US Attorney General Blanche backs Hegseth amid impeachment bid
Washington: US Attorney General Todd Blanche has defended Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth after a Republican lawmaker introduced eight articles of impeachment accusing him of unlawfully conducting military operations in Iran and abusing his authority.
Representative Thomas Massie of Kentucky introduced the resolution on the House floor Tuesday. The first three articles accuse Hegseth of violating separate provisions of the War Powers Resolution of 1973 by continuing hostilities against Iran without congressional authorisation.
“Secretary Hegseth is doing a phenomenal job, and the secretary of war doesn’t just go off and do things. So he follows the law,” Blanche told reporters at the White House.
“The DOJ plays a role in that and we play an active role in making sure the laws are complied with,” he said.
Blanche also disputed the description of the military operations against Iran as a war.
“You called it a war. I disagree with that characterization, as does most of Congress,” he said in response to a question about Massie’s resolution.
Massie said Hegseth had continued US military operations in Iran beyond the time permitted under federal law.
“By engaging in hostilities in Iran for more than 90 days without congressional authorization, Secretary Hegseth is breaking the law and must be held accountable,” Massie said.
The Kentucky Republican said the allegations extended beyond the conflict with Iran.
“Secretary Hegseth’s constitutional violations extend beyond the illegal war in Iran. He is abusing the power of his office to ignore congressional war powers resolutions, to kidnap foreign leaders, and to intimidate critics of the Trump administration by retaliating against them for exercising free speech,” Massie said.
“If we are to remain true to our oath to ‘support and defend the Constitution of the United States,’ Congress must not turn a blind eye to Secretary Hegseth’s unconstitutional and illegal actions,” he added.
The first article alleges that the Iran operation began without a declaration of war, statutory authorisation, an attack on the United States or an imminent threat.
The second accuses Hegseth of continuing the operation after Congress directed the removal of US forces. The third alleges that military action continued after the statutory 60-day period and a possible 30-day withdrawal window had expired.
The remaining articles accuse Hegseth of failing to minimise civilian casualties, authorising extrajudicial killings during operations against suspected drug traffickers and retaliating against Democratic Senator Mark Kelly over his public comments about military orders.
Massie also accused Hegseth of acting without legal authority in the US operation that captured Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores. The final article concerns US military strikes in Yemen.
Pentagon Press Secretary Kingsley Wilson called Hegseth “a transformative leader” and said the department remained behind him.
“The entire Department is unified behind the Secretary’s vision and will continue working to put our warfighters and America first,” Wilson said.
Massie introduced the resolution as a privileged measure, allowing him to force the Republican-controlled House to consider it. Its passage would require support from a majority of the House before the matter could proceed to a trial in the Senate.
The War Powers Resolution was enacted in 1973 to limit a president’s ability to conduct prolonged military operations without Congress. It generally requires the administration to notify Congress within 48 hours of introducing US forces into hostilities and end unauthorised operations within 60 days, followed by a possible 30-day withdrawal period.
Under the US Constitution, the House can impeach a federal official by a simple majority. Removal requires conviction by a two-thirds majority of senators present for the trial. Impeachment proceedings against Cabinet secretaries are rare in American history.
