The Hitchhiker’s Guide to Massie saying Johnson is sending the House home early to prevent Hegseth impeachment

5:21 PM ETDeveloping

Politics Desk

In Short: House Speaker Mike Johnson sent the House home early, potentially to avoid a vote on Rep. Thomas Massie's impeachment articles against Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth, according to reports.

Speaker Mike Johnson Official Portrait (cropped)(b) — Photo: United States Congress / Wikimedia Commons (Public domain)

But House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., is sending the House home early today, according to reports.

Thomas Massie, R-Ky., filed eight articles of impeachment against Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth, and under House rules, the House would have to consider Massie’s articles by tomorrow.

Massie contends that Johnson sent everyone home early to avoid a vote related to Hegseth, and the House won’t reconvene for business until after the midterms in mid-November.

Massie told 's Kaitlan Collins that he had kept his impeachment articles a secret until he read it aloud on the House floor, to avoid being obstructed by party leadership.

What's confirmed

But House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., is sending the House home early today.
Thomas Massie, R-Ky., filed eight articles of impeachment against Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth.
Under House rules, the House would have to consider Massie’s articles by tomorrow.
That means the House won’t reconvene for business until after the midterms in mid-November.
Massie contends that Johnson sent everyone home early to avoid a vote related to Hegseth.
If the House had brought up Massie’s impeachment articles, Republicans would likely have offered “a motion to table.” This is an effort to kill Massie’s gambit.
Thus, the vote would not have been on impeaching Hegseth, but whether or not to set aside Massie’s plan.
The House never even considered the actual impeachment resolutions.

What's still developing

The motion to table inoculates members from having to take a tough vote on the actual issue.
Massie introduced the resolution on Tuesday, asserting that Hegseth had illegally prosecuted the Iran war past the 60-day maximum for conflict without congressional authorization.
“It’s a publicity stunt by someone who wants attention. It will immediately be tabled, of course.... We’ll probably do it when we come back, but it’s a stunt,” Johnson said (tabling would effectively kill the measure).

Sources

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