Hegseth strikes defiant tone, calls House impeachment process 'farce'

WASHINGTON — US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth struck a defiant tone on Tuesday, vowing to fight charges of impeachment raised against him in Congress a day prior by outgoing Republican lawmaker from Kentucky Thomas Massie.

"It's a farce and it's a stunt, and everybody knows it," Hegseth said in his first press briefing from the Pentagon since May.

"No Secretary of War or Secretary of Defense has ever been impeached for carrying out lawful military operations," Hegseth argued.

"Not once — war powers resolution or not — not under Reagan in Lebanon, not under Clinton in Kosovo, not under Obama in Iraq and Syria, not under Biden in Iraq and Syria. That's the standard," he stated.

Massie introduced the eight articles of impeachment on the House floor on Monday, setting up a vote scheduled for Tuesday.

The charges include three violations of the 1973 War Powers Act of prosecuting a war unauthorized by Congress as well as "extrajudicial killings" in the Caribbean and "ignoring laws" meant to prevent civilian casualties in the war against Iran.

On Monday, Massie made it clear that the impeachment articles he raised focus on alleged constitutional violations and do not charge Hegseth with war crimes, even though alleged war crimes are mentioned in the charges.

By authorizing the US military to repeatedly strike alleged drug boats in the Caribbean and Pacific with drones, Massie argued, “We're encouraging others not to give our soldiers quarter, not to rescue our shipwrecked sailors."

Hegseth took aim at Massie’s distinction in his own press conference on Tuesday, arguing that the impeachment articles open the door for war crimes charges for military officials under his authority.

“Make no mistake about what is happening. This is not about me,” the defense secretary claimed.

“Politicians in Washington have accused the sailors and the pilots who struck narco-terrorist boats of war crimes for doing their job,” he added. “This resolution is the next step. Put the secretary on trial today, and the men and women who carried out those orders tomorrow.”

If a majority of House lawmakers vote to pass the impeachment articles, they will be taken up in the Senate and carry over into the next Congress in January.

House Republican leadership may yet move to table Massie's motion or refer it to committee. Either decision could effectively shelve the impeachment effort for the remaining legislative days before the new Congress takes its seats in January.

This developing story has been updated since initial publication.