US Rep. moves to impeach Pete Hegseth over Iran War

• Rep. Thomas Massie introduced eight articles to impeach War Secretary Pete Hegseth over unauthorized hostilities in Iran.
• Massie's privileged resolution mandates a House vote within two legislative days, putting Republicans on the record.
• The resolution further accuses Hegseth of illegal actions in Yemen and Venezuela, including capturing Nicolás Maduro.

Representative Thomas Massie (R-Ky.) introduced a privileged resolution on Tuesday to impeach War Secretary Pete Hegseth, accusing him of violating the Constitution and illegally continuing the US war in Iran despite congressional mandates.

The move marks a dramatic escalation in the retiring lawmaker's months-long effort to rein in the administration's war powers.

Massie introduced the resolution without giving GOP leadership advance notice.

Massie’s resolution accuses Hegseth of executing orders to maintain military operations in Iran, frustrating Congress’s constitutional authority to govern war and disregarding previous votes aimed at ending the conflict.

"In all of this, Secretary Hegseth has acted in a manner contrary to his trust as Secretary of Defense," Massie stated on the House floor, asserting that Hegseth's actions "frustrated Congress's ability to exercise its most solemn constitutional responsibility" and permitted an "unlawful war" to continue.

Resolution targets operations in Venezuela and Yemen

Massie's eight-article resolution extends beyond the conflict with Iran, accusing Hegseth of conducting unauthorized military operations in Yemen and illegally directing the operation to capture Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro without authorization from Congress.

The impeachment effort comes after repeated House votes seeking to restrict military operations in Iran, including war powers resolutions passed in June and July directing the president to end hostilities with Tehran.

The House is slated to vote Tuesday on another war powers resolution regarding the Iran war.

Hegseth previously faced an impeachment push from House Democrats, who introduced six articles against him in April that similarly alleged he waged an unauthorized war against Iran.

Procedural outlook in the House

While the impeachment effort faces steep odds in the GOP-controlled chamber, the privileged status of Massie's resolution requires the House to take up the legislation within the next two legislative days.

GOP leadership could move to table the resolution instead of holding a direct vote on the articles, though the measure will still force lawmakers to take a position on Hegseth's management of the war.