Pete Hegseth will remain in his position as defense secretary for now after House Republicans shut down an impeachment effort brought by one of their own, despite mounting criticism of the Trump administration’s prolonged war in Iran.
The House voted 211-204 on Tuesday, November 10, to send an eight-count impeachment resolution to the Judiciary Committee, effectively stopping the effort from advancing during the current Congress. Rep. Thomas Massie of Kentucky, the Republican who introduced the measure, was the only member of his party to oppose the procedural maneuver. Every Democrat who voted joined him, but 11 Democrats were absent, enough to have changed the outcome if they had participated and voted against referral.
The vote was not a decision on whether Hegseth committed impeachable offenses. Instead, it allowed Republican leaders to avoid an immediate vote on the accusations themselves, protecting a prominent Trump Cabinet official from the possibility of facing a Senate trial.
Massie accused Hegseth of “high crimes and misdemeanors” across eight articles involving military operations in Iran, Venezuela and Yemen, deadly strikes on boats suspected of trafficking drugs, and alleged retaliation against a Democratic senator. Hegseth has rejected the allegations, arguing that he was overseeing lawful military actions directed by President Donald Trump.
At the center of the resolution is the war in Iran, which began in February and has continued long past Trump’s initial predictions that it would last only weeks. Three articles contend that Hegseth violated the War Powers Resolution by conducting military operations without congressional authorization, continuing despite congressional objections and exceeding deadlines governing unauthorized hostilities.
Another article challenges the Pentagon’s handling of civilian protections, including concerns surrounding a deadly strike on a girls’ school in Minab, Iran. Additional charges target the capture of Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro, military operations in Yemen and lethal attacks on suspected drug-smuggling vessels in the Caribbean and Pacific. The resolution also alleges that Hegseth improperly targeted Sen. Mark Kelly, an Arizona Democrat, after Kelly and other lawmakers reminded service members that they can refuse unlawful orders.
Massie argued that the conflict in Iran has crossed a constitutional line. “By engaging in hostilities in Iran for more than 90 days without congressional authorization, Secretary Hegseth is breaking the law and must be held accountable,” he said when announcing the resolution. His interpretation remains contested by the administration, which maintains that its military operations were lawful.
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Before lawmakers voted, Hegseth held a rare Pentagon news conference and suggested Massie’s campaign was motivated by personal resentment. Trump backed a challenger who defeated Massie in a Republican primary, and the congressman is due to leave office in January. Hegseth described him as “disgruntled.”
“For the first time in American history, a cabinet Secretary overseeing America’s military is being attacked not for losing conflicts with our enemies, but for winning them, condemned not for defeat but for military victory,” Hegseth said. “No failure here, just impeachment for success.”
Trump has also attacked Massie, calling him a “loser” on Monday, while standing by Hegseth. House Speaker Mike Johnson chose the committee referral route rather than allowing a direct vote on impeachment, and no other Republican broke ranks to support Massie’s challenge.
The failed effort arrives one week after Republicans suffered major losses in the midterm elections. Some party members have blamed public frustration over the Iran war, which has also disrupted shipping through the Strait of Hormuz and contributed to higher fuel prices. Iran’s restrictions on oil tanker traffic have intensified the conflict’s economic consequences well beyond the battlefield.
Democrats were prepared to push the allegations further if the House approved impeachment. Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer said Republicans should “put Pete Hegseth on trial” in that scenario. “Trump’s disastrous war in Iran will go down as one of the greatest foreign policy fiascoes in all of American history,” Schumer said.
Rep. Jason Crow of Colorado expressed frustration that Massie could not persuade even one Republican colleague to join him. “I’m surprised, but I also have stopped really hoping for them to do the right thing and holding my breath, which is why they just got crushed by America,” Crow told HuffPost.
Tuesday’s outcome gives Hegseth a temporary political victory, not a permanent end to the controversy. Democrats are expected to take control of both chambers in January and could revive impeachment proceedings, launch hearings or pursue investigations into the same operations. Massie has indicated that he does not plan to introduce another impeachment resolution before leaving Congress.
For now, Republican unity has stopped the challenge, even as questions about executive war powers, civilian casualties and congressional oversight remain unresolved.
