House Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries backs impeachment of Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth
Hakeem Jeffries said he is "a hard yes" to impeaching Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, while Republican Thomas Massie plans to introduce a resolution with eight articles of impeachment.
House Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries told the ABC programme This Week that he is "a hard yes" on impeaching Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, accusing the secretary of abusing his power and undermining national security in relation to the conflict in Iran. Jeffries, who is expected to become the next Speaker of the House, said the newly empowered Democrats will act as a check on the administration and are not currently focused on impeaching President Donald Trump.
Republican congressman Thomas Massie, a critic of President Trump, announced plans to file an impeachment resolution as early as Monday. The draft resolution lists eight articles, including alleged violations of the War Powers Resolution of 1973 over the United States' involvement in the Iran conflict.
In response, the Pentagon said it had acted within the law and warned that Hegseth would not be deterred by what it called "phony investigations." Hegseth released a video urging Congress to approve the Pentagon's latest budget request and dismissed the impeachment effort as "sham articles," saying the push was driven by political theatre.
The developments come after Democrats regained control of both chambers of Congress in the recent midterm elections.