Data expert reveals the Cabinet official 'hated by everyone'

U.S. President Donald Trump speaks during a cabinet meeting at the White House in Washington, D.C., U.S., March 26, 2026. REUTERS/Evelyn Hockstein

CNN data analyst Harry Enten in Thursday walked through the likability problem one of President Donald Trump's top officials is facing.

As the Iran war rages onward and more and more evidence is revealed about just how badly America is fairing, Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth could be caught holding the bag. Voters and defense insiders see Hegseth as putting his own personal culture-war politics, individual loyalty and public spectacle ahead of top military matters like readiness, competent management and transparent accountability.

Enten explained that Hegseth's numbers are now as low as Donald Rumsfeld's were ahead of the 2006 GOP bloodbath election in which Democrats ended the GOP control over government.

"You know, we start off the title slide asking who hates Hegseth? And basically everyone," Enten explained. "If you're the American public, no wonder, no wonder the speaker sent everybody home. Because just take a look here. Hegseth net approval: You know, back before the Iran war started back in January of 2026, right? It was minus nine points. You think that's tough?"

Hegseth is now at minus 25, which is exactly the number Rumsfeld reached just before the 2006 election. He was ultimately fired by then-President George W. Bush. Rumsfeld was dealing with the unpopular Iraq war. Rumsfeld reached an all-time low at -38 points, and Hegseth isn't there yet.

His low standing also reflects the unpopularity of the Iran war and the controversy over his treatment of senior military leaders.

Even before the war started, Enten said that Hegseth was suffering from a -20 point score. It isn't merely Democrats either, he's underwater with Independents to the tune of -43 points.

Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) sent members home early Wednesday after Rep. Thomas Massie (R-Ky.) introduced Articles of Impeachment for the secretary.

"No wonder Speaker Johnson did not want his Republican representatives to actually have to vote on this, because if they voted with the president, they'd be voting against the American public. Because the bottom line is, Pete Hegseth is hated by basically everyone," Enten said.

Ex-Republicans Tim Miller and Bill Kristol recalled in The Bulwark podcast that ahead of the 2006 election, Bush desperately wanted to fire Rumsfeld, but decided not to, saying he didn't want to give Democrats ammunition. They both thought that was a dumb move.

"So, you see this comparison between Pete Hegseth and Donald Rumsfeld, right? And you say, okay, how are the wars actually being judged? And this, to me, is probably one of the most dangerous signals for Republicans as they head into this midterm election, because it was the Iraq War that was part of the reason that Republicans lost those House and Senate majorities," Enten recalled.

Ironically, the Iraq War wasn't that unpopular in Sept. 2006. The Iran war is a very different matter at -23 points.

"Very similar to what Pete Hegseth's own net popularity rating is. His net approval rating -23 -25," Enten continued. "The Iran war is actually a bigger drag, at least in the abstract, than the Iraq war was. And so you see this right here: You see Pete Hegseth's unpopularity."

He reiterated that this is why Republicans don't want to have to answer for Hegseth.

"And again, I just say Republican representatives do not want to have to answer for Pete Hegseth or this war when it comes to the midterm election because if they do, you can say, 'see you later. Goodbye' to that House majority, for sure. And that Senate majority may be as well. It is not good news for Republicans when it comes to this war or Pete Hegseth individually," he closed.

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