Sen.-elect Abdul El-Sayed, D-Mich., urged Pete Hegseth to resign Tuesday, asking the secretary of war why he was still in the job.
In an interview with CNN’s Kaitlan Collins, El-Sayed was asked whether Democrats should bring back their unsuccessful effort to impeach Hegseth. He said Hegseth had mishandled the war and was failing to meet his responsibilities.
Speaking to the camera, El-Sayed accused Hegseth of picking daily culture-war fights instead of managing what he described as an illegal war. He said Hegseth should step down rather than eventually be forced out, adding that he did not think the secretary was doing the job well.
The House voted 211-204 on Tuesday to send an impeachment resolution introduced by Rep. Thomas Massie, R-Ky., to the Judiciary Committee, avoiding a full vote on the charges. Every Democrat who voted opposed the referral, while 11 Democrats were absent.
President Donald Trump welcomed the outcome in a Truth Social post, calling Massie a “total loser” and praising Hegseth’s work on military recruitment and operations in Venezuela and Iran.
Asked about the absent Democrats, El-Sayed said lawmakers should show up and do their jobs. He said voters had raised concerns with him during his campaign about the cost of gas and groceries, which he linked to the war in Iran.
El-Sayed argued that Hegseth had supported a president who was in over his head and said the secretary was connected to the affordability concerns people face. He added that, although he would not be serving in the Senate in time to vote on the current effort and would judge any future impeachment proposal on its merits, he believed Hegseth was failing as defense secretary.
Hegseth pushed back against the impeachment effort at a news conference Tuesday. He defended U.S. operations in Iran, Venezuela and Yemen as lawful, and described Massie’s move as a political spectacle driven by personal resentment rather than genuine oversight.
Hegseth also accused the congressman of trying to harm the president, the country and the military. Government attorney Y. David Scharf said Democrats could spend years pursuing impeachment and ultimately strengthen Hegseth instead. Congress, he noted, can investigate and subpoena witnesses, but removing a secretary would require a two-thirds Senate vote. Scharf questioned how Democrats could win Republican support if they could not secure attendance from all their own members.
