House Democrats file 5 impeachment articles against Hegseth
House Democrats will introduce five articles of impeachment against Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth on Wednesday, accusing him of war crimes in connection with the Iran war, abuse of power and mishandling of the Department of Defense (DOD).
Rep. Yassamin Ansari (D-Ariz.), the first Iranian American Democrat in Congress, will introduce the impeachment resolution, Axios reported after it obtained a copy of the resolution .
Eight Democrats are co-sponsoring the long-shot resolution: Reps. Steve Cohen (Tenn.), Jasmine Crockett (Texas), Nikema Williams (Ga.), Sarah McBride (Del.), Brittany Pettersen (Colo.), Dina Titus (Nev.), Dave Min (Calif.) and Shri Thanedar (Mich.).
Ansari announced last week that she was filing articles of impeachment, which are almost certain to go nowhere in the GOP-controlled House. She accused Hegseth of being “complicit” in President Trump’s “devastating, illegal war” in Iran.
The first article accuses Hegseth of violating his oath of office in overseeing an “unauthorized war against Iran and reckless endangerment of United States service members.” The resolution goes on to accuse the secretary of war crimes by targeting civilians and breaking the rules of armed conflict, followed by the alleged mishandling of sensitive information.
This article refers to the use of the Signal app on his personal cell phone to discuss a pending strike on Houthi targets in Yemen. The incident drew attention after The Atlantic Editor-in-Chief Jeffrey Goldberg was added to the chat that included Hegseth and other administration officials.
The Office of Inspector General determined in a report that Hegseth jeopardized troop safety and violated department policy. The DOD stated the report was a “total exoneration” for Hegseth.
Ansari’s resolution also accuses Hegseth of obstructing congressional oversight responsibilities, including the alleged withholding of information regarding military actions in Venezuela and Iran, among other military theaters.
It also claims the Defense chief abused his power, “including targeting and launching bogus investigations against specific elected officials for the express purpose of political retribution.”
The administration pushed back on the claims made in the resolution. Pentagon press secretary Kingsley Wilson said in a statement to The Hill that it was “just another Democrat trying to make headlines as the Department of War decisively and overwhelmingly achieved the President’s objectives in Iran.”
“Secretary Hegseth will continue to protect the homeland and project peace through strength,” Wilson wrote. “This is just another charade in an attempt to distract the American people from the major successes we have had here at the Department of War.”
Thanedar previously filed articles of impeachment against Hegseth in December. He accused the secretary of committing war crimes amid the U.S. strikes on alleged drug-trafficking boats in the Caribbean.
An incident in September where a strike attacked a boat, then another strike killed survivors, drew outrage from Democrats who said the strikes amounted to war crimes . The incident also raised questions from some Republicans.
Updated at 10:45 a.m. EDT.
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