Latest. Hegseth answered the articles himself at a press conference on Tuesday, calling the effort “a farce, and it’s a stunt, and everybody knows it”, a “political spectacle” and a “circus” that “puts a target on the back of American warriors” and amounts to sabotage rather than patriotism. He insisted every operation the articles cite, the strikes on Iran and Yemen, the attacks on alleged drug boats and the capture of Venezuela’s Nicolas Maduro, was lawful, ordered by President Trump and notified to Congress, denied that the US military targets civilians, and described Massie as “one disgruntled guy”, saying his team had worked with Speaker Johnson and that he had a “ton of support” on Capitol Hill. The House is expected to take the resolution up on Tuesday evening, likely beginning with a procedural vote to table it; the Republican majority is 218 to 214 and only members present can vote, which is why several House Republicans have told Fox News privately that they believe impeachment could pass.
Representative Thomas Massie read eight articles of impeachment against Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth on the House floor on Monday and filed them as a privileged resolution, the procedure that starts a two legislative day clock. The House must now vote on the articles themselves, vote to refer them to committee, or vote to table them, which would kill them. Each option is a recorded vote, and a vote could come as early as Wednesday.
The 34 page resolution centres on the war with Iran. Three articles accuse Hegseth of violating the War Powers Resolution of 1973 by waging war without congressional authorisation, continuing hostilities beyond the statute’s limits, and disregarding laws meant to limit civilian deaths in military operations. The remaining articles cover lethal strikes on alleged drug trafficking boats in the Caribbean, the seizure of Venezuela’s Nicolas Maduro, operations in Yemen, and alleged retaliation against Senator Mark Kelly. The articles are allegations, stated in a political charging document; Hegseth has defended the Iran war and the strikes as lawful uses of authority.
This is Massie’s second attempt. He first filed the articles in mid September, before the House left for the midterm elections without voting, and he said he would refile unless Hegseth resigned. Massie lost his Republican primary in May to a Trump backed challenger and leaves Congress in January, which frees him from leadership discipline but also limits his leverage beyond this week.
The alignments are unusual. Speaker Mike Johnson opposes the effort, saying impeachment in the middle of hostilities would be a terrible signal to allies and enemies, and President Donald Trump said Hegseth should be praised, not impeached. Hakeem Jeffries, the Democratic leader in line to become speaker in January, said on Sunday he is a hard yes, a position this site reported on November 8. Congressional sources have told wire reporters the resolution may have the simple majority needed to pass the House as currently composed, which Republicans control until January 3, but no whip count has been published and the claim is reported, not confirmed.
Even if the House impeached Hegseth, he would be only the third cabinet secretary in US history to be impeached, and removal would require two thirds of the Senate, which is considered unlikely. The near term significance is narrower and real: a war powers vote, forced by a Republican, on the record, in the lame duck’s first week.