The U.S. House of Representatives voted Tuesday evening to refer a resolution containing eight articles of impeachment against Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth to the House Judiciary Committee. The move effectively places the impeachment article on political life support, as the GOP-controlled committee is not expected to advance the resolution to a full floor vote.
The procedural motion, which was advanced by Republican leadership, removes the measure from immediate floor consideration. With Republicans retaining control of the House and its committees until early January, the resolution is widely expected to receive no further action in the current Congress.
Rep. Thomas Massie (R-KY), who lost his primary earlier this year and is leaving Congress in January, introduced the privileged resolution on Monday. Privileged status required House leaders to address the measure within two legislative days. Massie read the 34-page document on the floor, accusing Hegseth of high crimes and misdemeanors.
The articles center on the Iran conflict, which began in late February 2026, along with other military operations in Latin America, Yemen and elsewhere.
Three articles allege violations of the 1973 War Powers Resolution. These include initiating hostilities against Iran without a congressional declaration of war, specific statutory authorization, an attack on the United States, or an imminent threat, continuing operations after both chambers passed a concurrent resolution in June directing the withdrawal of U.S. forces, and exceeding the statute’s 60-day limit for unauthorized hostilities.
A fourth article charges that Hegseth’s changes to Pentagon processes for minimizing civilian casualties contributed to a February strike on a school in Minab, Iran, that killed several civilians.
Additional articles address U.S. strikes on vessels suspected of drug trafficking in the Caribbean and eastern Pacific, which the resolution describes as extrajudicial killings resulting in more than 200 deaths, the January 2026 military operation that captured then-Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro, U.S. airstrikes against Houthi targets in Yemen in 2025, and alleged retaliation against Senator Mark Kelly (D-AZ) after the senator appeared in a video urging service members to refuse illegal orders.
Hegseth has rejected the charges as policy disagreements rather than impeachable offenses. In a Pentagon briefing Tuesday morning, he described the effort as a “political spectacle” and a “farce.”
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Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth survives a House impeachment effort as Republicans vote 211–204 to send eight articles to committee.
Rep. Thomas Massie is the lone Republican to break ranks.
Democrats can revive the impeachment effort without Republican votes when they take…
— AF Post (@AFpost) November 10, 2026
Tuesday’s vote effectively halted the process for the remainder of the 119th Congress. Massie was the sole Republican to oppose the referral motion, while the remaining Republicans who voted supported sending the resolution to committee.
House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY) has stated that he is a “hard yes” on the resolution. While speaking with ABC News on November 8, Jeffries said Hegseth “has abused his power, undermined our national security, and engineered this reckless and costly war of choice in Iran” and that “Pete Hegseth has got to go.” He indicated that House Democrats would discuss the matter upon their return to Washington.
Members of the incoming majority could introduce a new impeachment resolution after the 120th Congress is sworn in. Even if such a measure were to pass the House, conviction and removal from office would still require a two-thirds vote in the Senate.
