The White House was in meltdown on Wednesday after Donald Trump's deputy blamed the President's war in Iran for their crushing midterm election defeat.
JD Vance, the Vice President, criticised his boss in a brutal post-mortem of the Republican party's loss.
Top Republicans and Make America Great Again (MAGA) faithful also rounded him, branding the wipeout a 'disaster of the first magnitude'.
'The reason we lost is the war,' Mr Vance said in a lengthy post on social media, adding 'many people who voted for' Trump in 2024 had turned their backs on him.
He also attacked supporters of the Iran war, which has cost the US more than $47billion (£35billion) and plunged the Middle East into chaos.
'If you'd like to argue it was worth it, that losing the Senate for the next six years was worth it, then do so,' Mr Vance wrote. 'Argue it was a worthwhile cost to pay. Agree or disagree, that's at least honest.
'But everyone knows why we lost. And any honest conversation about where we go from here must start there.'
President Trump shrugged off the complaints during a rambling speech in front of the cameras, as he ignored his party's midterm battering.
Instead, he focused on his White House vanity project to build a $400million ballroom, leading to furious criticism within Washington he was 'tone deaf' and 'ignoring the American people'.
The President's oldest child, Donald Trump Jr, even joined in, siding with 'every word' of Vance's criticism, sharing it online.
President Trump shrugged off the complaints during a rambling speech in front of the cameras, as he ignored his party's midterm battering
Instead, he decided to sign one of the last beams used to build the new ballroom
Vice President JD Vance broke his silence about the midterm elections on Wednesday
Amid mounting pressure, Trump was forced to concede Vance's criticism about the Iran war had been 'largely true', adding: 'It drove the gasoline up a little bit - short term - and probably that's true.'
But he remained defiant about attacking Tehran, insisting it had been 'worth it'.
'If I had to do it again, I'd have to do it again because long term, that's the only answer. You can't let Iran have a nuclear weapon,' he told reporters from the construction site of the White House ballroom.
The Vice President's intervention came as the Republicans continue to lick their wounds today following their midterm hammering.
In a series of seismic shocks, Democrats seized control of both the Senate and the House of Representatives, securing wins in states that even a year ago were thought unwinnable.
The political earthquake sent the Left into overdrive after voters passed a damning verdict on Trump having become enraged by high inflation, rising fuel prices due to the Iran war and, increasingly, the sense that corruption had infested his administration.
The White House later sought to defend the embattled President, posting a picture of a clenched-fisted Trump in the Oval Office, saying: '[Public service announcement]: Trump is still your president.'
'Thank you for your attention to this matter,' it added on its official social media account on X.
Republicans were engulfed by a blue wave overnight on Tuesday, losing traditional deep-red heartlands like Kansas, which elected a Democratic senator for the first time since 1932.
On a night of drama, the Democrats also clinched a stunning victory in Texas, securing their first Senator there in almost 30 years after newcomer James Talarico thumped Trump-backed Republican Ken Paxton.
The Lone Star State also backed a Democrat, Gina Hinojosa, for governor, for the first time since 1990.
Even more dramatic was the historic result in Kansas, which sent a Democrat to the US Senate for the first time since the Great Depression.
There were further Democrat Senate victories in Iowa and Ohio, states Trump won by more than 10 percentage points in the 2024 presidential election.
And in one of the most-watched races, left-wing Democrat and Israeli critic Abdul El-Sayed declared victory over Republican Mike Rogers in Michigan, making him the first Muslim elected to the Senate.
The wipeout means Washington DC will face two years of political deadlock, while the President battles against the Democrats to pass future legislation and policies.
Trump signs the last piece of steel to be used in construction of the White House ballroom
The President instead focused on his White House ballroom vanity, visiting the construction site before taking a handful of questions about the midterm wipeout
Jubilant Democrats were quick to gloat about their triumph, hailing the tidal shift in US politics as a 'blue tsunami' or a 'Bluenami'.
'The American people have rebuked the depravity, corruption and incompetence of the failed lame duck president, Donald J Trump,' said Democratic Senator Jon Ossoff as he celebrated his re-election in Georgia.
Although Trump was not on the ballot, the midterms were effectively a nationwide referendum on the President.
However, the American leader appeared unrepentant as he insisted the results were not his fault and instead blamed poor candidates for the wipeout, rounding on the likes of defeated Texas governor Greg Abbott who he described as a RINO (Republican In Name Only).
A White House official later doubled down on the comments, saying: 'Candidate quality matters, and President Trump did a better job promoting many of the candidates on the ballot than the candidates did themselves.'
In the UK, Prime Minister Andy Burnham appeared to dig the knife in as he said Americans had voted for action on the cost of living.
'The world has an opportunity now to unite around the issue that is affecting us all, and that's the cost of living,' Mr Burnham added.
Andy Burnham appeared to dig the knife in as he said Americans had voted for action on the cost of living.
Democrat James Talarico celebrates after winning the Texas race during a midterm election
'I can't get people's cost of living pressures down until the conflict in the Middle East is resolved, the conflict in Ukraine started by Russia. These are the things we have to focus on now, and I hope the world has a moment to do that.'
As the fallout continued yesterday, a civil war within the Republican party appeared to brew, as high-profile members turned on Trump.
'It's on him. It's not on anybody else. It's a total, complete rejection of President Trump,' Bill Miller, a top Republican lobbyist in Texas, told the BBC. 'This is a disaster of the first magnitude. Nobody saw it coming like this.'
'It was just one mistake after another,' said Gregg Peppin, a Republican strategist in Minnesota. 'Clearly, in state after state, people did not like the president's policies.'
Trump dismissed claims he was thinking of sacking Hegseth, telling reporters on Wednesday: 'I think he's doing a good job.'
But the catastrophic loss has left the Republicans vulnerable to Left-wing crackdowns and impeachment campaigns.
Losing both chambers of Congress also means Trump will enter a 'lame duck' period in his final two years in office, with Democrats able to stymie his policy agenda.
Instead of pushing laws through Congress, the President will now have to rely on issuing executive orders in areas where he retains authority, including tariffs, immigration, foreign policy and military actions, and the use of his veto power to stop Democrats' policies from becoming law.
He will also face Democrat-led corruption investigations into himself, his allies and family, and could even be impeached for a third time.
Trump appeared to signal he would look to use his presidential powers against the Democrats, posting a picture of a red hat with the word 'veto' emblazoned on it.
But Democratic congressman Robert Garcia, who will lead some of the probes as chair of the House Oversight Committee, issued a blunt two-word warning to Trump and his allies: 'Lawyer up.'
Hegseth is among those who could be targeted first by the Democrats during an impeachment process, with a US military source claiming his days 'are numbered'.
'Personally, after decades of service and five combat deployments I'm just tired of being called 'woke' by a secretary who seems to spend more time worrying about NCO business than actually making serious policy decisions,' one senior officer told The Times.
The President swept back to power in 2024, promising no more wars and an end to inflation 'on day one'. But as voters went to the polls they were facing higher inflation than two years ago and a fresh war in the Middle East.
In a series of closing polls, 65 per cent of Americans said they believed Trump's policies had worsened the US economy, with 79 per cent claiming they had experienced 'severe or moderate' hardship because of inflation over the last year.
Asked what the most important issue was facing the US, 39 per cent insisted it was the economy while 32 per cent cited fears about the state of democracy.
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