Sen. Thom Tillis (R-NC) accused Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth of retreating from scrutiny and surrounding himself with loyalists, telling CNN on Sunday that the Pentagon chief has “demonstrated a kind of snowflake-ish behavior” in his dealings with the press, according to Breitbart’s account of the interview.
Appearing on “State of the Union,” Tillis was pressed by anchor Jake Tapper about his previously stated view that Hegseth should leave his post. Tapper asked whether Republican colleagues privately share that assessment when the cameras and microphones are off.
Tillis did not claim a formal tally of GOP senators backing removal. Instead, he described a broader unease on Capitol Hill over how the administration has handled personnel matters and its relationship with the Senate.
Frustration Over ‘Lack of Respect’
“I think there’s a growing frustration with the lack of respect being shown to Congress, and particularly the Senate, with our role in the personnel business, confirming nominees,” Tillis said.
That frustration, he suggested, extends beyond his own well-documented criticism of the secretary. Tillis has been among the more vocal Republican skeptics of Hegseth, and his decision to air those concerns on national television underlines the unusual public friction between a sitting senator and a defense secretary in his own party.
The North Carolina Republican pointed specifically to changes in how the Defense Department engages with the press. Hegseth, Tillis said, chose to push out serious reporters and replace them with what the senator described as an echo chamber at the Pentagon.
The remark echoed a long-running complaint from journalists who cover the department, who have argued that reduced access and tightly managed media environments make it harder for the public to understand military operations. Tillis framed the issue less as a media grievance than as a question of institutional confidence.
‘Bring It On’
Offering what amounted to advice for the secretary, Tillis said the way to handle a hostile question is with a substantive answer rather than avoidance.
“The best antidote to a mean question from the press is a really good, well-founded answer,” he said. “And bring it on. Ask me the questions. I’m going to have an answer.”
Tillis also said Hegseth needs to lead, to believe in what he is doing, and to understand that support from Congress is essential to his success. That backing, the senator argued, is the surest way for Hegseth to address his current difficulties and to persuade the American people to stand behind the military effort.
The interview comes as the administration pursues a campaign aimed at denying Iran the capability to develop a nuclear weapon โ an objective Tillis said he shares.
A War Effort Without Public Support
The senator’s sharpest warning was reserved for the political footing of that mission. “The effort that we have before us now does not have the support of the American people,” he said. “And we need that. And with that, we will be successful.”
That assessment contrasts with the public messaging from the administration, which has presented the campaign as necessary to make the Middle East safer and to secure Israel’s future. Tillis said he agrees with those goals, which is precisely why he finds the current situation so frustrating.
His comments place him in a familiar position: aligned with the administration’s stated objectives abroad while openly questioning the leadership charged with carrying them out. The tension between those two stances has defined much of the Senate’s posture toward the Pentagon over the past year, with lawmakers from both parties demanding more consultation before military actions and more transparency afterward.
Tillis did not specify what steps, if any, he intends to take to force a change at the department. He also did not name Republican colleagues he believes share his view, leaving open the question of whether the frustration he describes will translate into any concrete pressure on the secretary’s standing.
What the exchange did make clear is that the debate over Hegseth’s tenure is no longer confined to private conversations. By repeating his call for the secretary to go and adding a fresh criticism of the department’s media practices, Tillis ensured the dispute will continue playing out publicly โ even as the administration works to build support for a military campaign that, by his own account, has yet to win over the country.
Source: www.breitbart.com โ https://www.breitbart.com/clips/2026/09/27/sen-tillis-hegseth-has-demonstrated-a-kind-of-snowflake-ish-behavior/