Democrats vow impeachment push against Pete Hegseth after midterm victories
House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries has backed a resolution to impeach defence secretary Pete Hegseth over allegations of abusing power.
US House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries has expressed support for efforts to impeach defence secretary Pete Hegseth, according to the Times of India. Jeffries accused Hegseth of abusing his power and engineering a war in Iran that has increased costs for the American people.
Speaking to ABC News on Sunday, Jeffries said he supports a resolution that Republican Representative Thomas Massie intends to introduce. Jeffries stated that Democrats will discuss the proposal when they reconvene on Tuesday and added that Hegseth must leave his position.
Hegseth dismissed the impeachment attempt in a video, claiming the move is driven by the politics of personal destruction and stating it would not work with him, as reported by CNN. Representative-elect Nancy Lacore, who was removed by Hegseth from her role as chief of the Navy Reserve in August 2025, called him the most unqualified defence secretary.
Following midterm victories, Democrats are preparing wider investigations into the administration of President Donald Trump. Representative Robert Garcia, the expected chair of the House Oversight Committee, said he is preparing inquiries into what he termed the Trump crime family.
President Trump described the requests for investigations as extortion at the highest level. Attorney General Todd Blanche also warned that criminal investigations of Democrats are possible, stating that members of the administration should not be threatened.
Some members of the party have urged caution regarding the focus on investigations. Senator-elect Adam Hamilton said he is more interested in establishing guardrails than impeachment, while independent Senator Bernie Sanders said the party must also focus on working-class families.