Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth on Tuesday criticized the Republican congressman who introduced articles of impeachment against him and aggressively defended his leadership in the Iran war and other military operations.
“What a disgruntled and defeated member of Congress is attempting is not oversight, not accountability. It is a political spectacle, a personal manifesto driven by ego and resentment,” Hegseth said a day after Rep. Thomas Massie, R-Ky., introduced the eight articles of impeachment.
“It’s a prank, it’s a set-up, and everyone knows it,” Hegseth said at his first Pentagon news conference in six months.
The articles accuse Hegseth of waging a war in violation of congressional directives, committing extrajudicial killings linked to boat strikes in the Caribbean against alleged drug traffickers and suppressing free speech by targeting Sen. Mark Kelly, Democrat of Arizona, a veteran.
Massie, a libertarian who lost his Republican primary after a clash with President Donald Trump, launched the impeachment battle less than a week after a midterm blue wave that will hand control of the House and Senate to Democrats.
Rep. Hakeem Jeffries of New York, who is set to become speaker of the House in the next Congress, said Sunday that Democrats were a “resounding yes” to impeaching Hegseth.
The House is expected to vote Tuesday on a procedural motion related to the impeachment resolution. If passed, the measure would be up for debate and a vote by the end of the week. Impeachment resolutions are privileged, meaning the House must act on them, table them, or vote to send them to committee within two legislative days.
Hegseth accused Massie of pulling a “stunt” that sends dangerous signals to America’s enemies.
“This puts a target on the backs of America’s warriors by signaling that Congress will undermine their missions in real time,” Hegseth said. “It’s not patriotism. It’s sabotage.”
Trump continued, writing in a Truth Social article just after Hegseth’s press conference ended that the Pentagon chief “gets an ‘A’ PLUS, MORE, MORE for his defense against a disgruntled, angry and defeated former Congressman, Thomas Massie, a TOTAL LOSER!”
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— CNBC Garrett Downs reports contributed.
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