Republican members in the US House of Representatives blocked an impeachment motion to remove Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth over allegations of initiating war against Iran without Congressional approval, allowing him to avoid removal before Democrats take control of Congress in January next year and potentially resume impeachment efforts.
The US House of Representatives voted 211 to 204 to refer the impeachment motion against Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth to the House Judiciary Committee, where Republicans hold the majority, effectively halting the impeachment attempt at this stage.
The motion was introduced by Republican Representative Thomas Massie from Kentucky, who filed eight articles of impeachment accusing Hegseth of serious misconduct and abuse of power, including ordering wars against Iran and Yemen without Congressional approval, attacking suspected drug trafficking vessels in the Caribbean, and detaining Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro in January.
Massie hoped to gain support from Republicans dissatisfied with Hegseth's policies and concerned about the protracted Iran conflict, but no other Republican voted against referring the motion; only Massie opposed the referral, while 11 Democrats abstained from voting.
Massie expressed disappointment with the vote result, comparing the lawmakers supporting the referral to Titanic passengers who knew the ship was sinking but insisted on staying aboard.
Before the vote, Hegseth held a press conference at the Pentagon for the first time in six months, calling the impeachment attempt political theater and undermining the country, while affirming that all his military orders complied with the law.
Hegseth added that the motion threatens national security by signaling to US adversaries that military and civilian leaders will be punished even when military actions are lawful.
President Donald Trump expressed his congratulations on the vote via social media, stating that the impeachment attempt failed completely, praising Hegseth as a great American patriot, and saying his actions in Iran and Venezuela cleared him of the allegations.
Meanwhile, US Vice President J.D. Vance, who had previously questioned the Iran war and blamed it for Republican losses in the midterm elections, voiced support for Hegseth, saying the issue is not about Iran but about Hegseth reforming the Department of Defense bureaucracy.
The impeachment effort arose amid public dissatisfaction with the prolonged Iran war, which has reached a stalemate, focusing on securing the Strait of Hormuz and contributing to the Democratic midterm election victory last week.
A Reuters/Ipsos poll found that most Americans want the new Democratic-controlled Congress to decisively end the war with Iran.
If successful, Hegseth would be the first US Defense Secretary ever impeached; the last high-ranking civilian military official to be removed was in 1876 during the tenure of William Belknap, then called the "Secretary of War."
However, surviving this impeachment does not end Hegseth’s political troubles, as some lawmakers, including some Republicans, question his tense relationship with Congress while the Trump administration pushes to increase the defense budget from $950 billion to $1.5 trillion.
House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries said Hegseth abused power, undermined national security, and recklessly pursued the Iran war wasting funds, adding that Democrats will discuss resuming impeachment after taking control of Congress in January.
If Democrats proceed with impeachment in the new Congress, the process could intensify, potentially summoning senior military officers, including generals and admirals fired by Hegseth, to testify and reviewing the Defense Department’s policies on Ukraine and operations against suspected drug trafficking vessels in the Pacific and Caribbean.
Massie, who lost the Republican primary earlier this year to a Trump-backed candidate, has continuously criticized the President and the Iran war since February.
Republican Senator Ted Cruz predicted that Hegseth might eventually resign or be dismissed by Trump.