The vice president who told Republicans their election wipeout came down to the war in Iran now insists that the drive to impeach the defense secretary has nothing to do with Iran.

Eleven House Democrats missed the vote that effectively killed the impeachment resolution against Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, a 211-204 tally on Tuesday, Nov. 10, 2026, that referred Rep. Thomas Massie’s eight articles of impeachment to the Judiciary Committee rather than taking them up on the floor.

The missing Democrats were Julia Brownley, Lou Correa, Laura Gillen, Steven Horsford, Jonathan Jackson, Nancy Pelosi, Brittany Pettersen, Melanie Stansbury, Haley Stevens, Marilyn Strickland and Frederica Wilson, ABC News reported. Seven Republicans also missed the vote. Had all 11 Democrats voted no, the motion to refer would have failed, 215-211, and the House would have moved to the articles themselves.

Only Correa gave advance notice, citing a medical procedure. Pelosi was in San Francisco for a veterans event, her spokesman, Ian Krager, told ABC News. “She supports impeaching Secretary Hegseth and would have voted ‘No’ on the motion to refer,” Krager said.

Where Hegseth Is Most Correct

Vice President JD Vance mounted his defense of Hegseth hours before the vote, as the Republican-led House prepared to act on a resolution accusing the secretary of waging unauthorized war in Iran, Venezuela and Yemen.

“Has Pete Hegseth committed impeachable crimes? The question is absurd and the answer is: obviously not,” Vance wrote on X. “Congress has so many tools for registering its policy disagreements. Rather than use them, they’re going to try to impeach Pete Hegseth. They did the same to Donald Trump. Legislation is hard. Impeachments are easy (and ultimately, inconsequential),” he continued.

One line drew the most attention: “This isn’t about Iran, this is about the fact that Pete took on the bureaucracy at the Pentagon.” Vance argued that lawmakers are angriest at Hegseth precisely where he is most correct, citing the repositioning of forces away from Europe and Ukraine and the reorganization of the general officer corps.

That argument sits awkwardly beside what Vance wrote on Nov. 4, the day after Democrats seized both chambers of Congress in the midterms. “The reason we lost is the war. The president himself said so last night,” he wrote in a lengthy post on X, adding, “But everyone knows why we lost. And any honest conversation about where we go from here must start there.” Republicans across the party have blamed the Iran war and the surge in gas prices that followed.

Sabotage, From the Briefing Room

Hegseth held his first news conference in the Pentagon briefing room in six months on Tuesday, Nov. 10. He called the allegations politically motivated and said he has no intention of resigning. “This is not patriotism. This is sabotage,” he said, calling Massie’s complaints “policy disagreements, not high crimes.”

President Donald Trump is standing by his defense secretary. He graded the briefing performance an A-plus on Truth Social the same day. CBS News reported this month that Trump has asked advisers whether to remove Hegseth, while publicly stating his intention to keep him.

Peter Doocy asked Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis on The FOX News Rundown podcast on Friday, Nov. 13, whether he was interested in replacing Hegseth. “I’ve never discussed it with him. It’s never been anything I’ve asked. And, quite frankly, I think he’s going to stand by the current secretary after this impeachment gambit,” DeSantis said.

A guard at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier reprimanded Hegseth’s group on Nov. 11 after a laugh was heard as it left a photo session. Hegseth followed up by awarding the Joint Service Commendation Medal to Spc. Thomas Iglesias, posting on Thursday, Nov. 12: “We love soldiers. We love standards. Well done, Specialist.”

The Charges Reach Past Iran

Massie, a Kentucky Republican, filed the privileged resolution on Monday, Nov. 9, giving GOP leaders two days to bring it to the floor. Illegally waging war without congressional authorization, abusing the powers of his office and violating the Constitution are the offenses his eight articles accuse Hegseth of committing. The charges also reach past Iran to military actions in Yemen and Venezuela, among them extrajudicial killings of alleged drug smugglers in international waters and the capture of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro.

One article cites reported cuts to staff and resources at the Pentagon office charged with mitigating civilian harm. Those reductions preceded a U.S. missile striking an Iranian primary school, a strike that killed up to 168 people. Another targets Hegseth’s attempt to punish Democratic Sen. Mark Kelly, a retired Navy pilot, over a video urging troops to resist unlawful orders.

Massie says the war has run 256 days without congressional authorization, and that the law requires withdrawal from hostilities within 60 days absent such authorization. He lost his primary this year to a Trump-backed challenger and leaves Congress in January 2027.

Why Democrats Can Try Again

The referred resolution will die in the Judiciary Committee when the current Congress ends on Jan. 3, 2027. Once they hold the gavel, Democrats may file new articles.

Hakeem Jeffries, the House Democratic leader who is in line to become speaker, backs the push, saying Hegseth “abused his power” and “undermined our national security.” Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer has endorsed impeachment.

Impeachment in the House requires only a simple majority, so the Democratic majority could approve articles without a single Republican vote. Removal requires two-thirds of the Senate. Only two Cabinet secretaries have been impeached in American history: William Belknap, President Ulysses S. Grant’s secretary of war, in 1876, and Alejandro Mayorkas, President Joe Biden’s homeland security secretary, in 2024. Such a vote would make Hegseth the third. A Senate trial could follow soon after Democrats take the chamber.

Republicans made new leadership picks on Nov. 10, the day of the vote. House Republicans chose Rep. Jim Jordan of Ohio over Majority Leader Steve Scalise, 106-73, to lead them in the minority after Speaker Mike Johnson stepped aside. Senate Republicans re-elected John Thune as leader by acclamation.