House Republicans on Tuesday stalled an effort to impeach Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth by voting to refer the articles of impeachment to committee.
Republican Rep. Thomas Massie introduced eight articles of impeachment against Hegseth on Monday. They accuse Hegseth of violating federal war powers laws in connection with the war in Iran, as well as other alleged high crimes and misdemeanors.
Earlier on Tuesday, Hegseth called an impeachment effort a “farce”:
Hegseth argued that this was a policy disagreement and not a "high crime or misdemeanor." He compared the effort to impeach him to the impeachments of President Donald Trump during his first term.
"They impeached President Trump over a perfect phone call," he said. "They impeached him again in his final week in office. Both times they failed. Both times he came back stronger and the American people sent him back to the White House. Now they're trying a third time, this time against a member of his cabinet. They will fail again."
President Trump hailed the decision later on Tuesday, posting on social media:
"Every single Republican, except Thomas Massie, a major LOSER, voted in favor of Pete. Again, Victories in Venezuela and Iran, the Best Recruitment Numbers in the History of the Military (Long waiting lists to get in!), and Spirit like rarely seen before, led to the EXONERATION of a Great American Patriot."
If Hegseth is ultimately impeached, he would become only the third Cabinet member in U.S. history to be impeached by the House. The Senate would need to convict Hegseth for him to be removed from office. That would require a two-thirds vote in the Senate, or 67 votes if all 100 senators.
