Hegseth Impeachment Effort: House Republicans Vote Down Resolution
A 211-204 vote kills the measure, ending a push by Rep. Thomas Massie to remove the defense secretary.
By Ivan Dvorak ·
The Republican-led House rejected an effort to impeach Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth on Tuesday. The vote was 211-204 to send the resolution to committee, a procedural step that effectively ended the process. The measure targeted Hegseth's management of military operations in Iran, Yemen, Venezuela, and the Caribbean.
Rep. Thomas Massie, R-Ky., authored the resolution. He is the only Republican who voted to keep the effort alive. Massie had filed the motion as privileged, which forced Republican leaders to schedule a floor vote within two legislative days. He argued that Hegseth violated the norms of war and endangered soldiers in future conflicts.
Before the vote, Hegseth held a morning news conference at the Pentagon. He called the impeachment a political spectacle and a farce. He stated that the military actions were lawful and compared the vote to the two impeachment proceedings against President Donald Trump during his first term. Hegseth said that if standing with the president puts him in that company, he would take it every day of the week.
President Trump supported Hegseth on Truth Social before and after the vote. He described the outcome as an exoneration of a great American patriot. Trump also criticized Massie, calling him a total loser who was disgruntled and defeated.
The resolution contained eight articles of impeachment. The first alleged that Hegseth waged the Iran war without a declaration or statutory authorization. Other articles cited continuing the war after congressional directives to remove forces, expiring the War Powers Resolution's 60-day limit, and ignoring laws on civilian casualties. The measure also accused Hegseth of directing extrajudicial killings of suspected drug traffickers and illegally seizing Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro.
Several departing Republican lawmakers expressed reservations about the process. Rep. Don Bacon, R-Neb., said he did not align with the impeachment itself but noted he might have felt differently if the resolution included a line about firing 80 generals. Rep. Darrell Issa, R-Calif., suggested Massie was motivated by his primary loss. Issa argued that the effort would fail in the Senate because there were not 67 senators who would vote to convict.
House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., said Democrats plan to run Hegseth out of town when they take over Congress in January. For now, Hegseth remains in office, having survived the House vote despite clashes with members of both parties.
