Pete Hegseth faces Republican backlash after midterm rout as Iran war blamed for election defeat
US defence secretary, Pete Hegseth. (Image courtesy: Wikimedia Commons)
New Delhi: The US defence secretary, Pete Hegseth, faces a renewed impeachment threat after Republican congressman Thomas Massie demanded his resignation following the party’s defeat in the Tuesday, midterm elections. The pressure comes as Republicans increasingly question the administration’s handling of the Iran war, although the president, Donald Trump, continues to publicly defend his Pentagon chief.
Massie, a Republican from Kentucky, warned on Wednesday that he would revive impeachment proceedings unless Hegseth stepped down.
“There is one contingency in which I won’t reintroduce the articles of impeachment: Hegseth resigns,” Massie wrote on X.
Massie introduced a 34-page resolution containing eight impeachment articles in September, accusing Hegseth of exceeding his authority through military operations against Iran without congressional approval. The allegations also covered operations in Yemen and Venezuela, civilian casualties and congressional oversight, although none constitutes an established legal finding.
The congressman intends to seek a vote when lawmakers return next week, CNN reported, citing Republican sources. Hegseth has also faced criticism from party members over his advocacy of military escalation and strained congressional relationships, although Trump authorized the war.
The vice-president, JD Vance, intensified the political fallout by identifying the Iran conflict as the principal reason behind Republican losses.
“The reason we lost is the war,” Vance wrote on X, citing voter frustration over the conflict, inflation, living costs and Washington’s relationship with Israel. Donald Trump Jr publicly endorsed his assessment, RNA Media reported on Thursday.
Trump, however, dismissed suggestions that Hegseth faced imminent removal, telling reporters on Wednesday: “No, I think he’s doing a very good job.”
The Pentagon said Hegseth remained “100 per cent committed” to leading the department until January 2029. The department’s chief spokesman, Sean Parnell, maintained that the Pentagon had followed the law and rejected politically motivated investigations, Reuters reported.
Republican Senator, Thom Tillis, separately warned that Hegseth faced a reckoning over strained congressional relations, potentially complicating efforts to secure support for the administration’s proposed $1.5 trillion defence spending package.
Democrats secured control of both congressional chambers in Tuesday’s midterm elections, RNA Media reported on Wednesday. The party has promised investigations into the Iran campaign, senior military dismissals, Ukraine policy and strikes on suspected drug-trafficking vessels in Latin America.
Democratic Representatives, Jason Crow and Pat Ryan have called for Hegseth’s departure, although their party will not assume control of congressional committees until January 2027.
The pressure recalls November 2006, when The president, George W Bush, dismissed defence secretary, Donald Rumsfeld, following Republican midterm losses amid opposition to the Iraq war.
