Hegseth impeachment push: How does the impeachment process of a Cabinet secretary work?

Embattled Secretary of War Pete Hegseth came out swinging with charged words against outgoing Rep. Thomas Massie, who is leading the effort to impeach him over his handling of the unpopular war against Iran and other actions.

During the Tuesday press conference on the matter, Hegseth said the impeachment articles were “a farce” and “a stunt,” merely “driven by ego and resentment.” He also attacked Massie, calling him “disgruntled.”

A vote in the House could come by midweek, putting pressure on Republicans — many of whom blamed their election wipeout on the Iran war — but next steps are highly uncertain.

In the history of our country, 21 individuals were formally impeached. This list includes, three presidents (one of which was impeached twice), two cabinet secretaries, a senator and 15 judges. Of these individuals only eight — all of them judges — were removed from office.

The last official impeachment took place in 2021, when President Donald Trump was impeached for a second time — in that case for a charge of incitement of insurrection related to the Jan. 6, 2021 attack on the U.S. Capitol. This made Trump the only official to be impeached twice. He was ultimately acquitted by the Senate both times.

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However, the last and only time a Secretary of War (also previously known as the Secretary of Defense) was impeached was in 1876 when William Belknap was impeached for corruption and kickbacks in connection to government contracts.

While the reasons for impeachment among those who faced it are vast, the process itself is very structured. In fact, whether it’s impeaching a Cabinet member or a president, it follows the same constitutional process.

A breakdown of the impeachment process

1. The Constitution gives the House of Representatives the sole power to impeach federal officials.

During the impeachment process, the House of Representatives acts as a grand jury investigating misconduct. They decide whether to bring charges (known as “articles of impeachment”) against an official.

There only needs to be a simple majority vote to approve the articles. If this happens, the official is officially impeached.

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2. The process then moves on to the Senate. The Constitution makes the Senate act like a court since it holds the trial for “civil officers of the United States”, which includes Cabinet members. This means that the Senate looks at the evidence, hears from witnesses and, ultimately, votes to either acquit or convict the individual impeached.

As outlined by the Constitution, the Senate needs a two-thirds vote to convict.

In the case of a president, the U.S. Supreme Court chief justice presides over the impeachment trial to prevent a conflict of interest for the Vice President. But it is important to note, that SCOTUS does not try, run or decide impeachment trials.

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3. If the individual is found guilty, the official is removed from office and if Congress votes to do so, that person can be barred from holding elected office again.

Any fines or possible jail time for crimes committed while in office are left to civil courts.

If they are found not guilty, they may continue to serve.