House Republicans successfully blocked Rep. Thomas Massie’s effort to impeach Secretary of War Pete Hegseth on Tuesday evening.
The House of Representatives voted 211-204 in favor of sending the articles to committee, effectively ending the impeachment battle — for now.
Massie, increasingly isolated from his own party, was the lone member of Congress to vote across party lines. Eleven Democrats and 7 Republicans missed the vote.
The Trump administration and Republicans in both chambers largely banded together in recent days to support Hegseth and defend him from the attacks.
Hegseth, himself, came out firing Tuesday morning during his first press briefing in more than six months.
“It’s a political spectacle, a personal manifesto driven by ego and resentment,” he said. “Time for one man’s final days in Congress, got to damage to this president, this country, and most irresponsibly, the warriors. I stand behind every one of these operations. I was proud to execute them, and I would do it again tomorrow.”
Massie’s articles of impeachment laid out eight different charges. Three of them focused on the Iran war, which he argued was conducted in contravention of the War Powers Resolution of 1973; one focused on the lethal boat strikes in the Caribbean; one centered on the rendition of Venezuelan dictator Nicolas Maduro; his fight with Sen. Mark Kelly (D-AZ); one on last year’s war in Yemen; and one on the removal of safeguards designed to reduce civilian harm in U.S. operations.
Massie does have the ability, and has discussed the possibility of refiling the charges but filing them individually so that members can vote on each based on the merits.
Hegseth defended many of those actions during his Tuesday press conference.
President Donald Trump has publicly backed Hegseth despite the increasing pressure he’s facing following the results of the midterm elections, in which Republicans lost overwhelmingly. Many lawmakers and officials in Washington, including Trump, have argued that the war in Iran, which Hegseth has overseen, led to the Democrats’ victory.
“The Democrats’ attempt to impeach Secretary of War Pete Hegseth has miserably FAILED! 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,” Trump said on Truth Social.
Several Pentagon political officials shared celebratory messages on social media while also mocking Massie.
While Republicans were able to prevent Massie’s articles of impeachment from moving forward, they will not be able to do the same once the new Congress is inaugurated in January. Democrats, especially in light of the midterm results, have already begun discussing how to carry out more stringent oversight of the Pentagon.
Hegseth has had an adversarial relationship with many Democrats on Capitol Hill, who have long criticized his goals for the department and his fitness for the job. Democrats on the Senate Judiciary Committee asked him about his marital infidelity, alcohol consumption and an alleged disputed sexual encounter from his past during his confirmation hearing, which passed in a party line vote that required Vice President JD Vance to break the tie.
Many Democrats have been critical of many of Hegseth’s decisions that Massie referenced in his articles of impeachment, indicating that they could pursue oversight of those subjects, and possible impeachment one day.