Democrat Ro Khanna and Republican Thomas Massie are leading a bipartisan push in the US Congress to impeach Secretary of War Pete Hegseth, citing unauthorized war actions and unlawful orders, with a vote potentially happening this Wednesday.
Congressional Push for Impeachment
The US Congress could vote on articles of impeachment on Secretary of War Pete Hegseth as early as Wednesday indicated Democrat Congressman Ro Khanna. Khanna who has joined the campaign to oust Hegseth said he was working with outgoing Congressman Thomas Massie to ensure the articles of impeachment pass the House. "In two days, Congress is going to vote to impeach Pete Hegseth. I'm working with Thomas Massie to lead the charge. We had introduced the Iran War Powers Resolution that would have prevented the war in Iran. Now the voters have spoken. They want us to end this war. That begins with impeaching Pete Hegseth and convicting him in the Senate," Khanna said in a video message.
Earlier, Massie formally submitted the resolution immediately as the House commenced its opening session following the midterm elections. Addressing the developments during an appearance on CNN's The Source alongside Indian-American Congressman Ro Khanna, Massie outlined the political dynamics shifting within the party regarding the impeachment push. Highlighting the legislators who might break ranks following the electoral outcome, Massie stated, "I think there's two categories of Republicans after Nov. 3rd who are more likely to vote to impeach Pete Hegseth. One, I call it the retirement caucus. These aren't people who joined voluntarily. And the ranks of this caucus swelled for Republicans on November 3rd. What do they have to lose? But more importantly, you have a caucus of people who just barely won their election. They thought they had a political annuity, that they'd go to fancy dinners for the rest of their lives, and they barely won by 500 votes. They're used to winning by 10,000, 15,000 votes. And those folks need to put some daylight between themselves and this administration, between themselves and this war."
Procedural Details and Political Context
Discussing the articles of impeachment, Massie explained the procedural distinction governing congressional resolutions, stating, "If the Speaker and the Senate Majority Leader are somehow able to push this into the next Congress, for every other bill and resolution, they expire at the end of this Congress. But for impeachments, they go into the next Congress. And so the Senate can't run out the clock on this one." Weighing in on the discussion during the broadcast, Ro Khanna underscored Massie's principled stance on Capitol Hill, pointing out the personal and professional toll such positions often exact by noting, "Thomas literally gave up his career because he stood up on the war on Iran and on the Epstein files."
Massie, a critic of Donald Trump who lost his primary to a candidate backed by the President, stated on the House floor that Hegseth had "knowingly executed and implemented unlawful orders" by waging war without congressional approval. The articles cite violations of the 1973 War Powers Resolution, alongside misconduct involving civilian casualties and operations in Yemen and Venezuela. Hegseth, a former Fox News weekend host and one of Trump's handpicked appointments in his second term as US President, took charge of the Department of War despite lacking administrative experience commensurate with the post.
Response from Hegseth and Administration
Despite controversies surrounding his tenure, Trump has maintained his support and repeatedly dismissed suggestions of dismissing him. Meanwhile, Hegseth has issued a defiant response following robust public backing from President Donald Trump In a post on X, Hegseth expressed gratitude for the President's unwavering support, stating, "Thank you Mr. President. Like you, we will never back down." Earlier Hegseth said he was not worried about the surround sound about a possible impeachment announcing that he would address the issue at a news conference at the Pentagon on Tuesday morning (local time). “We’re not worried about the noise. This is what I told the troops, too. Don't worry about the noise. There's partisan noise all over our town. We're focused on delivering the President's agenda, which is the kind of funding our department needs in order to dominate the future, which we're all concerned about.” he said.
While bipartisan backing for impeachment has grown, incumbent House Speaker Mike Johnson, one of Trump's staunch allies in Congress, has blocked previous initiatives, contending that impeaching a Cabinet secretary amid active hostilities abroad projects a "terrible look" to both allies and adversaries.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by Asianetnews Editorial staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
