Trump, Hegseth
Pete Hegseth looks at Donald Trump during a dinner with Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu. REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque

As the war with Iran escalates, Donald Trump’s patience is at its end — and he will be looking for a scapegoat sooner rather than later, MS NOW's analysts said Tuesday.

According to “Morning Joe” co-host Jonathan Lemire, that will likely be Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, who has given the president a wealth of reasons to dismiss him dating back to his Senate confirmation hearings.

During a segment on reports that there are more military casualties in the war than have been publicly announced by the Pentagon, Lemire said all the bad news out of Iran is weighing on the president — and there is no way he will take the blame.

“Secretary Hegseth, you know, he still, I am told, is liked by the president,“ Lemire told co-host Joe Scarborough before adding, “He does not have that many fans in the administration otherwise, that's been the case from the very beginning, from even the transition when he wasn't very truthful with the vetting teams about some of the issues in his past.

“But at least, right now, Trump is still on board. But I am told that if this continues to bog down, whether it's a low-level conflict or a high-intensity resumption of war for months, Trump will eventually look for a fall guy, and it's hard to imagine it being anyone other than Pete Hegseth.”

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