House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries announced on Sunday that he is a hard yes on impeaching War Secretary Pete Hegseth, aligning with a Republican push to remove the defense chief following major GOP losses in the midterm elections.
Outgoing Representative Thomas Massie plans to reintroduce an impeachment resolution against Hegseth as soon as Monday, according to The Guardian. The measure includes eight articles of impeachment accusing Hegseth of offenses that include violating the War Powers Resolution of 1973 during the ongoing conflict in Iran.
There is one contingency in which I won’t reintroduce the articles of impeachment: Hegseth resigns. https://t.co/fRSAIizUH8
Jeffries declared his position during an appearance on ABC’s This Week, telling viewers that Pete Hegseth has got to go,
as reported by The Guardian.
The mounting congressional pressure follows Republican defeats in Tuesday’s elections. Voters and party members alike identified the Iran war as a major factor in the losses, according to The Guardian. Representative James Comer told Newsmax that voters made their anger over the Iran fiasco clear, noting that nobody in Congress knows the exit strategy for the conflict, as cited by Yahoo.
.@POTUS "All they do is they talk about impeaching everybody. Honestly, if we wanted to play that game, we could play it just as well… They're talking about Pete Hegseth—HE'S A GREAT WARRIOR. I think he's the best at his job in many, many years." pic.twitter.com/zcSFYyb9t1
Massie previously introduced eight articles of impeachment in September, but the House did not hold a vote before Speaker Mike Johnson ended the session early ahead of the midterms. Massie stated that only Hegseth’s resignation would stop him from reintroducing the resolution, writing on social media that if Hegseth remains in office, the consequences once Democrats take control of Congress next year will involve hearings and trials.
Representative Adam Smith, who is poised to chair the House Armed Services Committee, stated he will prioritize rigorous oversight on everything from the conflict in Iran to military strikes on suspected drug trafficking boats in Latin American waters.
Why is Pete Hegseth still around?
Todd Harrison, a senior fellow at the American Enterprise Institute, observed that an impeachment vote with support from a decent number of Republicans in the House could be enough of an embarrassment to the administration to push Hegseth out of his post, noting that removing an official through a Senate trial requires a two-thirds vote.
Hegseth defended his stewardship of the Pentagon in a video posted to social media on Thursday, dismissing the effort as a sham. It’s all about the politics of personal destruction, Hegseth said in a video, as reported by Federal News Network. He also defended the Iran war as a courageous and historic effort,
as reported by CBC and Federal News Network.
President Donald Trump has continued to support his defense secretary. When reporters asked whether he was considering replacing Hegseth, Trump told them, No, I think he’s doing a very good job,
according to The Guardian. Chief Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell issued a statement defending the agency’s actions and vowing that Hegseth will remain in office, as noted by Axios.
The War Department stated that Hegseth is completely committed to leading the Pentagon until the end of Trump’s term, while anonymous Trump advisers have suggested the defense secretary could be vulnerable due to the ongoing war.
If the administration decides to cut lose Pete Hegseth, there are some reasonable choices to come in behind him: Sen Joni Ernst, fmr Mich. Senate candidate Mike Rogers, UN Amb Mike Waltz, or Mike Pompeo come to mind. https://t.co/Zs5sKr4b75
At the same time, the retiring North Carolina senator criticized Hegseth’s promotional video in a post on X, stating that cabinet secretaries should not waste taxpayer dollars on campaign-style videos, as reported by The Daily Beast. Government watchdogs and critics also argued that the video violated federal prohibitions against using public funds for publicity, propaganda, or partisan political activities.
Trump told me this morning he intends to keep Pete Hegseth as Defense Secretary: “I have every intention to keep him.” Trump acknowledged receiving calls from people unhappy with Hegseth, but said, “I get these calls, you know, about him. I don't understand why.” He also…
More on Pete Hegseth
Retiring North Carolina Sen. Thom Tillis (R) shares his thoughts as CBS News projects Democrat Roy Cooper to win the state's Senate seat. Asked whether he has any unfinished business before he leaves office, Tillis tells @margbrennan that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth "has a… pic.twitter.com/WxaoHW3GXL
I’m going after Pete Hegseth. Not only is he incompetent and corrupt, he’s undermining our national security and the safety of our troops. pic.twitter.com/y5L91Y0Igp
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