Democratic Whip Says Absences Hurt Impeachment Effort on Defense Secretary

U.S. Representative Katherine Clark, the House Democratic whip, told colleagues that the Democratic members who missed a vote on the impeachment of Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth failed to fulfill their responsibilities, according to two sources present in the chamber. Clark, who is positioning herself for a future House majority leader role, said the absences undermined the party’s ability to advance the impeachment resolution.

Eleven Democrats were absent when House Republicans voted to block the impeachment effort in the final weeks of the Republican-led Congress. The motion to refer the impeachment resolution to the House Judiciary Committee was defeated 211-204, ending the attempt. Only one Republican, Representative Thomas Massie of Kentucky, voted with the Democrats.

Speaker Emerita Nancy Pelosi was in San Francisco for a Veterans Day ceremony, and California Democrat Lou Correa was recovering from a medical procedure. Representatives Haley Stevens of Michigan and Frederica Wilson of Florida did not comment. Nevada Representative Steven Horsford cited a personal emergency that delayed his arrival and said, "> I missed an important vote. I take full responsibility. The accountability I demand of others applies to me, too."

Several members who missed the vote attributed their absence to traffic delays, including a police escort for a bus involved in a traffic incident. Representative Brittany Pettersen of Colorado said House Speaker Mike Johnson "worked overtime to shield" Hegseth "from accountability" and added, "> Next year House Democrats will impeach Hegseth, and neither Johnson nor President Donald Trump will be able to stop us."

Democrats are expected to control both chambers of Congress when the new session begins early next year, which could allow a renewed impeachment effort, though a Democratic-led Senate would still need a two-thirds vote to remove the secretary from office.