House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries of New York had publicly stated that he is “a hard yes” on moving to impeach Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth. Speaking on ABC’s This Week, the Democrat widely viewed as the leading candidate for Speaker after a midterm Blue wave laid out his position in clear terms.
His comments came as outgoing Republican Rep. Thomas Massie, a longtime critic of President Donald Trump, put forward a resolution containing eight articles of impeachment against Hegseth. The measure, if it had advanced, could have resulted in Hegseth’s removal from office.
On Tuesday, the House voted 211-204 to refer Massie’s resolution to committee, a step that effectively halted the effort. Massie was the sole Republican to vote against the procedural move. 11 Democrats did not take part in voting, which ultimately handed Hegseth a narrow escape. Jeffries faced backlash afterward, with critics questioning his leadership abilities.
Democratic absences help Republicans block the Hegseth impeachment resolution
The New York Times reported that Republican leaders had earlier expressed concern that they might not have the votes to stop the resolution. Even though earlier reports suggested some Republicans were on board with impeaching Hegseth, only Massie voted in favor, while seven Republicans did not vote.
Democrats were deeply frustrated with the members who missed the vote, but Jeffries also faced criticism for failing to line up the necessary votes.
Their absence allowed Republicans to prevail even with a narrow majority in the chamber. Progressive critics directed their frustration at both the missing members and at Jeffries himself.
When Politico’s Riley Rogerson asked him about the absentees, Jeffries said: “I haven’t had a conversation with anyone on the floor team about what may or may not have happened in terms of the Hegseth resolution, but this is not the end of it. It’s just the beginning.”
Rep. Sydney Kamlager-Dove of California spoke to MeidasTouch’s Pablo Manríquez after the vote and criticized her absent colleagues.
“We knew that this vote was coming, so people should have gotten their raggedy selves up these steps to vote. There is no reason why we should have lost this vote because of attendance issues,” she said.
She added, “So shame on folks who are not here. Because these people lost. They lost, and they still found a way to show up to table this bill. Shameful.” Manríquez wrote that House Democrats were again dealing with attendance problems. “If the caucus actually showed up to vote tonight, Hegseth would be impeached. This is a serious leadership problem,” he wrote.
Commentator Krystal Ball pointed directly at Jeffries. “This is a major Hakeem Jeffries fail. You could have impeached the war criminal Pete Hegseth but Dems didn’t show up to vote,” she wrote.
Podcaster Kyle Kulinski raised a similar objection. “At the EXACT TIME there’s a backlash to the coronation of Hakeem Jeffries as Speaker, he F–ks up the impeachment of Hegseth by not whipping votes!!!!!!!!!!!!” he wrote.
Journalist David Shuster, who hosts Rebel HQ on TYT, described the outcome as evidence of a larger leadership issue. “Sure, house Dems will have 259 seats in January instead of current 213. And Hegseth impeachment can be reintroduced,” Shuster wrote. “But Hakeem having 11 Dem absences today on Hegseth (thus losing vote) reveals a Hakeem leadership problem. Embarrassing,” he added.
Published: Nov 11, 2026 11:15 am