US House blocks immediate vote on Hegseth impeachment, sends articles to committee

Washington: The US House of Representatives has effectively halted an attempt to impeach Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth, voting 211-204 to send eight impeachment articles to the Judiciary Committee rather than hold an immediate floor vote.

The narrow procedural outcome followed an effort by Republican Congressman Thomas Massie of Kentucky to force the chamber to confront allegations against Hegseth over the Iran war, military operations elsewhere and the treatment of political opponents. While the vote does not dismiss the charges or find them unsubstantiated, it removes the prospect of a direct impeachment vote before the current Congress ends.

Under the House roll call, 210 Republicans joined independent Kevin Kiley of California in backing the referral. Massie was the sole Republican to vote against it, aligning with 203 Democrats who wanted the impeachment resolution to remain on the floor.

Eighteen members did not vote—11 Democrats and seven Republicans. Former Speaker Nancy Pelosi was among the absentees. The seven-vote margin underscored the political sensitivity of the measure within the Republican-led chamber.

All six Indian-American members of the House—Ami Bera, Pramila Jayapal, Ro Khanna, Raja Krishnamoorthi, Suhas Subramanyam and Shri Thanedar—voted against referral. In doing so, they supported keeping the impeachment effort alive rather than sending it to committee.

Massie’s resolution accused Hegseth of continuing military action against Iran without proper congressional authorisation. It also alleged that the Defence Secretary ignored protections for civilians and authorised unlawful strikes against vessels suspected of drug trafficking.

Further articles targeted US actions involving Venezuela and Yemen, as well as alleged retaliation against Senator Mark Kelly. The resolution was introduced as a privileged measure, compelling the House to act rather than allowing it to languish without a vote.

Massie cautioned before the vote that referring the resolution to committee would likely end the impeachment push for the remainder of this Congress.

Hegseth rejected the allegations at a Pentagon briefing earlier on Tuesday, framing them as political rather than constitutional in nature.

“None of these are high crimes or misdemeanours,” he said. “They’re partisan policy disagreements from people who want to politicise our military.”

The Trump administration encouraged lawmakers to support referral. In a formal policy statement, the White House described the impeachment campaign as politically motivated and maintained that the president holds constitutional authority to direct military operations.

Vice President J.D. Vance also came to Hegseth’s defence. “Has Pete Hegseth committed impeachable crimes? The question is absurd, and the answer is: obviously not,” he wrote on X.

President Donald Trump welcomed the result on Truth Social, saying the effort had “miserably FAILED!” and calling the vote an “EXONERATION of a Great American Patriot.” The House, however, did not vote on the merits of any of the eight articles.

Massie said after the vote that he was disappointed, though not surprised, by the outcome. He indicated that his next step would be to seek a vote on a war powers resolution related to Iran.

Democratic leaders made clear that the issue may resurface. House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries said, “This is not the end of it. It’s just the beginning.”

Democratic Whip Katherine Clark accused Republicans of shielding Hegseth instead of protecting American service personnel. Krishnamoorthi had earlier urged Republicans uncertain about the referral to break with their party, while Thanedar and Jayapal separately called for Hegseth’s impeachment.

By sending the resolution to the Judiciary Committee, the House has not required the panel to take up the articles. With the current Congress scheduled to end on January 3, the referral makes an impeachment vote during this session highly unlikely.

Democrats, who gained control of both chambers in the November 3 midterm elections, could revive the effort when the new Congress convenes. Under the Constitution, impeachment in the House requires only a simple majority, while conviction and removal in the Senate require a two-thirds vote of senators present.

Only two Cabinet secretaries have previously been impeached: William Belknap in 1876 and Alejandro Mayorkas in 2024. Neither was removed from office by the Senate.

(Inputs from IANS)