Thomas Massie of Kentucky stood on the House floor Tuesday and read articles of impeachment against Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth out loud, then filed them as privileged. Under House rules, that forces a floor vote within two legislative days and takes away leadership's ability to quietly park it in committee. Massie never told GOP leaders it was coming.
The vote is expected Thursday, the last session day before lawmakers leave for a recess of about six weeks.
The articles accuse Hegseth of violating three specific provisions of the War Powers Resolution of 1973. "By engaging in hostilities in Iran for more than 90 days without congressional authorization, Secretary Hegseth is breaking the law and must be held accountable," Massie said. He also accused Hegseth of abusing his office "to kidnap foreign leaders, and to intimidate critics of the Trump administration by retaliating against them for exercising free speech," and said military operations in Venezuela and Yemen went ahead without congressional approval.
Hegseth is still the man running the Iran war. Early in that war, a elementary school was hit by missiles and as many as 175 people were killed. A preliminary investigation found U.S. forces accidentally targeted the school. The formal inquiry still isn't finished.
House Democrats filed six impeachment articles against Hegseth in April over the unauthorized Iran war. Those were referred to committee and never got a vote.
The Pentagon's answer to all of it: it says "standards and merit are back," that recruitment and morale are at all-time highs, and that "by every measurable metric" the department is better under Hegseth. It offered nothing on the school.
GOP leaders can still move to table the resolution instead. That would put Reps. Tom Barrett, Brian Fitzpatrick and Warren Davidson on the spot, all Republicans who already voted to rebuke Trump for waging war in Iran without Congress.
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