Credit : The White House's X
WASHINGTON November 10, 2026 — US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth on Tuesday dismissed a bid to impeach him as a “political spectacle” and “sabotage”, as the House of Representatives prepared for a procedural vote on eight articles of impeachment filed by outgoing Republican Representative Thomas Massie of Kentucky.
Speaking at the Pentagon, Hegseth said every military operation cited in the articles — including the war with Iran, strikes on suspected drug-trafficking boats, action involving Venezuela’s Nicolás Maduro and operations in Yemen — was “a lawful operation ordered by the Commander-in-Chief, then ordered by myself, notified to Congress, and executed by American warriors who did their jobs.” The White House later circulated a lengthy account of his remarks on X, quoting him as saying: “This is not patriotism; this is sabotage.”
Massie, who lost a Republican primary to a Trump-backed challenger and is due to leave Congress in January, introduced the articles on Monday after the House returned from the midterm elections. NPR reported that he first filed a similar resolution in September, but Speaker Mike Johnson sent members home early until after the vote. Associated Press reporting said a procedural vote on Tuesday would either send the resolution back to committee, blocking it, or set up a final House vote on Wednesday. Massie later said that if the motion to kill the measure failed, he would seek separate votes on each of the eight articles, after some colleagues indicated they supported some charges but not others.
The articles, as described by NPR, include four counts focused on circumventing Congress’s authority over waging war, mainly in Iran but also Yemen; a count alleging extrajudicial killings in Caribbean strikes on alleged drug boats; a count claiming Maduro was seized without legal authority; a count accusing Hegseth of retaliating against Senator Mark Kelly over protected speech; and a charge that he ignored laws meant to minimise civilian casualties. Hegseth and the White House reject those claims.
“What one disgruntled and defeated Congressman is attempting is not oversight and it’s not accountability. It’s a political spectacle — a personal manifesto driven by ego and resentment, timed for one man’s final days in Congress to try to do damage to this President, this country, and most irresponsibly, the Warriors who defend it.”
President Donald Trump praised the performance, writing that Hegseth deserved an “A PLUS, PLUS, PLUS for his defense against a disgruntled, angry, defeated, former Congressman, Thomas Massie, a TOTAL LOSER!” Vice President JD Vance called the idea that Hegseth had committed impeachable offences “absurd”, arguing that impeachment had become “a ridiculous show that stands in for actual policymaking.” Speaker Johnson described the effort as “a political gambit for attention” and said impeaching a defence secretary “at a time of international conflict sends a terrible message to our enemies and our allies.”
Republicans still hold a narrow 218–214 majority in the House, according to the Washington Examiner, so only a small number of Republican defections would be needed for the articles to pass if Democrats vote as a bloc. The Associated Press reported that Democratic leaders were backing Massie’s effort. Impeachment in the House would send the case to the Senate for a trial; conviction and removal would require 67 senators, a threshold NPR noted would remain difficult even after Democrats take control of the Senate next year.
Life News Agency earlier reported Hegseth’s November 5 video message vowing to fight a “sham” impeachment drive. Tuesday’s remarks were a formal Pentagon defence ahead of a House test vote. Massie told reporters: “Somebody’s got to put their foot down and say, are we going to follow the laws that are on the books?” Hegseth said the proper remedy for a policy disagreement was legislation, debate or “the next Presidential election”, not “a show trial.”
The White House also argued that the resolution would “tell our enemies — Iran, the cartels, every adversary watching — that the United States will actually punish its own warriors.” The legality of the Iran war remains fiercely contested in Washington and weighed on Republicans at the midterms. The House has not yet judged the allegations. Life News Agency is reporting the charges and the denials, not adjudicating them.
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