And the media was running anonymous stories claiming that Hegseth's colleagues thought he should resign; for instance, Trump allies are starting to notice Hegseth's growing pile of mistakes - POLITICO and Concerns about Hegseth’s judgment come roaring back after group chat scandal | CNN Politics.

Pete Hegseth has been targeted for destruction, but he was merely a participant in the chat group. This isn't new. It comes after another failed attempt to claim that Hegseth had briefed Elon Musk on top-secret war plans targeting China.... The question is: Why?

The answer to that, I think, lies in what Hegseth has done since taking the reins at the Pentagon. He has swiftly removed the most problematic military leaders and replaced them with people who support his agenda. He has largely uprooted the massive DEI infrastructure transplanted into the Pentagon during the Obama years and nurtured to maturity under Biden. He has made great strides in focusing the Pentagon on fighting and winning wars. I think the team he is building will begin to repair much of the damage done to the services, particularly the Navy. His willingness to work with DOGE ensures he is making enemies in the right places. As we've noted before, Hegseth is facing a lot of pushback from the status quo in the Department of Defense, and he's not backing down. //

There is no logical reason why Pete Hegseth should resign or be fired over the Signal fiasco, but there is a very logical reason why that blunder is being used to discredit him and try to have him removed. Hegseth is an existential challenge to the left's "long march" through the military. He's taking back ground the left fought hard to gain in turning the military into a giant petrie dish for social experimentation. The team he is putting together holds the promise of being transformative. That is why Pete Hegseth has become the target.