Rep. Thomas Massie lashed out at his fellow Republicans on Tuesday night after the House shut down his effort to impeach Secretary of War Pete Hegseth. The Kentucky Republican accused his party of sticking with the administration even after a punishing midterm election.
The House voted 211-204 on a motion from Rep. Darrell Issa, R-Calif., to refer Massie’s eight articles of impeachment to the House Judiciary Committee, which effectively kills the measure for the rest of the current Republican-controlled Congress. The vote was procedural, so the House never voted directly on impeachment.
Massie was the only Republican to vote against the referral, siding with every Democrat present. Seven Republicans and 11 Democrats missed the vote, and the Democratic absences helped seal the outcome.
In an interview with MS NOW, Massie said he was stunned that his colleagues stood by the administration on the Iran war after the party took a “shellacking” and lost majorities in both chambers.
“My colleagues are still in the suicide pact with this administration and the Iran war,” Massie said.
He argued that Republicans know the war is why they lost the election but cannot bring themselves to act, and concluded that Trump still controls the House GOP conference.
“I wasn’t surprised, but I was disappointed,” Massie said after the vote. He added that he would not bring up another impeachment resolution.
Massie introduced the articles on Monday. Among other charges, they accused Hegseth of launching the war in Iran without congressional authorization, ignoring war powers resolutions and carrying out the January operation that captured Venezuelan dictator Nicolás Maduro without legal authority. Massie first filed a similar resolution in September, but Speaker Mike Johnson sent the House home early before a vote could take place.
Hegseth hit back at a Pentagon news conference Tuesday, calling the effort a “farce” and a “political spectacle.”
“None of these are high crimes or misdemeanors,” Hegseth said.
Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell said the referral of what he called baseless articles marked a total victory for Hegseth, the Department of War and the American warfighter.
President Trump celebrated on Truth Social. He wrote that the attempt to impeach Hegseth had “miserably FAILED,” called Massie a “major LOSER” and gave his secretary an “A” for his defense. Johnson had earlier dismissed Massie as a “disgruntled congressman” seeking attention.
Even some Republicans who have criticized Hegseth’s handling of the war said they did not believe his conduct rose to the level of impeachment.
Democrats signaled that the fight is not over. House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries said the vote was “just the beginning,” and Democrats will take control of the House in January.
Massie has clashed with the Trump administration repeatedly, from the president’s signature spending bill to the release of files in the Jeffrey Epstein case. Trump backed challenger Ed Gallrein, who defeated Massie in the May primary with Hegseth campaigning on his behalf. Massie leaves office in January.
The war with Iran, which began with U.S. and Israeli strikes on Feb. 28, is now in its ninth month.
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