WASHINGTON, D.C. — In what congressional staffers are calling “the most bipartisan confusion in recent memory,” House Democrats filed articles of impeachment Thursday against Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, prompting a wave of Americans to pause and quietly Google whether Pete Hegseth was the one from HGTV or the one from Fox News.
The articles accuse Hegseth of running an unauthorized war against Iran without congressional approval, violations of the law of armed conflict, and obstructing congressional oversight — charges Hegseth has described as “totally fake news” and “the deep state being the deep state.”
“We have an obligation to hold the executive branch accountable,” declared one senior Democrat at a press conference, straightening his tie with the energy of a man who has been waiting four years for someone to listen to him. “This is a constitutional crisis.” He then answered no further questions and was driven away in a black SUV.
The Senate had already rejected a separate war powers resolution earlier in the week by a vote of 47 to 52, with only Kentucky Senator Rand Paul crossing party lines to vote against his colleagues, reportedly because he had a prior engagement and also because it was a Tuesday.
Hegseth, for his part, released a four-paragraph statement calling the impeachment push “a political witch hunt,” a “total sham,” “deeply unfair,” and “frankly, rude.” He added that the United States military was performing “extremely well, maybe the best it’s ever performed, many people are saying this.”
“I have never, not once, conducted an unauthorized war,” Hegseth told reporters, adding that all wars conducted under his supervision were “extremely authorized, possibly even over-authorized.”
Legal experts noted that the impeachment articles face long odds in the current Senate, where Republicans hold a majority and have described the charges as “grandstanding,” “a distraction,” and “something we will absolutely not be reading.”
Meanwhile, polling shows that 61% of Americans support “holding someone accountable for something,” with the remaining 39% uncertain who Pete Hegseth is but willing to keep an open mind.
Capitol Hill sources say the impeachment process could take weeks or months, during which time the Iran conflict is expected to continue, jet fuel prices will likely climb further, and at least three more committees will be formed to investigate the committees investigating the committees.
At press time, Democrats were said to be drafting a strongly worded follow-up letter.
Globe News Daily Editorial Note: We have reached out to the Department of Defense for comment. Their press office responded with a GIF of a thumbs down. We consider this an official statement.
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