.
"doing a very good job"
Trump also said Hegseth would be “very popular” if he filled Blackburn’s seat. That is public praise, not a job offer. It leaves the secretary defended in plain sight while Tennessee politics moves on without him.
Two sources told The Hill on Thursday that Trump has been asking advisers and allies about Hegseth’s standing after the midterms. One of those sources said Hegseth is in “a lot of trouble.” The other was less certain how much his position is truly in jeopardy.
Those anonymous readouts sit next to Trump’s on-camera defense. Both were reported. Neither resolves the other. What is clear is the White House is monitoring the political weather around the Pentagon chief while publicly keeping him in place.
Outgoing Rep. Thomas Massie (R-Ky.) has announced he will introduce eight articles of impeachment against Hegseth. Massie has said the only way to stop that effort is for Hegseth to resign on his own. That fight is expected in the lame-duck session of Congress.
The timing matters. A senior Pentagon official said replacing Hegseth would not be “practical” if he left now. Confirming a successor in the lame duck, before Democrats take control of the Senate, would be a steep climb.
"practical"
That is the institutional reality behind the personnel talk. A mid-session shuffle at the Defense Department is hard enough in ordinary times. It gets harder when the Senate majority is about to flip and an impeachment push is already on the table.
Hegseth, a former Army National Guard major, has drawn sustained political heat in the job. The latest Tennessee reporting does not end that fight. It does close one exit ramp some in Washington had floated for him.
The Hill had previously reported that Hegseth was interested in the open seat and had been campaigning for it behind the scenes. The newer sourcing from NewsNation and the AP cuts against that path. He is not in consideration, those sources say.
Other Republicans are. Rep. Tim Burchett of Tennessee has shown interest and campaigned for Blackburn this cycle. Rep. Chuck Fleischmann is also interested. So are former Knox County Mayor Glenn Jacobs and former CoreCivic CEO Damon Hininger.
That is a familiar Tennessee field: sitting House members, a well-known local executive, and private-sector experience. It is the kind of list state parties build when a Senate seat opens through a governor’s race, not through a Pentagon lateral move.
Blackburn’s orbit appears intent on keeping the choice local and workable. Opposition calls to her office underscore how quickly a Hegseth trial balloon drew pushback from elected officials who did not want that fight imported into a Tennessee vacancy.
Trump’s public posture is that Hegseth stays. His private questions to advisers, as described to The Hill, show a president taking soundings after the midterms. That is normal White House management, not a signed resignation letter.
Readers have already seen related pressure campaigns, including coverage of how Trump sounds out advisers on Hegseth’s future when political fallout spikes. The pattern is scrutiny paired with public loyalty, not a clean break.
Hegseth has also taken personnel actions inside the building, including moves tied to alleged leaks, a reminder that the Defense secretary’s day job is still running a vast department under fire. The Tennessee seat talk was always a side plot to that main assignment.
Massie’s impeachment articles keep the lame-duck calendar crowded. Democrats gaining the Senate raise the price of any confirmation battle. A senior Pentagon official already said a quick replacement is not practical under those conditions. That assessment lines up with the Blackburn sourcing: Hegseth is not being moved into the Senate opening.
For conservatives who want a steady hand at the Pentagon and a clean Tennessee succession, the reported outcome is simple. Blackburn’s team is focused on the governorship. Homegrown Republicans are lining up for the seat. And the Defense secretary remains where the president says he belongs, at the Pentagon, not on a Tennessee ballot.
Washington loves a rumor. Tennessee just closed the door on this one.
