US House blocks impeachment of Defense Secretary Hegseth

The US House of Representatives voted Tuesday to block an impeachment effort against Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, with 211 votes in favor versus 204 against, shielding him from removal proceedings. The motion to kill the impeachment resolution was supported by Republicans, with Kentucky Representative Thomas Massie being the sole Republican voting against it. The vote occurred hours after Hegseth denounced the impeachment attempts as a farce and defended his Pentagon record. Massie, a departing Republican, had sought support from Republicans dissatisfied with Hegseth's policies and wary of the unpopular Iran war. Democrats backed the impeachment effort, which would have made Hegseth the first Defense Secretary to be impeached, a distinction last occurring in 1876.