U.S. Lawmakers Move to Curb President, Impeach Defense Secretary Over Iran Threats

U.S. Lawmakers Move to Curb President, Impeach Defense Secretary Over Iran Threats A growing number of U.S. lawmakers are taking formal action to restrain the executive branch, citing threats of military action against Iran that they argue risk war crimes and violate constitutional authority. The push comes after former President Donald Trump posted a social media message suggesting military strikes against Iranian infrastructure, using aggressive and profane language [122989]. In response, a group of lawmakers is invoking the 25th Amendment, a constitutional process allowing the Vice President and Cabinet to declare a president unfit for office. They cite Trump's specific threat to target 52 Iranian sites, including cultural locations protected under international law [123221]. "Threatening mass killings and war crimes is exactly why the amendment was created," said Congresswoman Deb Haaland, who supports the action [123221]. The effort is considered unlikely to succeed, as it would require approval from Vice President Mike Pence and a majority of the cabinet. Simultaneously, a separate impeachment effort is targeting Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth. Representative Yassamin Ansari announced she is introducing articles of impeachment, accusing Hegseth of being "complicit" in planning and executing military operations in Iran without the congressional approval required by U.S. law [122653]. The twin actions reflect deepening alarm over the potential for a major conflict. Some analysts have drawn extreme historical parallels, comparing the administration's "maximum pressure" strategy to General William Tecumseh Sherman's brutal "March to the Sea" during the U.S. Civil War—a comparison critics call dangerously misguided [122733]. The controversy has also drawn sharp criticism from a key U.S. ally. Reform UK leader Nigel Farage, typically a Trump supporter, said he was "shocked" by the threats, calling them "over the top in every single way" [123138]. Trump's Profane Post: A Calculated Strategy for Permanent Conflict? Lawmakers Urge 25th Amendment Removal Over Trump War Crime Threats U.S. Lawmaker Seeks to Impeach Defense Secretary Over Iran Actions Nigel Farage: Trump's Iran Threat 'Went Way Too Far' Trump's Iran Threat Echoes Sherman's Brutal March