Calls for Hegseth’s removal growing

Several of the articles of impeachment relate to the Iran war, accusing the US defense secretary of violating the War Powers Resolution

Efforts to remove US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth from office have been growing as he pushes back.

Under pressure after US President Donald Trump and Vice President J.D. Vance blamed the Iran war for the Republican Party’s sweeping losses in midterm elections, Hegseth faces impeachment proceedings in the US House of Representatives.

“There’s a lot of politically motivated people who ... may have substantial policy disagreements, but their disagreements are with success,” Hegseth told reporters on Monday when asked about efforts to remove him.

US Representative Thomas Massie of the Republican Party speaks during a news conference on articles of impeachment against US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth outside the US Capitol in Washington on Monday.

Photo: AFP

“I couldn’t be more proud of what our president has done, the decisions that he’s made, the courageous calls that he’s made, the bold nature of our ... military leadership, the skill and courage of the troops on the ground,” he said.

The impeachment efforts are being spearheaded by US Representative Thomas Massie, an anti-Trump Republican lawmaker who is leaving office after losing a primary contest to a candidate backed by the president.

Several of the articles of impeachment — which Massie introduced on Monday — relate to the Iran war, accusing Hegseth of violating the War Powers Resolution, which requires congressional consultation on and oversight of US military interventions.

Speaking to reporters on Monday, Massie accused Hegseth of using “our troops to go seize oil for large corporations in America” and derided the Trump administration’s refusal to acknowledge the bombing of a school in Iran.

“I mean, obviously we hit it, and you can determine what kind of missiles from the range and the kind of destruction there was. I don’t think they’re going to get out of that article of impeachment by saying: ‘Oh, we don’t know who bombed that school’ — although I think the president tried that for a day or two,” Massie said.

Hegseth is a staunch defender of the widely unpopular conflict in Iran, which he has described as a “courageous and historic effort.”

He has previously dismissed Massie’s “sham articles of impeachment” and equated the effort to remove him as Pentagon chief with past impeachments of Trump.

“It’s all about the politics of personal destruction. Didn’t work against President Trump, and it won’t work with me,” Hegseth said in a video message last week.

Trump on Monday threw his support behind Hegseth, declaring he had done a “good job” and “won” wars in Venezuela and Iran — referring to the lightning raid that captured then-Venezuelan president Nicolas Maduro in January, and the unresolved eight-month conflict with Tehran.

Asked what would happen if Hegseth is impeached, Trump told reporters: “Yeah, I’ll stand by him.”