House Shelves Hegseth Impeachment in Narrow 211-204 Vote

The Hegseth impeachment push has stalled in the US House of Representatives, which on Tuesday (Nov 10) voted 211-204 to refer Republican Rep. Thomas Massie’s resolution against Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth to the House Judiciary Committee, ABC News reported. The procedural move effectively kills the measure for the rest of the Republican-controlled 119th Congress.

Hegseth Impeachment Sent to Committee

Massie was the only Republican to vote against the referral, joining all House Democrats who voted, according to ABC News. CBS News reported that seven Republicans and 11 Democrats missed the vote.

Massie, who lost his primary earlier this year to a challenger backed by President Donald Trump, introduced eight articles of impeachment on the House floor on Monday (Nov 9). ABC News said the articles ranged from waging war against Iran without congressional approval to strikes on alleged drug-smuggling boats in the Caribbean and East Pacific.

The vote followed growing calls to impeach Hegseth after several Republicans blamed the party’s sweeping midterm losses on the Iran war. House Speaker Mike Johnson had opposed the articles, saying Republicans would “dispense with the impeachment gambit”.

Hegseth Calls It a Political Spectacle

At a news conference before the vote, Hegseth dismissed the effort as a “political spectacle” driven by a “disgruntled and defeated congressman”. He said the military operations cited in the articles were lawful actions directed by Trump, and framed the resolution as an attack on US service members.

ABC News noted that none of the operations had been approved by Congress, a point Massie raised in his articles.

Trump and Pentagon Claim Victory

Trump congratulated Hegseth on social media, saying Democrats had failed to impeach him, although the effort was led by a Republican and the vote was procedural. Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell called the referral a “total victory” for Hegseth.

Democrats signalled the fight may continue. CNN reported House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries said “this is not the end”, while progressive Democrats indicated they were open to more impeachment efforts against Hegseth and other Cabinet officials. The Hill reported that Democrats will hold large majorities in both the House and Senate in the next Congress.

#latestmalaysia

Trump Vows to Stand by Hegseth as Impeachment Vote Looms