Johnson County, KS – On Tuesday, Rep. Sharice Davids (D‑KS) voted with her Democratic colleagues to reject a Republican‑sponsored motion that would have sent articles of impeachment against Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth to the House Judiciary Committee, effectively ending the effort.
Vote details and partisan split
The lame‑duck House, meeting a week after the November 3 midterm elections, considered the motion on the floor. The measure passed 211‑204, with 210 Republicans and an independent supporting it. All Democrats present, including Davids, voted no, as did Rep. Thomas Massie (R‑KY), the author of the impeachment articles.
Three other Kansas Republicans – Rep. Ron Estes, Rep. Terry Mann and Rep. Derek Schmidt – voted for the motion. In neighboring Missouri, both Democratic representatives, Emanuel Cleaver and Wesley Bell, also voted against it, while the state’s six Republicans supported the motion.
Reasoning behind the Democratic vote
Davids explained her vote in an emailed statement, saying, “My job is to uphold the Constitution, protect our troops, and keep Kansas families safe, which means restoring Congress’s constitutional authority over military action and ensuring no more families pay the price for reckless, unauthorized conflicts.”
Her office cited a figure from Mark Zandi, chief economist at Moody’s Analytics, indicating that the average American household has incurred more than $2,000 in extra costs since the start of the Iran conflict earlier this year, largely due to higher energy prices.
Background on the impeachment effort
Rep. Thomas Massie, who was ousted in a Republican primary earlier this year and is serving out the remainder of his term, introduced eight articles of impeachment against Secretary Hegseth. The articles allege violations of the 1973 War Powers Resolution by initiating the ongoing Iran conflict without a congressional declaration of war, as well as extrajudicial killings in Pacific operations targeting drug traffickers.
Massie told Time magazine, “We’re not indicting him for being bad at his job. The argument here is that he’s broken laws and he’s violated the Constitution.”
Administration response
Secretary Hegseth held his first press briefing in months after the articles were filed, calling Massie’s move “a farce” and “a stunt.” He asserted that the operations cited in the articles, including the Iran conflict and Pacific boat attacks, were “lawful” and “ordered by the commander in chief,” President Trump.
The Pentagon’s chief spokesperson, Sean Parnell, posted on social media that the impeachment push had been defeated, declaring “total victory” for Secretary Hegseth and the Department of War. Parnell’s statement emphasized that the effort was a political exercise lacking merit or evidence.
Implications for Kansas voters
Davids was re‑elected last week to a fifth term, winning Kansas’ 3rd Congressional District – which includes Johnson County – by a 22‑point margin, according to unofficial results. Her vote reflects a continued commitment to congressional oversight of military actions, a stance that resonates with many Kansas families concerned about the cost of overseas conflicts.
The motion’s passage means the impeachment articles will now be referred to the House Judiciary Committee for further consideration, keeping the issue alive into the next Congress.
Original reporting: Johnson County Post (Overland Park) — read the source article.
