Members of the military sit for a meeting convened by U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, at Marine Corps Base Quantico, in Quantico, Virginia, U.S., September 30, 2025. REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque
Tuesday brings the hotly anticipated Kentucky Republican Senate primary, which pits incumbent Senator Thomas Massie (R-KY) against former Navy SEAL Ed Gallrein, the latter of whom has been endorsed by President Donald Trump. For months, Trump has been raging against Massie for pushing for the Epstein file release and voting against several of the president’s key pieces of legislation, and as a result, MAGA has erupted with infighting for and against the Senator as administration officials have made last-minute arguments against.
Among those officials is Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, who on Monday delivered a speech railing against Massie. Commentators have noted that this is a “stark break from Pentagon norms” as it is highly unusual for Pentagon leadership to stump for elections. And according to former Republican congressman and Air Force officer Adam Kinzinger, not only is Hegseth’s behavior abnormal, but it’s diminishing the military’s trust in him.
“I can never remember a secretary of defense doing any campaigning for anybody whatsoever. Aren’t we at war? I thought we were at war,” said Kinzinger, speaking to CNN. When asked what message Hegseth was sending to the military, Kinzinger did not have a positive assessment, saying, “That he’s not serious… I’ve heard from more of my friends negative things about Pete Hegseth than I’ve heard about any other defense secretary. It didn’t start out that way. Initially, there were some things they were doing that they liked — reduction in some of the ancillary training that each military member had to do — but it’s turned into a show. It’s turned into an act.”
What’s more, Kinzinger claimed that many in the military have been angered by the mishandling and lack of transparency regarding the war with Iran.
“Many of them are engaged in the war in Iran in some way or another, and they knew the truth,” he explained. “Some of the missiles were getting through the defenses, and Hegseth would go out there and say everything’s fantastic and perfect and we won. So I think there’s been real damage to the trust the military has of Pete Hegseth.”
Beyond the military, Kinzinger argued that the administration’s antagonism toward Massie and other political allies is a strategic mistake that will have major consequences at the ballot box. For example, on the topic of Trump’s spat of attacks against Representative Lauren Boebert (R-CO), who over the weekend expressed support for Massie, Kinzinger said, “It’s going to be terrible for the midterms. I feel like he’s already written those off. And if he hasn’t, then he has no idea how to campaign. They’re in the middle of this kind of civil war within the GOP while they need to be doing everything they can to try and hold their majority.”
Regardless of how the Kentucky primary turns out, Kinzinger isn’t optimistic about the future of the Republican party. Noting that Boebert “has been one of the biggest Donald Trump enablers out there,” he suggests that the attacks against her indicate where the GOP is headed.
“This is how you build a cult,” he warned. “You make it very clear that you cannot cross the cult leader in any way. Whatever the outcome is, this is extremely damaging to the Republican coalition.”
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