USAupdated 24m ago2 min read
MapThomas Massie Introduces Impeachment Articles Against Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth Over Iran War
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Massie filed eight articles of impeachment against Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth for unauthorized Iran war. The move would force a House floor vote on whether to impeach Hegseth this week.
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Massie files impeachment push
Rep. Thomas Massie introduced articles of impeachment against Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth on the House floor Monday afternoon, accusing Hegseth of “high crimes and misdemeanors” over US military action in Iran without congressional authorisation.
Hegseth told reporters, “We’re not worried about that,” and said he would hold a press conference Tuesday morning at the Pentagon on the impeachment effort.
Massie moved Monday to force a vote to impeach Hegseth, pressing Republicans to remove one of the Trump administration’s most prominent figures after sweeping election losses were blamed in part on fallout from the war in Iran.
The impeachment effort focused largely on the war in Iran, and it also included references to Hegseth’s role in carrying out military actions in Yemen and Venezuela.
House Speaker Mike Johnson said impeachment “in the middle of hostilities abroad would be a terrible, terrible look, a terrible thing for our allies and our enemies to see that.”
Hegseth and Trump respond
Hegseth said he was “not worried about” the impeachment effort and announced a rare press conference on Tuesday, adding, “So I’ll save my remarks there. I hope you all come loaded for bear with your questions.”
President Donald Trump lashed out at Massie personally just hours after the congressman read the resolution, calling him a “loser” who “has a lot of hatred in his heart.”
Democratic House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries backed the measure, telling ABC News’ “This Week” that he was a “hard yes.”
Sen. Chuck Schumer endorsed the impeachment push, saying, “Hegseth must stand trial before the Senate,” and House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries supports the measure.
Republican leaders expressed frustration at the move, with Senate Majority Leader John Thune saying, “We’ll see what their ultimate decision is over there.”
What happens next in Congress
The House must take up Massie’s updated impeachment articles within two legislative days, forcing Republicans to go on the record defending Hegseth after the 2026 midterm elections. ABC News said the House would need a simple majority for the impeachment resolution to succeed, meaning “just three Republicans need to vote with all Democrats to prevail,” while it also said it does not appear that any Democrats will vote against the effort. BBC reported that the impeachment effort would likely fail because Republicans will remain in power in Congress until January, even as Massie said he wanted to push President Donald Trump to fire Hegseth before Democrats can launch their own impeachment process.
“The effort will likely fail, given Republicans will remain in power in Congress until January.”
If the House votes to impeach, the matter would fall to the Senate to either dismiss the charges or hold a trial, and the Senate would need a two-thirds majority to convict. ABC News also said Trump maintained that he has “every intention to keep” Hegseth atop the Pentagon, and Hegseth told reporters he is eager to defend the military actions that he and Trump have taken against Iran, Yemen’s Iranian-backed Houthi rebels and Venezuela’s previous leaders.