WASHINGTON, Nov 9 — Rep. Thomas Massie, a Kentucky Republican, reintroduced articles of impeachment against Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth on Monday, the first day of the House's lame-duck session after the midterm elections, setting up a House vote within the next two days, NPR reported. Massie read the 34-page resolution on the House floor on Monday afternoon. The resolution accuses Hegseth of high crimes and misdemeanors and lists eight specific charges, most of them tied to the US-Israeli war against Iran that began on February 28.

Source: NPR via Ocean State Media, Nov 9, 2026

Because Massie offered the resolution as a privileged measure — a question of the privileges of the House — Republican leaders cannot simply leave it in committee: the House must act on it within two legislative days, which puts a vote as early as Wednesday, CNN and CBS News reported. Leadership has three options, each itself a recorded vote: hold a direct vote on the articles, move to table (kill) the resolution, or refer it to a committee.

Source: CNN / CBS News via Zark News, Nov 9, 2026

The eight charges

According to the list published by Massie's office and reported by NPR, the eight articles are: three charges of illegally waging war against Iran in violation of the War Powers Resolution; one charge of ignoring laws designed to minimize civilian casualties; one charge of overseeing what the resolution calls 'extrajudicial killings' in the Caribbean Sea and Eastern Pacific Ocean, in strikes on alleged drug boats; one charge of suppressing free speech, brought in connection with the effort to punish Sen. Mark Kelly of Arizona for a video telling service members they can refuse illegal orders; one charge over the capture of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro without congressional authorization; and one charge of illegally waging war against Yemen in violation of the War Powers Resolution. These are Massie's allegations, set out in his resolution — no court, inspector general or House vote has adopted them as findings.

Source: NPR via Ocean State Media, Nov 9, 2026

Trump stands by Hegseth; Hegseth calls the articles a sham

Speaking to reporters during an impromptu White House briefing on Monday — the same appearance at which he discussed the Qatar prime minister's mediation visit — President Donald Trump expressed support for his defense secretary. 'I'll stand by him,' Trump said. 'He won two wars. He was in charge. We all won.' Hegseth had already defended his record in a video released last Thursday, dismissing Massie's effort as 'sham articles of impeachment' and saying: 'Didn't work against President Trump and it won't work with me.' Hegseth has also called Massie a 'disgruntled defeated congressman' — a reference to Massie losing his Republican primary this year to Ed Gallrein, a challenger Hegseth campaigned for.

Source: NPR via Ocean State Media, Nov 9, 2026

Massie answered that jibe directly on Monday. 'Well, he's right about one thing — I'm a defeated congressman. I'm not disgruntled,' he told reporters. He framed the filing as a constitutional test rather than a personal feud: 'What's at heart here is the balance of power between the executive branch and Congress,' he said, noting that the War Powers Resolution has largely been ignored by presidents of both parties. 'What is an impeachment? An impeachment is just firing someone, really. You don't go to prison, you don't go to jail, you don't pay a fine. When the Democrats get in charge, they are going to be very vicious.'

Source: NPR via Ocean State Media, Nov 9, 2026

Second attempt: the September filing expired without a vote

This is Massie's second attempt in two months. He first filed the same articles on September 15 and read them aloud on the floor; the next day Speaker Mike Johnson cancelled the rest of the week's votes and sent the House into its campaign recess, so the resolution expired before any member had to vote on it, NPR and AP reported. Johnson opposes the renewed effort, saying impeachment 'in the middle of hostilities abroad' would be 'a terrible thing for our allies and our enemies to see,' according to reporting cited by Zark News from Reuters and USA Today.

Source: AP via ZeroHedge, Nov 9, 2026

The vote math

Impeaching Hegseth in the House needs only a simple majority. AP reported that Massie is confident three Republicans will join every Democrat to pass it, and presumptive next Speaker Hakeem Jeffries — who takes over when the new, Democratic-controlled Congress convenes in January — has already said he supports the push, the subject of Awaaz Punjab's earlier report. Not all Republicans agree the move is legitimate even when they share the war-powers concern: Rep. Warren Davidson of Ohio told NPR that administrations going back to the Korean War have largely ignored Congress's war-powers efforts, calling the filing 'scapegoat' politics and a mistake, and said lawmakers who want change should instead use Congress's power of the purse. Even if the House impeaches, removing Hegseth would require conviction by two-thirds of the Senate, which NPR and AP both describe as unlikely.

Source: NPR via Ocean State Media; AP via ZeroHedge, Nov 9, 2026

What happens next

House leaders must act by Wednesday at the latest: a direct vote on the articles, a motion to table them, or referral to committee — and the first roll call may be on tabling, which would end the effort before the articles themselves are voted on. Hegseth is also reported to be holding a Pentagon news conference on Tuesday morning, where the filing is expected to feature. If the House does vote to impeach, Hegseth would be tried in the Senate, where Republicans still hold the majority until the new Congress convenes in January. Awaaz Punjab will report the House action when it happens.