A Republican lawmaker introduced articles of impeachment against Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth on Monday, in a bid to force House members to vote on whether they support the polarizing Cabinet official.
The effort, led by Rep. Thomas Massie (Kentucky), centers on Hegseth’s role in the unpopular Iran war, which top GOP officials have blamed for their crushing losses in last week’s midterm elections.
Massie has alleged that the war is unconstitutional, because the Trump administration launched the conflict without the approval of lawmakers and has since continued military action despite Congress demanding that the Pentagon cease hostilities.
Reading the impeachment articles on the House floor, Massie alleged that Hegseth had “abused” his powers as defense secretary and had “knowingly executed and implemented unlawful orders” by carrying out strikes against Iran. The congressman said that Hegseth “will remain a threat to the constitution if allowed to remain in office.”
Introducing the impeachment articles Monday will force a vote by Wednesday evening, or House Republicans could punt the effort by either referring the resolution to the House Judiciary Committee or voting to table it. If passed, the measure will then head to the Senate, which will have to hold a trial or seek to dismiss the charges.
Massie has framed the effort as an attempt to stain Hegseth’s legacy. Still, the vote is highly unlikely to result in a conviction in the Republican-controlled Senate.
The Trump administration has pushed Republicans to oppose the vote, distributing talking points this week that argue Hegseth’s role in leading the Iran war is not impeachable and could discourage future defense secretaries from carrying out presidential orders.
Hegseth is scheduled to brief the news media at the Pentagon on Tuesday morning for the first time since May.
Pentagon spokesperson Joel Valdez called the impeachment articles “vindictive and baseless” in a statement Monday and said the agency would be “taking the offensive” in countering the effort.
In a social media video last week, Hegseth called Massie a “disgruntled, defeated congressman” and denounced the impeachment effort as a “sham.”
Massie is one of the most prominent anti-war Republicans and lost his primary earlier this year after President Donald Trump supported his opponent, whom Hegseth campaigned alongside in a departure from norms for a sitting defense secretary.
Republican lawmakers have grown increasingly critical of Hegseth in recent weeks, frustrations that have only intensified after the party lost both chambers of Congress in the midterms.
Rep. James Comer (R-Kentucky), a staunch Trump ally, declined to back the defense secretary in an interview Friday with News Nation, asserting that Republicans have “no idea what the strategy is moving forward in Iran.”
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