US President Donald Trump has celebrated a congressional vote that effectively halted an impeachment effort against Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth, declaring that the attempt to remove his Pentagon chief had “miserably FAILED” after Republicans rallied behind the administration.
Trump issued the statement on Tuesday, November 10, shortly after the US House of Representatives voted 211–204 to refer eight articles of impeachment against Hegseth to the House Judiciary Committee, effectively blocking the immediate push to impeach him.
The vote saw Republicans overwhelmingly support the procedural motion, with Kentucky Congressman Thomas Massie emerging as the only Republican to oppose it. All 203 Democrats who voted opposed the motion.
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In his reaction, Trump praised Republican lawmakers for standing with Hegseth while sharply attacking Massie, who had spearheaded the impeachment initiative.
“Every single Republican, except Thomas Massie, a major LOSER, voted in favour of Pete,” Trump wrote in a post on his social media platform.
The president also credited Hegseth with what he described as military victories in Venezuela and Iran, record recruitment figures and renewed morale within the US armed forces.
“Victories in Venezuela and Iran, the Best Recruitment Numbers in the History of the Military (Long waiting lists to get in!), and Spirit like rarely seen before, led to the EXONERATION of a Great American Patriot,” Trump added.
He accused Democrats of weaponising American institutions against his administration and called for an end to what he described as political abuse.
The impeachment effort was unusual because it was initiated by Massie, a Republican lawmaker from Kentucky, who accused a member of his own party’s administration of serious misconduct.
In an eight-article resolution, Massie raised concerns over Hegseth’s handling of US military operations, particularly the war involving Iran, military strikes in Venezuela and Yemen, and the administration’s campaign against suspected drug-smuggling vessels in international waters.
The allegations also included claims that Hegseth had continued military operations against Iran without proper congressional authorisation and failed to uphold safeguards intended to protect civilians during military operations.
Another charge concerned alleged retaliation against Democratic Senator Mark Kelly after he and other lawmakers publicly urged American service members not to obey unlawful orders.
Hegseth has rejected the impeachment effort, describing it as a political spectacle and maintaining that the allegations do not justify his removal from office.
The House vote effectively ends the immediate impeachment push during the current congressional session, although the allegations and questions surrounding the administration’s military decisions could remain subjects of political scrutiny.
For Trump, the outcome provides an important show of Republican support for a defence secretary whose leadership has faced growing criticism over the administration’s military engagements.
However, Tuesday’s vote was not a formal impeachment trial or an acquittal. It was a procedural decision that prevented the resolution from advancing to a full House impeachment vote.
