Massie introduces impeachment articles against Hegseth over Iran war
House Democrats are on board with voting to impeach the Pentagon chief, but it's not clear how many Republicans will break with the White House's public messaging.
WASHINGTON — Outgoing Republican Congressman Thomas Massie of Kentucky introduced articles of impeachment against US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth on Monday, teeing up a direct challenge to the Trump administration’s top Pentagon official amid political fallout over the US war against Iran.
The articles introduced by Massie include allegations of “extrajudicial killings” in the Caribbean; “ignoring laws that minimize civilian casualties” in Iran; and “kidnapping of a sovereign foreign leader,” namely, Venezuela’s Nicolas Maduro.
Massie introduced eight articles, each of which must be voted on individually. A floor vote on the articles is expected as soon as Wednesday.
In a press conference at the House triangle, Massie said, “Pete Hegseth is obligated to follow the laws on the books, not the laws that he wants to follow,” citing the bombing of a girls’ school in Minab, Iran, on the first day of the war on Feb. 28. Around 156 people, including 120 children, were killed in that attack, according to local authorities.
Massie, who lost his primary to a Trump-backed candidate and will end his term in January, said he was unsure “if we have enough votes” to pass the articles of impeachment.
Republican sources familiar with the effort told Al-Monitor last week that they believed the outgoing Kentucky lawmaker had already aligned sufficient votes for the measure to pass.
Other GOP lawmakers in the Senate have indicated their support for impeaching Hegseth, while no other Republican members in the House have publicly said they will vote for Massie’s measure.
The top Democrat in the House, Rep. Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.), told ABC News over the weekend that his vote will be “a hard yes” for Hegseth’s impeachment. The comment marks a shift from Jeffries’ prior stated position in September, when Jeffries voted with House Republican leadership to table Massie’s first measure to impeach the Pentagon chief.
“Secretary Hegseth will not back down or be deterred by politicians seeking to score partisan points or launch phony investigations where no wrongdoing exists,” Pentagon spokesperson Sean Parnell said in a statement Monday. “Secretary Hegseth is 100% committed to leading the department until the end of President Trump’s term in office,” he added.
Speaking to reporters in Rhode Island after addressing the Naval War College, Hegseth dismissed reports that some House Republicans plan to support the impeachment proceeding, saying, “We’re not worried about that.”
He added that he will give a press conference at the Pentagon on Tuesday morning about the impeachment process.
This developing story has been updated since its initial publication.
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