Republican Thomas Massie of Kentucky launches bid to impeach Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth

Rep Thomas Massie on Monday (November 9, 2026) moved to force a vote to impeach Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, pressing his fellow Republicans to remove one of the Trump administration's most prominent figures following sweeping election losses blamed in part on fallout from the war in Iran.

Mr. Massie, a Kentucky Republican, read the impeachment resolution from the House floor just hours after it opened for the first day of sessions after the midterms. It largely focuses on the war in Iran but also includes references to Hegseth's role in carrying out military actions in Yemen and Venezuela.

The Congressman, who was defeated by a Trump-backed challenger in a primary earlier this year, said Mr. Hegseth's actions amounted to “high crimes and misdemeanors.” Mr. Hegseth, he said, “knowingly executed and implemented unlawful orders” and “remains a threat to the Constitution.” President Donald Trump lashed out at Massie personally just hours after the Congressman read the resolution, calling him a “loser” who “has a lot of hatred in his heart.” A vote in the House could come by mid-week, but next steps are highly uncertain.

House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries supports the measure. If most Democrats follow him, Mr. Massie would only need support from a few Republicans to impeach Hegseth. If the House votes to impeach, it would fall to to the Senate to either dismiss the charges or hold a trial.

Republicans remain in the majority in both chambers, until the new Congress convenes in January with Democrats in control. Sen Chuck Schumer, the Democratic leader, endorsed the impeachment push. "Hegseth must stand trial before the Senate," he said.

Republican leaders, who are eager to use their final weeks in power executing their own agenda, expressed frustration at the move. House Speaker Mike Johnson, who has tried to prevent the vote, said impeachment “in the middle of hostilities abroad would be a terrible, terrible look, a terrible thing for our allies and our enemies to see that.” Senate Majority Leader John Thune said he wasn't sure why the vote was being held now.

“We'll see what their ultimate decision is over there,” he said of the House. “We'll have to deal with it accordingly here." Mr. Hegseth is stepping up his public statements ahead of the vote, telling reporters that he's eager to defend the military actions that he and Mr.

Trump have taken against Iran, Yemen's Iranian-backed Houthi rebels and Venezuela's previous leaders. After giving a speech at the Naval War College in Rhode Island, he brushed aside the impeachment push. “There's a lot of politically motivated people who may have substantial policy disagreements, but their disagreements are with success,” he told reporters.

He added that “if we want to litigate” the military actions that the Trump administration has taken, “I'm happy to do it all day long.” Asked about Vice President JD Vance blaming the Iran war for the massive GOP losses in the election, Mr.

Hegseth noted that Mr. Trump said he would do it again, and “I agree.” Mr. Hegseth also announced that he would hold a rare news conference on Tuesday (November 10)- his first in over 180 days - on the impeachment threat.

Mr. Hegseth argued that the war was necessary because “someone had to confront the Iranian regime's pursuit of a nuclear weapon” and said “the choice was don't act and wish it away or take a bold move." Iran has long maintained that its nuclear program is peaceful.

According to the International Atomic Energy Agency, Iran has 440.9 kg of uranium that is enriched up to 60 per cent purity, a short, technical step from weapons-grade levels of 90 per cent.