# 119-hres-1177: Impeaching Peter B. Hegseth, Secretary of Defense of the United States, for high crimes and misdemeanors.

119-hres-1177, Impeaching Peter B. Hegseth, Secretary of Defense of the United States, for high crimes and misdemeanors., is a 119th Congress bill sponsored by Rep. Ansari, Yassamin [D-AZ-3] (D-AZ); status introduced (as of 2026-09-21).

- Canonical: https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hres-1177
- As of: 2026-09-21
- Plain-text twin of the page above; the HTML and this file carry the same facts.

## Facts
- Bill: 119-hres-1177
- Congress: 119
- Title: Impeaching Peter B. Hegseth, Secretary of Defense of the United States, for high crimes and misdemeanors.
- Status: introduced
- Introduced: 2026-04-15
- Sponsor: Rep. Ansari, Yassamin [D-AZ-3] (D-AZ)
- Cosponsors: 16
- Policy area: Government Operations and Politics
- Touches household money: no
- Last recorded action: 2026-09-21

## Summary

**Impeachment of the Secretary of Defense** for alleged unauthorized military action and serious misconduct. The resolution would accuse Peter B. Hegseth in six articles of bypassing Congress on war decisions, endangering servicemembers and civilians, mishandling classified information, obstructing oversight, and politicizing the armed forces. - Servicemembers and families: Alleges he willfully initiated and escalated operations that exposed U.S. personnel to substantial and foreseeable risk of injury or death. - Civilians in Iran and civilian infrastructure: Accuses him of authorizing strikes that caused large numbers of civilian casualties and destruction, including damage to a girls' school in Minab. - Congress and oversight: Claims he acted without statutory authorization and meaningful consultation, violated the War Powers Resolution, and withheld material information from Congress. - Military cohesion and equal treatment: Alleges abuse of power in personnel decisions, discriminatory actions against transgender service members, and interventions that hindered promotions of qualified Black and women officers.

## Cosponsors (16)

- Rep. McBride, Sarah [D-DE-At Large] (D-DE), 2026-04-15T00:00:00.000Z
- Rep. Underwood, Lauren [D-IL-14] (D-IL), 2026-04-15T00:00:00.000Z
- Rep. Green, Al [D-TX-9] (D-TX), 2026-04-15T00:00:00.000Z
- Rep. Cohen, Steve [D-TN-9] (D-TN), 2026-04-15T00:00:00.000Z
- Rep. Crockett, Jasmine [D-TX-30] (D-TX), 2026-04-15T00:00:00.000Z
- Rep. Williams, Nikema [D-GA-5] (D-GA), 2026-04-15T00:00:00.000Z
- Rep. Titus, Dina [D-NV-1] (D-NV), 2026-04-15T00:00:00.000Z
- Rep. Min, Dave [D-CA-47] (D-CA), 2026-04-15T00:00:00.000Z
- Rep. Thanedar, Shri [D-MI-13] (D-MI), 2026-04-15T00:00:00.000Z
- Rep. Pettersen, Brittany [D-CO-7] (D-CO), 2026-04-15T00:00:00.000Z
- Rep. Stansbury, Melanie A. [D-NM-1] (D-NM), 2026-04-15T00:00:00.000Z
- Rep. Quigley, Mike [D-IL-5] (D-IL), 2026-04-15T00:00:00.000Z
- Rep. Larson, John B. [D-CT-1] (D-CT), 2026-04-15T00:00:00.000Z
- Rep. Foushee, Valerie P. [D-NC-4] (D-NC), 2026-04-20T00:00:00.000Z
- Rep. Huffman, Jared [D-CA-2] (D-CA), 2026-04-20T00:00:00.000Z
- Rep. Chu, Judy [D-CA-28] (D-CA), 2026-05-14T00:00:00.000Z

## Provisions PRIA read

- Alleged law-of-war civilian harms: benefit, high. This resolution would allege the Secretary allowed or ordered attacks that violated the law of armed conflict and harmed many civilians. It would point to alleged strikes that destroyed civilian infrastructure, including a girls' school in Minab, and to alleged illegal "double tap" strikes. If adop…
- Alleged unauthorized Iran hostilities: benefit, high. This resolution would allege the Secretary began or escalated military action against Iran without Congress's authorization or a declaration of war. It would say he failed to seek meaningful consultation with Congress and advanced operations without clear objectives. If adopted, the House would pre…
- Impeachment and possible removal: benefit, high. This resolution would impeach Peter B. Hegseth on multiple Articles alleging high crimes and misdemeanors. If adopted, the House would send those Articles to trial and pursue removal from the office of Secretary of Defense. The resolution ties the impeachment to the specific allegations in its text.
- Alleged mishandling of classified data: benefit, medium. This resolution would allege the Secretary showed gross negligence in handling classified and sensitive military information. It would say he used unsecured communications, including the Signal app, to discuss operational details and endangered personnel. If adopted, the House would cite these alle…
- Alleged obstruction of Congress oversight: benefit, medium. This resolution would allege the Secretary obstructed Congress by withholding timely and complete information about military operations. It would say material facts about civilian casualties and operations in Iran, Venezuela, and other theaters were not provided. If adopted, the House would present…
- Alleged politicizing of personnel actions: benefit, medium. This resolution would allege the Secretary used his office to politicize military personnel decisions. It would say he intervened in promotions, blocked qualified Black and women officers, targeted marginalized groups, and restricted reproductive care and harassment accountability. If adopted, the…

## Related bills

- 119-hr-7973: Momnibus Act
- 119-hr-7977: Energy Bills Relief Act
- 119-hr-9877: Health Equity and Accountability Act of 2026
- 119-hr-7853: PrEP Access and Coverage Act of 2026
- 119-hr-51: Washington, D.C. Admission Act
- 119-hr-20: Richard L. Trumka Protecting the Right to Organize Act of 2025

## Sources
- [119-hres-1177 on Congress.gov](https://www.congress.gov/bill/119th-congress/house-resolution/1177)

## Related
- [119-hr-7973: Momnibus Act](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-7973)
- [119-hr-7977: Energy Bills Relief Act](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-7977)
- [119-hr-9877: Health Equity and Accountability Act of 2026](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-9877)
- [119-hr-7853: PrEP Access and Coverage Act of 2026](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-7853)
- [119-hr-51: Washington, D.C. Admission Act](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-51)
- [119-hr-20: Richard L. Trumka Protecting the Right to Organize Act of 2025](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-20)
- [All bills in Congress](https://policyrisk.com/legislation)

Source: PRIA, https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hres-1177 (as of 2026-09-21).