Pete Hegseth has avoided impeachment for now after House Republicans blocked a vote on allegations against the Pentagon chief. Congressman Thomas Massie from Kentucky filed articles of impeachment on Monday, accusing Hegseth of unlawfully engaging in military actions in Iran and Yemen, as well as capturing former Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and targeting suspected drug trafficking vessels. Hegseth has strongly denied these claims.
The impeachment process required a procedural vote, but with Republicans controlling the House until January, the measure failed to advance on Tuesday. The House voted 211 to 204 to send the articles to the Judiciary Committee, effectively ending the effort.
This isn’t Massie’s first attempt to impeach Hegseth. Previously, he introduced articles against the defence secretary in September over the Iran war, but House Speaker Mike Johnson dismissed the proposal without a vote.
Before Tuesday’s vote, Massie acknowledged that some colleagues did not support all eight articles of impeachment but expressed determination to find a way to remove Hegseth. He stated, “I’ve heard from several members they agree with some of the Articles of Impeachment but not all of them. If the motion to kill my resolution by referring it to committee fails… I’ll request a vote on each of the Articles separately.”
During a Pentagon press conference on Tuesday, Hegseth responded to the impeachment threat, insisting, “Iran, the cartels, Maduro, Yemen — every one was a lawful operation ordered by the commander-in-chief, then ordered by myself, notified to Congress, and executed by American warriors who did their jobs.”
Online critics condemned Hegseth’s comments, drawing comparisons to the defence used by Nazi leaders in the Nuremberg Trials. Meanwhile, former President Donald Trump, during a press conference with UFC President Dana White, labelled Massie a “stone-cold loser” and affirmed his support for Hegseth even if impeachment proceeded.
Democrats gained control of the next Congress following a significant Republican defeat in the recent midterms, giving them potential power to pursue Hegseth’s impeachment in the future. However, Massie will not be part of that conversation after losing his primary earlier this year to a Trump-backed candidate who subsequently won the general election.
