Rep. Don Bacon (R-NE) broke ranks with his party Monday, slamming Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth over a growing scandal dubbed “Signalgate”—and directly challenging President Donald Trump’s decision to stand by him.

Bacon, a key Republican voice on national security issues and a former Air Force general, became the first GOP lawmaker to publicly call for Hegseth’s removal, criticizing the Defense Secretary’s handling of sensitive military information. The comments mark a rare moment of intraparty division, as Trump has continued to defend Hegseth amid mounting scrutiny over his use of the encrypted Signal app to discuss classified operations in Yemen.

“I had concerns from the get-go because Pete Hegseth didn’t have a lot of experience,” Bacon told Politico. “I like him on Fox. But does he have the experience to lead one of the largest organizations in the world? That’s a concern.”

The controversy began when it was revealed that Hegseth used Signal to share confidential details of U.S. military missions in Yemen with individuals outside the government, including his wife, brother, and personal attorney. The situation escalated when a journalist was accidentally added to one of the private group chats, leading to unintentional disclosure of operational plans.

RIGA, LATVIA. 17th July 2024. US Congress delegation, during an interview with media after meeting with Evika Silina, Prime Minister of Latvia at Cabinet of Ministers.

“If it’s true that he had another [Signal] chat with his family, about the missions against the Houthis, it’s totally unacceptable,” Bacon added. His comments came in response to a New York Times report detailing the existence of a second Signal thread involving Hegseth and close family members, again without any formal security protocols in place.

While Trump has waved off the reports as “fake news” and attributed them to “disgruntled” former staffers, Bacon made clear he’s not buying the spin.

“I’m not in the White House, and I’m not going to tell the White House how to manage this … but I find it unacceptable, and I wouldn’t tolerate it if I was in charge,” he said.

“Russia and China put up thousands of people to monitor all these phone calls at the very top, and the No. 1 target besides the president … would be the secretary of Defense,” he said. “Russia and China are all over his phone, and for him to be putting secret stuff on his phone is not right. He’s acting like he’s above the law — and that shows an amateur person.”

RIGA, LATVIA. 17th July 2024. Don Bacon (at photo), during meeting with Evika Silina, Prime Minister of Latvia.US Congress delegation visit at Cabinet of Ministers.

“It looks like there’s a meltdown going on,” Bacon added. “There’s a lot — a lot — of smoke coming out of the Pentagon, and I got to believe there’s some fire there somewhere.”

Speaking to Axios, Bacon further emphasized the seriousness of the issue: “The military should always pride itself on operational security. If the reports are true, the Secretary of Defense has failed at operational security, and that is unacceptable.”

He also didn’t hold back on the political double standard, saying, “If a Democrat did this we’d be demanding a scalp. I don’t like hypocrisy. We should be Americans first when it comes to security.”

The Nebraska congressman’s remarks drew a clear line in the sand, putting pressure on fellow Republicans to either close ranks around Trump and Hegseth—or acknowledge the gravity of the accusations.

For now, Trump remains defiant, calling reports of any replacement search for Hegseth “fake news.”