Nov. 9 (UPI) — Rep. Thomas Massie, R-Ky., introduced articles of impeachment against Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth on Monday over the U.S. war on Iran. A House vote on the articles could happen this week.
Massie originally introduced impeachment articles against Hegseth in September, but Speaker of the House Mike Johnson dismissed lawmakers early, avoiding a vote on the issue before the midterm elections. Now that they have been reintroduced, Republican leaders have two days to schedule a vote.
The updated resolution includes eight charges against Hegseth, some of which accuse him of abusing the powers of the Defense Department and waging war against Iran without congressional approval, an attack on the United States or an imminent threat.
Charges also include ignoring laws that minimize civilian casualties, presiding over extrajudicial killings (referring to strikes on alleged drug boats), suppressing free speech (in reference to using department authority to threaten Sen. Mark Kelly over his comments on questioning unlawful military orders) and kidnapping of a sovereign foreign leader (referring to the kidnapping of Nicolás Maduro of Venezuela without congressional or legal authority).
“By engaging in hostilities in Iran for more than 90 days without congressional authorization, Secretary Hegseth is breaking the law and must be held accountable,” Massie said.
“Secretary Hegseth’s constitutional violations extend beyond the illegal war in Iran,” he said. “He is abusing the power of his office to ignore congressional war powers resolutions, to kidnap foreign leaders and to intimidate critics of the Trump administration by retaliating against them for exercising free speech. If we are to remain true to our oath to ‘support and defend the Constitution of the United States,’ the House of Representatives must act.”
Hegseth said he wasn’t worried about the charges and that he plans to hold a press conference on the impeachment effort Tuesday morning. In a social media post last week, he called Massie “a disgruntled, defeated congressman” and said the charges are “all about the politics of personal destruction.”
“Didn’t work against President Trump and won’t work against me,” Hegseth said.
Later in the day Monday, President Donald Trump said he would stand by Hegseth if the secretary is impeached He called Massie “a stone cold loser” who “has a lot of hatred in his heart.”
“We won two wars, and we’ve made the world a lot safer place, and then we’re supposed to be impeached?” Trump said during an interview with CNN. It was unclear what wars he was referring to.
Some other Republicans have also questioned Hegseth’s actions in Iran, though they’ve also questioned if he deserves to be impeached.
“We have no idea what the strategy is moving forward in Iran,” said Rep. James Comer, R-Ky., who leads the House Oversight Committee. “No one’s happy about Iran. I think the Republican voters are more unhappy about what’s going on in Iran than the Democrat voters.”
Hegseth would be the third U.S. Cabinet secretary to be impeached. Neither of the other two, William Belknap in 1876 and Alejandro Majorkas in 2024, was removed from office. Belknap was acquitted by the Senate and the charges against Majorkas were dropped.