Democrats' Absenteeism Derails Impeachment Effort Against Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth

An attempt to impeach Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has been blocked in the United States House of Representatives, offering a surprising reprieve to President Donald Trump’s administration amidst Republican struggles following their midterm election defeat. The impeachment articles, introduced by Republican Congressman Thomas Massie, received significant backing from Democrats. These articles accused Hegseth of alleged abuses of power and the execution of illegal military operations. On Tuesday, the Republican-led House voted 211-204 to send the articles back to the House Judiciary Committee, a move that effectively halts the impeachment proceedings for the remainder of the current Congress's term, which concludes in eight weeks. Control of both the House and Senate will shift to Democrats on January 3. The outcome was unexpectedly influenced by the absence of 11 Democratic lawmakers.

What the Vote Was About: Tuesday's vote did not decide whether to impeach Hegseth. Instead, it determined whether to refer the impeachment articles to the Judiciary Committee for further investigation or potential amendment. Such procedural maneuvers are frequently employed as delaying tactics. Given the imminent end of the current Congress's term, it is improbable that the resolution will be brought to the House floor again before its conclusion. Congressman Massie described the vote as "a procedural motion to kill the resolution."

Vote Outcome: The procedural motion narrowly passed with a vote of 211-204. Congressman Massie was the only Republican to vote against the measure. The remaining votes largely followed party lines, with Republicans supporting the motion and Democrats opposing it. A total of 18 representatives were absent, including 11 Democrats and seven Republicans. Had all 11 absent Democrats been present and voted with their party, they would have possessed sufficient numbers to defeat the procedural move, potentially forcing a full House vote on Hegseth's impeachment this week. President Trump celebrated the vote's outcome on social media, stating that the Democrats' impeachment effort had "miserably FAILED!"

Absent Democrats and Reasons for Absence: The 11 absent Democratic lawmakers were Julia Brownley (California), Lou Correa (California), Nancy Pelosi (California), Laura Gillen (New York), Steven Horsford (Nevada), Jonathan Jackson (Illinois), Brittany Pettersen (Colorado), Melanie Stansbury (New Mexico), Haley Stevens (Michigan), Marilyn Strickland (Washington), and Frederica Wilson (Florida). Their explanations for missing the vote varied. Strickland, Jackson, Stansbury, and Gillen cited traffic delays in Washington, D.C. Pelosi stated she was in her home state for a veterans' event, while Correa mentioned being in California for a health procedure. Horsford's office attributed his absence to a personal emergency. Pettersen, who had previously helped introduce impeachment articles against Hegseth in April, indicated she was "denied the ability to vote on this motion" without further detail. Jackson, Stansbury, Gillen, Strickland, Horsford, Pelosi, and Pettersen all affirmed they would have voted against the procedural measure. Jackson and Stansbury noted they had formally recorded their opposition in the Congressional Record, though this does not alter the official vote count. Stevens, Brownley, and Wilson did not immediately comment on their absences. Stevens had previously criticized the Trump administration's war in Iran with Israel and advocated for greater congressional oversight. Notably, days before the US midterm elections on November 3, Stevens, who had lost the Democratic primary for Michigan's open Senate seat, endorsed Republican candidate Mike Rogers over her party's nominee. Wilson, 83, had attended a groundbreaking for a housing project in Miami-Dade County on Monday. Like Stevens and Brownley, Wilson had previously opposed Trump's handling of the war in Iran and called for the administration to seek congressional approval for military actions.

Reactions to the Vote: Democratic politicians and progressive commentators expressed strong disapproval regarding the impact of low Democratic attendance on the vote's outcome. Congresswoman Sydney Kamlager-Dove from California stated, "We knew that this vote was coming, so people should have gotten their raggedy selves up these steps to vote." She added, "There is no reason why we should have lost this vote because of attendance issues." Senator-elect El-Sayed commented on the absent Democrats, urging, "You should show up and do your job." Some analysts criticized House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, who is slated to become Speaker of the House in January, accusing him of insufficient efforts to ensure party members voted against the measure. Political commentator Krystal Ball labeled the vote "a major Hakeem Jeffries fail," lamenting, "You could have impeached the war criminal Pete Hegseth but Dems didn’t show up to vote." Progressive writer Laura Bassett criticized Jeffries's leadership, saying, "Jeffries didn’t even whip the vote. He told people to ‘vote their conscience’, and 11 members of his caucus didn’t show up. This is why people want a stronger leader."

Future Impeachment Prospects: It remains possible for Hegseth to be impeached. When the new Democratic-controlled Congress convenes in January, they can initiate the impeachment process anew and will be in a stronger position to advance impeachment articles. Jeffries has indicated that discussions about a potential impeachment bid next year will occur with members "at the appropriate time." However, a successful impeachment vote by the House does not guarantee removal from office. Impeachment signifies formal charges against a federal official, akin to a criminal indictment. A subsequent trial in the Senate would determine conviction. Conviction, leading to immediate removal from office, requires at least two-thirds support in the Senate. This means Democrats, even with their incoming Senate majority, would likely need approximately a dozen Republican votes to secure Hegseth's removal. Historically, only eight federal officials (all judges) have been convicted by the Senate. President Trump himself was impeached twice, in December 2019 and January 2021, but was acquitted by the Senate on both occasions.