WASHINGTON — Pete Hegseth pushed back Tuesday. At a Pentagon briefing, the secretary of war said the impeachment resolution filed against him in the House is rooted in policy disagreements. It is not, he argued, about the kind of offenses the impeachment clause describes, according to the Department of War.
He used the briefing to list what he sees as a run of successful operations carried out on his watch. An impeachment threat, he added, tells America’s adversaries the wrong thing.
Rep. Thomas Massie is forcing a House vote on eight articles of impeachment against Hegseth. Massie says Hegseth waged war in Iran without asking Congress, in violation of the War Powers Resolution. Three charges are built on that 1973 law. The others reach civilian casualties, strikes on suspected drug traffickers at sea, free speech, Venezuela and Yemen.
“We destroyed terror regimes’ capabilities, we sank the boats carrying poison into our communities, we put a narco-dictator in handcuffs,” he said. “These are not high crimes. This is the job, and it’s a job well done.”
No war secretary — and no defense secretary either — has ever been impeached for carrying out lawful military operations, he noted.
Reagan was not impeached over Lebanon. Clinton was not impeached over Kosovo. Neither Obama nor Biden faced it over Iraq and Syria, Hegseth said, with or without a War Powers Resolution. “That’s the standard,” he said.
A Record He Says He Would Repeat
Trump, Hegseth said, brought back peace through strength. For Trump it is not just a mantra, he added — it is a way of war.
Kabul, five years ago, was a humiliation for America, he said — and every enemy on earth took notes.
Then came his own tenure. Houthis fired on American ships and were silenced, he said. Iran’s nuclear ambitions, and its support for terrorism, drew a response too. His list went on: Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro was removed, narcoterrorism was confronted, and NATO allies were pressed to pay their share.
Only America, he argued, could pull off missions like those.
“I stand behind every one of these operations,” he said. “I was proud to execute them, and I would do it again tomorrow.”
Recruiting and Standards
The secretary pointed to two years of successful recruiting and retention, after several years when goals were missed, as a sign of a rejuvenated War Department. He listed investments in troop pay and healthcare, higher combat performance standards, and the advanced equipment troops need to win.
“That’s what we’re defending,” he said, adding, “We will not apologize for restoring a military that recruits based on merit, restores real standards and fights to win.”
Hegseth said the department will keep protecting the country, defeating its enemies and rebuilding a military worthy of the warriors who wear the uniform.
“I pray each day, and I hope you do too, for our troops,” Hegseth said. “They are the best of our nation. Like our president, I will defend them with every fiber of my being every single day. That includes having their back no matter what.”
He spoke directly to the troops: “Don’t blink, ignore the noise, never hesitate.”
“We will stand,” he added. “We will fight, and we will defend this republic against all enemies, foreign and domestic.”