House Republicans blocked an effort to impeach Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth on Tuesday, November 10. The vote prevented an immediate impeachment vote over allegations involving the war with Iran and other U.S. military operations.
According to CBS News, the House voted 211-204 to send the impeachment resolution to the House Judiciary Committee. The move effectively stalled the effort for the remainder of the current Congress.
Rep. Thomas Massie (R-KY), who introduced the resolution, was the only Republican to vote against referring it to committee. All Democrats who participated in the vote joined him. Seven Republicans and 11 Democrats were absent.
The procedural vote did not determine whether Hegseth committed any impeachable offenses. Instead, it prevented the House from immediately considering the charges.
Massie introduced eight articles of impeachment on November 9. He accused Hegseth of abusing his authority and committing high crimes and misdemeanors.
The charges focused heavily on the ongoing war with Iran, which has entered its ninth month.
Massie alleged that Hegseth directed military operations against Iran without congressional authorization. He also accused the defense secretary of violating the War Powers Resolution, which limits the president’s ability to conduct military operations without congressional approval.
Other allegations concerned U.S. military strikes against suspected drug traffickers in the Caribbean, the operation targeting Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro, and the treatment of civilians during military operations.
Massie also accused Hegseth of retaliating against Sen. Mark Kelly (D-AZ) over comments encouraging military personnel to reject unlawful orders.
Hegseth rejected the allegations during a November 10 press conference, describing the impeachment effort as a political stunt.
“None of these are high crimes or misdemeanors,” Hegseth said. He argued that the allegations reflected policy disagreements rather than impeachable conduct.
House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) also opposed the effort. He warned that impeaching the defense secretary while American forces were engaged in military operations abroad would send a damaging message to U.S. allies and adversaries.
President Donald Trump celebrated the House vote in a post on Truth Social.
“The Democrats’ attempt to impeach Secretary of War Pete Hegseth has miserably FAILED!” Trump wrote.
The president criticized Massie, calling him a “major LOSER.” He also praised Hegseth’s leadership and cited U.S. military operations in Iran and Venezuela as evidence of his success.
Trump characterized the outcome as an exoneration of Hegseth and accused Democrats of using impeachment for political purposes.
Massie expressed disappointment with the result.
“I wasn’t surprised, but I was disappointed,” he told reporters after the vote.
The Kentucky Republican, who lost his primary earlier this year, is scheduled to leave Congress in January. He has indicated that he will not introduce another impeachment resolution but plans to push for a separate vote on war powers.
Although the immediate effort failed, Democrats have signaled that the issue is not over.
House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY) supported impeaching Hegseth and suggested that lawmakers could revisit the allegations after Democrats take control of Congress in January.
“This is not the end of it. It’s just the beginning,” Jeffries said following the vote.
Democrats will control both chambers when the new Congress convenes. That could allow them to revive impeachment proceedings against Hegseth.
A simple majority in the House would be needed to impeach him. However, removing him from office would require a two-thirds majority in the Senate.
Only two Cabinet secretaries have been impeached in U.S. history. Secretary of War William Belknap was impeached in 1876, while Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas was impeached in 2024. Neither was convicted by the Senate.