Hegseth calls the impeachment process against him a "sham"

WashingtonSecretary of Defense Pete Hegseth has learned from Donald Trump: when backed into a corner, he attacks. The Pentagon chief has appeared for the first time since May to lash out against the process of impeachment that the Republican congressman, Thomas Massie, has started in Congress. Hegseth has said that "what a disgruntled and defeated congressman is trying to do is not oversight or accountability". Massie will not renew his seat this January after standing up to the American president over the Epstein papers and the Iran war. Trump was in charge of watering his rival's campaign with millions during this summer's primaries.

In an appearance that lasted nearly half an hour, and in which he maintained a rather angry and even exasperated tone of voice, Hegseth stated that the impeachment is a "farce" and it will not move forward. According to the Pentagon chief, it is a move to "harm" Trump. The Secretary of Defense wants to save his own skin by turning the political trial into a personal issue that seeks to hurt the tycoon after the electoral defeat in the midterm elections.

"It is a political maneuver, a personal manifesto driven by ego and resentment. The time has come for a man, in his final days in Congress, to attempt to harm the president, the country and, in the most irresponsible way, the soldiers who defend it," he said. The American president, who has already rallied around Hegseth, reacted to the press conference via Truth Social: "A very good job by Pete Hegseth; it must be seen!".

However, the general tone in Congress is different. The electoral blow has not only caused unrest within the Republican Party, and many congressmen have seen how the Iran war has literally cost them their seat. Massie wants to take advantage of this situation to gain sufficient support. Now that many legislators already know they will not renew their seat next year, they have little to lose and much to gain. Until now, Trump has been able to keep the Republican bench on a short leash due to the threat of having them defeated during the primaries. But this threat no longer exists.

Furthermore, there is another factor. The old Republican majority has its days numbered, and if Trump insists on blocking the impeachment of Hegseth, it is highly likely that the new Democratic majority will end up removing him with a new political trial. With this perspective, Trump has much more to gain if he removes Hegseth himself, because he will still have the majority in the Senate to influence the election of the new Secretary of Defense. When there is a Democratic majority, it will be more difficult for him.

This Tuesday, the senator for Texas, Ted Cruz –who has also shown himself to be critical of the war and has marked a certain distance from Trump– said on his podcast that the initiative to remove Hegseth will end with the secretary "resigning voluntarily or with Trump forcing him out." And he added that it is "extremely likely, if not certain," that the House of Representatives will vote in favor of subjecting Hegseth to an impeachment process. This Tuesday, the lower house is scheduled to vote on whether to send the resolution presented by Massie to a committee for it to decide whether to open a deeper investigation or archive it.

If neither of the two options obtains enough votes (simple majority), the proposal will pass to the floor of the House of Representatives to be subjected to a full vote. If it is approved, then it would move to the Senate, where 67 votes would be needed to remove the Secretary of Defense. If Hegseth falls through a political trial, he would be the third secretary in U.S. history to be removed by this means. The other two were Secretary of War William Belknap (in the 19th century), and more recently, Alejandro Mayorkas, who was the Secretary of Homeland Security during Joe Biden's term.

Eight charges

In total, to the resolution ofimpeachment that Massie has filed against Hegseth include eight charges that constitute a violation of the Constitution and federal law.

Three of the charges presented focus on scrutinizing his conduct in the Iran war. Among other things, Hegseth is accused of waging a military campaign without Congressional authorization and of continuing it even though the legislative branch voted for it to be ended. He is also accused of having violated the deadline established by the war powers resolution, since after 60 days of conflict the executive branch needs Congressional approval to continue. Otherwise, it is obligated to withdraw the troops.