Republican Rep. Says Hegseth Should Resign If He Was Involved In Follow-On Attack Against Survivors Of Alleged Drug Vessel

Republican Rep. Don Bacon said that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth should leave his post if it's confirmed that he was involved in the decision to conduct a second strike against survivors of a first attack against an alleged drug vessel in the Caribbean.

"We don't kill two survivors who are not posing an imminent threat to anybody. I want to make sure i get the facts, that what's being reported is true. Somebody should held accountable. It should be at the top, not the bottom," Bacon said, noting that officials who followed orders should not be the ones held accountable for the episode.

Asked if Hegseth should be the one to go if accounts are confirmed, Bacon said "absolutely." "I felt that way after Signalgate. He should have taken responsibility and he didn't," Bacon added, in reference to the incident from earlier this year in which Hegseth allegedly shared classified information about an upcoming military operation through unsafe channels and with people not authorized to learn about them.

Bacon is not the only Republican going after Hegseth. Sen Rand Paul also slammed him, saying it seems like the administration is "trying to pin the blame" for the potential consequences of the follow-on attack on "somebody else."

"Hegseth said he had no knowledge of this and it did not happen, that it was fake news and didn't happen. And then the next day, from the podium at the White House, they're saying it did happen," Paul said, in reference to the conflicting accounts from the administration following a report by The Washington Post on the matter.

"So either he was lying to us on Sunday or he's incompetent and didn't know it happened. Do we think there's any chance that on Sunday the secretary of defense didn't know there was a second strike?" Paul added.

Hegseth said on Tuesday during a Cabinet meeting that he didn't see any survivors in the water, noting that after the first strike the vessel "exploded in fire, smoke." "You can't see anything," he added, claiming it was the "fog of war." He then said he didn't "stick around" after the first strike, adding that the admiral in charge "made the right call" in ordering the second hit.

However, another report noted that Pentagon officials are concerned that the Trump administration is throwing an admiral under the bus as a result of the scrutiny.

The Defense Secretary identified Admiral Mitch Bradley by name, saying it was him who ordered the second attack. The Washington Post noted that Adm. Bradley ordered a second strike to finish off survivors to comply with Hegseth's orders that no one be left alive.

The statement, the outlet added, left Defense Department officials angry at the possibility that Hegseth won't take responsibility for any legal consequence that could stem from the attack. "This is 'protect Pete' bullsh-t," one official told the outlet. Some civilian staff are considering leaving the administration, it added.