Breather for Pete Hegseth: The Republicans in the House of Representatives have demonstratively stood behind the US Secretary of Defense and rejected a motion for impeachment proceedings. But the joy could be short-lived.
The US House of Representatives has rejected a motion to initiate impeachment proceedings against US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth. MPs voted 211 to 204 on Tuesday to refer the request back to the Justice Committee. Since the committee is controlled by Republicans, the push has effectively stopped.
After the Republican election debacle in the midterms a week ago, the pressure on Hegseth increased. The request was submitted by Republican Congressman Thomas Massie; he criticized Hegseth, among other things, for his actions in the Iran war: one core accusation was that armed forces were sent even though Congress had not given authorization.
Hegseth rejects the allegations. At a press conference a few hours before the vote, he spoke of a "farce." He will not apologize for the fact that the US military is destroying the military capabilities of a country that chants "Death to the USA."
Trump praises Hegseth - and deals against Massie
The USA started the war against Iran together with Israel at the end of February. President Donald Trump actually wanted to limit the conflict to a few weeks. However, so far there is no end in sight. Even among Republicans, criticism of the conduct of the war is increasing.
Trump had demonstratively supported Hegseth. Most recently, he praised him effusively on Truth Social for his speech against Massie, who was a "total loser."
The fact that a Republican of all people introduced the proposal into parliament has a history. Trump and Massie have been feuding for a long time. Massie is one of the few Republicans who openly criticize the president. The representative was instrumental in forcing Congress to disclose investigative files in the case of sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. Trump wanted to prevent this, but ultimately bowed to Parliament's vote.
Massie actually wanted to remain a member of parliament in the new legislative period. But Trump had stirred up sentiment against him and voted for another Republican in the party's internal primaries. He was then nominated as a candidate for the midterms in Massie's district in Kentucky. Massie will soon be leaving the congress, so he has nothing left to lose politically.
The Republicans currently have a razor-thin majority in the House of Representatives and the Senate - that will change in January. Then the new legislative period begins, and after their victories in the midterms, the Democrats will then have a majority in both chambers of Congress. They could start a new attempt to remove the controversial defense minister from his post.
The hurdles to impeachment are high: If the majority of the House of Representatives agrees, a so-called impeachment trial would begin in the Senate. A two-thirds majority would then be needed in this chamber of Congress to remove Hegseth from office.
