Democrats Are Laying the Groundwork to Target Pete Hegseth If the Midterms Go Their Way
Democrats are planning to target Secretary of War Pete Hegseth with investigations, public inquiries, and potential impeachment if they win back control of Congress in the midterm elections.
The probe would use congressional subpoena power to focus on his involvement in the Iran war, Pentagon contracts, strikes against Latin American drug boats, and his firing of top military brass, according to Politico.
Democrats would need only a simple majority in the House of Representatives to launch a full-scale investigation and impeach him.
With only two months to go until election day, several Democrats have been using Hegseth as a campaign talking point, giving voters a preview of what will happen if they regain legislative control.
“Hegseth and crew better buckle up and lawyer up because we are coming at them full on,” Democratic Rep. Pat Ryan of New York said. “It’s incredibly aggressive oversight because this is by far the most corrupt and least transparent Pentagon, I think, we’ve ever had.”
Hegseth has been a consistent advocate of President Donald Trump dating back to his days on Fox News, and has remained one of his top deputies throughout the second term.
“It’s hearings, it’s briefings, it’s informal meetings, it’s requests for information, it’s everything,” Democratic Rep. Jason Crow of Colorado declared. “We will use all of the tools we can to make sure we’re getting the information we need to hold folks accountable.”
“The priority has got to be investigating things that impact the safety and security of our troops and their families,” he added. “Pete Hegseth, because of his incompetence and his corruption and his lack of attention to the job, continues to put our service members in harm’s way, take away resources for their health and safety… We need to hold them accountable for that.”
Democratic Rep. Adam Smith of Washington, who would become chairman of the House Armed Services Committee if his party prevails in November, said the investigation could be expanded to include other top Pentagon officials.
Additionally, topics like Trump’s National Guard troop deployment in Washington, D.C., and the president’s family business transactions are on the table.
“There’s a lot of conversations about DOD right now,” Democratic Rep. Robert Garcia of California explained.
Garcia, who would likely lead the House Oversight Committee if the House flips, added that, “Hegseth should not be in office — a lot of others should be impeached. So those are ongoing conversations.”
This isn’t the first time the topic of impeaching Hegseth has been brought up. Back in April, several House Democrats introduced an impeachment resolution over the Iran war, targeting of civilians, and his handling of classified intelligence.
Pentagon spokeswoman Kingsley Wilson said Hegseth has served as “a transformative leader,” adding that “the entire department is unified behind the secretary’s vision.”
Even if Democrats see historic wins on election night and retake control of both chambers, the Senate map is not favorable enough for them to convict any of Trump’s Cabinet.
An impeachment vote would be largely symbolic without bipartisan support, but could still disrupt Trump’s agenda and serve as a political distraction.
Republicans are likely to circle the wagons if Democrats decide to move forward. Rep. Joe Wilson, a Republican from South Carolina, affirmed this by saying, “I have absolute faith in the secretary.”
Congressional Republicans pulled a similar move back in 2024 when they successfully voted to impeach Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas of the Biden administration for his role in the southern border crisis.
Mayorkas became only the second Cabinet member in U.S. history to be impeached by Congress, yet was ultimately acquitted by the Senate.
Hegseth has been unapologetic about his leadership style while employing various high-profile policies to reshape the military.
These include using polygraph tests to seek out leakers, mandating testosterone testing for certain troops, rolling back DEI, overseeing a ban on transgender troops, renaming naval vessels, criticizing NATO, ending a flu vaccine requirement, allowing service members to carry firearms on military bases, and giving special attention to faith.
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