Republican-led US House derails impeachment push Pete Hegseth labelled a 'farce'

Résumé détaillé

The impeachment push against Pete Hegseth would have needed a two-thirds majority in the US Senate, even if the House had voted in favour.

Republicans in the US House of Representatives have blocked an effort to impeach defence secretary Pete Hegseth over the Iran war on Wednesday, handing President Donald Trump a victory days after his party's crushing midterm election defeat.

The House voted 211 to 204 to send the impeachment resolution to the Judiciary Committee, effectively derailing a planned vote later on Wednesday on whether to bring formal charges against the embattled Pentagon chief.

Hegseth had denounced the push to impeach him as a "farce" and defended his record leading the Iran war and other military operations under President Donald Trump.

"It's a farce, and it's a stunt, and everybody knows it," he said at a Pentagon press conference on Wednesday, branding the impeachment push "slander" and "sabotage".

Hegseth's combative performance came as Congress inched toward a rare vote on impeachment over alleged misconduct related to wars against Iran and Yemen's Houthis, and the controversial killing of alleged drug smugglers in the Caribbean and eastern Pacific.

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The effort throws down a challenge to Trump, already weakened by last week's midterms drubbing, where anger at the sputtering Iran war and subsequent surge in fuel prices helped drive voters to a historic rejection of Republicans.

Trump has acknowledged that the war — which Hegseth has championed — contributed to his party losing control of both the House of Representatives and Senate.

But moments after Hegseth's televised press conference, the 80-year-old president signalled his support.

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