Pete Hegseth Denies NBC Report That He’s Weighing a 2028 Presidential Run

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NBC News reported Friday, citing two people described as familiar with the conversations, that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has discussed with close friends and associates the idea of running for president in 2028. The report said Hegseth and his wife, Jennifer, have floated the idea privately for several months. NBC’s report drew heavily on anonymous sourcing, including an unnamed “Republican operative” who told the outlet, “Hegseth is good for men, for base voters. He encapsulates that masculinity that Trump captured in 2024,” and a “pro-Trump operative” who said MAGA “really loves Hegseth” but that he would need to “deliver the goods” if he ran.

Hegseth responded within hours on X, rejecting the story outright: “100% false. We told NBC that, but they just lie w/ anonymous ‘sources.'” He added, “My only job: Make [the Department of War] Great Again,” and closed with, “Carry on Patriots, and enjoy your Friday night.” Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell echoed the denial: “Secretary Hegseth is not running for President, and his main priority is leading the War Department. All other speculation is foolish.”

Details & Background

One on-the-record voice in NBC’s story took a different tone. American Conservative Union chairman Matt Schlapp said, “Pete Hegseth should consider running for president. He’s an impressive guy and has a tremendous amount of energy.” The report surfaces roughly two weeks after Hegseth traveled to Iowa to campaign for Rep. Zach Nunn at the Iowa State Fair — a trip the Pentagon characterized as personal, but one political scientists noted doubles as prime early-primary positioning given Iowa’s leadoff caucus role. Vice President JD Vance also campaigned in Iowa around the same period.

The speculation comes as Hegseth’s standing among Republican senators has shown signs of strain. A Marquette Law School poll taken July 22-29 found Hegseth’s net favorability at -22 points, down sharply from +36 in a May survey. Sen. Thom Tillis, R-N.C., said he had “lost my confidence” in Hegseth’s leadership, citing forced retirements of senior officers, while Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine, called the officer departures “deeply troubling.” A separate Washington Post report alleged a tense Camp David confrontation between Trump and Hegseth over munitions shortages, though the White House disputed it flatly, with Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt calling it “100% fake news” that “literally never happened.”

Reactions

Neither President Trump nor Vance has commented directly on NBC’s 2028 report. That silence is notable given a separate, earlier Washington Post account, sourced to two people familiar with an Oval Office meeting, reporting that Trump told donors, “At the end of the day, we need to elect JD,” with an unnamed adviser saying Trump has privately settled on Vance as his preferred successor. Some officials cautioned that account wasn’t final, and Trump has kept both Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio in play in past remarks.

Early 2028 primary polling underscores how far a Hegseth candidacy would have to travel. Vance led a March CPAC straw poll with 53% to Hegseth’s 1%, and later summer polling from Echelon Insights and Emerson College showed Vance and Rubio well ahead of the field, with Hegseth not registering in the top tier. White House deputy press secretary Anna Kelly offered general praise rather than addressing the speculation directly, saying, “Secretary Hegseth is doing an incredible job leading the Pentagon, and his results speak for themselves.”

Why This Matters to You

Whether or not Hegseth is truly weighing a run, the fact that NBC’s sources felt confident enough to go on record with such specific detail — and that a networked conservative figure like Schlapp would encourage it publicly — signals real jockeying inside Trump’s coalition ahead of 2028, even as the sitting defense secretary insists he’s focused solely on his current job.

The episode also highlights the gap between Hegseth’s polling standing among the broader public, where his favorability has fallen sharply, and his enduring appeal to the party’s base — the tension that will likely define whether any Hegseth 2028 talk resurfaces as more than a denied NBC story.