Republican Representative Thomas Massie of Kentucky has introduced articles of impeachment against US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, setting up a vote in Congress expected this week. Massie filed eight articles on Monday, accusing Hegseth of waging war without congressional authorisation and of abusing his power as head of the Pentagon.
The charges centre on the United States' war with Iran. The core question in the dispute is whether Congress authorised that conflict at all, a matter that goes to the heart of the constitutional division of war-making powers between the legislature and the executive. Massie's articles argue that the Pentagon chief acted without that authority.
The move comes against a difficult political backdrop for President Donald Trump's party, which suffered heavy losses in the recent midterm elections. Because Massie is a Republican, the impeachment effort crosses party lines, placing pressure on a party that controls the Republican side of the debate in Congress and that has been backing the administration's direction on the conflict.
The outcome of the expected vote is not yet known. FRANCE 24 correspondent Fraser Jackson is reporting from Washington on the developments as lawmakers prepare to take up the resolution.
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