U.S. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth narrowly avoided being referred for impeachment in the House this week after Republican Kentucky Congressman Thomas Massie worked with members of the Democratic Party to try to oust the Trump official.
The attempt to refer articles of impeachment against Hegseth to committee was shot down in the House by 211-204.
Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth hosts a teleconference with NFL players Aaron Jones and Elijah Higgins during their visit to the 386th Air Expeditionary Wing in Kuwait from the Pentagon, Washington, D.C., April 2, 2025. (DoD photo by U.S. Navy Petty Officer 1st Class Alexander Kubitza)
U.S. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth boards the Ticonderoga-class guided-missile cruiser, USS Chosin (CG 65), Panama, April 9, 2025. U.S. Southern Command and the Panamanian security forces collaborate to ensure and maintain regional stability during natural disasters, medical catastrophes or regional conflicts. (U.S. Marine Corps photo by Lance Cpl. Van Hoang)
Massie — who is set to leave office in the new year after being defeated by Trump-backed Republican primary challenger Ed Gallrein — was the sole Republican to vote in favor of impeaching Hegseth and voted with the majority of House Democrats.
Republican Congressman Thomas Massie Accused Hegseth of Committing ‘High Crimes’
In his articles of impeachment, Massie accused Hegseth of committing “high crimes and misdemeanors” as secretary of defense, including taking the United States to war against congressional approval and carrying out extrajudicial executions.
“Secretary Hegseth arrogated to himself and the Executive Branch the roles of judge, jury, and executioner and asserted a unilateral power to determine who may live and who may die,” wrote Massie, claiming that “such a power is foreign to the rule of law, repugnant to the legal traditions and fundamental values of the United States and the Western world, and contrary to United States law and customary international law.”
The congressman further accused Hegseth of undermining “the integrity and credibility of the United States and its Armed Forces” and damaging “the diplomatic standing” of the country.
The House is unlikely to make any further attempts at impeachment until January, when a Democratic majority will control both chambers of Congress and the Trump administration is likely to face investigation on multiple fronts over allegations of corruption, its handling of the Epstein files, the Iran war, and other issues.
By then, Massie will be out of Congress and replaced with Gallrein, a Trump loyalist.
Trump Celebrated Massie’s Defeat, Calling the Congressman a ‘LOSER’
President Donald Trump celebrated the defeat of Massie’s articles of impeachment on Tuesday and lashed out at Massie.
“The Democrats’ attempt to impeach Secretary of War Pete Hegseth has miserably FAILED!” wrote Trump in a Truth Social post. “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.”He continued, “The Democrats continue to weaponize and abuse the United States of America. They must be stopped!”
Trump has previously lashed out at Massie over the impeachment effort on Tuesday, calling the congressman “a TOTAL LOSER!”
Why Did 11 Democrats Fail to Vote, Handing Trump and Hegseth a Victory?
11 Democratic representatives were absent from the vote, including former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi. Had those 11 representatives voted in favor of impeachment, the results would have been markedly different.
Washington Congresswoman Marilyn Strickland, Illinois Congressman Jonathan Jackson, New Mexico Congresswoman Melanie Stansbury, and New York Congresswoman Laura Gillen all blamed traffic delays for missing the vote.
In contrast, Pelosi missed it to attend an event in California. California Congressman Lou Correa missed the vote because he had to attend a health procedure, while Nevada Congressman Steven Horsford blamed an unspecified emergency.
Colorado Congresswoman Brittany Petterson claimed she had been “denied the ability to vote on this motion.” Still, she did not specify what she meant, while Michigan Congresswoman Haley Stevens, California Congresswoman Julia Brownley, and Florida Congresswoman Frederica Wilson all refused to comment.
Missing Democrats Shamed by Colleagues For Giving the Trump Admin a Victory
The missing Democrats were publicly called out by California Congresswoman Sydney Kamlager-Dove, who said, “We knew that this vote was coming, so people should have gotten their raggedy selves up these steps to vote.”
She protested, “There is no reason why we should have lost this vote because of attendance issues.”
Michigan Senator-Elect Abdul El-Sayed also criticized his Democratic colleagues for failing to turn up to vote, remarking, “You should show up and do your job.”
Had the impeachment vote passed in the House, it would still have had to pass the Senate, where Republicans currently hold a slim majority.
In the unlikely event that two-thirds of the Senate then voted to impeach Hegseth, the secretary of defense would have been removed from office.
About the Author: Charlie Nash
Charlie Nash is a journalist and author whose work has appeared in The Spectator, Mediaite, New Statesman, and the American Conservative, among other major publications. His reporting has been featured by The Washington Post, Fox News, the Daily Beast, MS NOW, NewsNation, Hannity, and more. You can follow Charlie on X at @CharlieNash and on LinkedIn.
