Ninth Month of War, and Congress Finally Stages a Show

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth stood at a Pentagon podium Tuesday and called the effort to impeach him "a farce and it's a stunt and everybody knows it." His news conference ran about 25 minutes. The war it was defending is in its ninth month.

Rep. Thomas Massie, R-Ky., reintroduced eight articles of impeachment on Monday. They accuse Hegseth of "waging the Iran war despite no declaration of war, statutory authorization, attack on the United States, or imminent threat." The articles also cover U.S. strikes on alleged drug boats, the "kidnapping" of Venezuela's president and "unlawful war in Yemen." Massie is retiring from Congress at the end of the year.

Who Has the Power

Hegseth's defense was blunt about where the orders come from. "Iran, the cartels, Maduro, Yemen, every one was a lawful operation ordered by the commander in chief, then ordered by myself, notified to Congress and executed by American warriors, who did their jobs," he said. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, asked about legality, said Hegseth has been following direct orders from Trump on "imminent threats."

Trump called the Iran conflict a "minor incursion" that would last only four to six weeks. It has dragged on into its ninth month. U.S. munitions are depleted. Costs could run as high as $100 billion, NBC News has reported, and lawmakers in both parties say they're frustrated by how little information Hegseth has given them. The Pentagon is still seeking a budget that hasn't been approved.

When Trump weighed in, he gave Hegseth "an 'A' PLUS, PLUS, PLUS" and called Massie "a TOTAL LOSER." Trump and his new chief of staff, Stephen Miller, have privately said their plan is to fight the effort, CNN reported.

Who Gets Crushed

The people paying for this war aren't in the chamber. Republicans lost the midterms over high gas prices, inflation and opposition to the Iran war. A new poll shows 7 in 10 Americans want Congress to vote to end it. Sen. Joni Ernst of Iowa put it plainly: "We saw Iowans absolutely reject the war in Iran and the costs that it's causing on American families and their pocketbooks."

Vice President JD Vance said the day after the midterms that "the reason we lost is the war." Notice what he's counting. Not the dead, not the cost to families. The Senate seats. "If you'd like to argue it was worth it, that losing the Senate for the next 6 years was worth it, then do so," he wrote on X last week.

What They're Calling "Order"

Hegseth, asked whether he agreed with Vance, sidestepped. "Politics is not really my thing," he said. He called the impeachment articles "sabotage" and said "the proper remedy for a policy disagreement, it's legislation, it's debate, it's the next presidential election." Vance, defending him, said impeachment is "a ridiculous show that stands in for actual policymaking" and that "legislation is hard. Impeachments are easy (and ultimately, inconsequential)."

That's the apparatus describing its own remedies. The election was held, and the war went on. Congress has the tools, Vance says, and the war is in its ninth month.

The House could vote as early as 5:30 p.m. Tuesday. The outcome hangs on attendance: 22 Republicans didn't show up to vote Monday night, according to CNN, and NBC News reported 36 members were absent. A Republican could move to table the resolution or refer it to committee, and either would bury it without a vote on the charges. NBC News said no Republicans other than Massie had committed to backing impeachment. If the House did approve the articles, a Senate trial would need 67 votes to convict, and Senate GOP leaders are expected to try to dismiss the case or refer it to committee, which would likely kill it because Congress adjourns within weeks.

Some of the hesitation arrives conveniently late. Retiring Sen. Thom Tillis, who cast a crucial vote to confirm Hegseth last year, now says he'd support a trial to express "no confidence." Sen. Bill Cassidy, who lost his primary after Trump opposed him, said he'd be "open to a trial." Rep. James Comer said, "No one's happy about Iran." Several of the loudest doubters are on their way out the door.

Democrats offered a model of accountability: resign, as Donald Rumsfeld did one day after Republicans suffered sweeping defeats in 2006. "If the president had any sense, he would do what George W. Bush did with Rumsfeld," Rep. Ro Khanna said. Incoming House Oversight Chairman Robert Garcia said the "complete focus" should be on Hegseth, then named Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. as another potential target.

Hegseth closed with a line about the troops: "If they want to come for the warriors, they're going to have to come through me." The articles only target Hegseth, not members of the military.