Hegseth Asks Congress for $350 Billion and Dismisses the Impeachment Push

War Secretary Pete Hegseth has asked Congress to pass a reconciliation bill of at least $350 billion for the military. On Thursday, days after Democrats won back both the House and the Senate in the midterms, Hegseth posted a video on X making the request. In the same video, he dismissed the impeachment effort aimed at him and defended his record at the Department of War, from the Iran war to the end of DEI programs.

The timing matters. Democrats are set to take control of both chambers, and Hegseth faces articles of impeachment. Neither outlet reported whether Republicans plan to move a reconciliation bill before the new Congress is seated.

The account below draws on reporting from Just the News and Fox News. Patriot Daily Wire has not independently reviewed the video Hegseth posted from the @SecWar account, so descriptions of what he said are attributed to those outlets. The Fox details here come from a search excerpt of its article, not the full text, which we could not read.

The $350 Billion Ask

According to Just the News, Hegseth called the money a generational investment and said he needs every vote from every patriotic member of Congress. The outlet described the figure as "another" $350 billion. It is unclear whether that means money on top of existing funding, and neither report explained where the number came from, what it would buy, or when the department expects it.

"The Department of War must be funded to meet the moment right now."

Just the News also reported that Hegseth said the department's priorities would remain the same under a Democratic Congress. Neither outlet reported bill text, a vote count, or any word from Republican leaders on whether a reconciliation package will move.

A Republican Behind the Impeachment Articles

Fox's headline describes the push as a Democratic effort, but the articles it describes came from a Republican. Fox reported that Rep. Thomas Massie of Kentucky introduced eight articles of impeachment against Hegseth in September. Related headlines on the Fox page referred to a bipartisan impeachment threat, so the Democratic label may be an oversimplification.

Hegseth did not spare Massie. In the video, according to Fox, he said:

"A disgruntled, defeated congressman along with all his Democrat allies, has also dropped sham articles of impeachment against yours truly."

Just the News reported that Hegseth said Democrats come after him because he is effective and that the effort will not work. No one has confirmed that Democratic leaders have filed or scheduled articles of their own, and neither outlet included a Democratic response.

Fox also reported that President Trump told ABC News on Thursday that he intends to keep Hegseth in his Cabinet. That account comes from Fox alone; we have not seen the ABC interview.

Defending Iran and the Culture Fights

Both outlets said Hegseth defended the war with Iran as necessary to keep Tehran from getting a nuclear weapon. Just the News reported that he called the war a courageous and historic effort, and that he framed the impeachment push as retaliation for ending DEI at the Pentagon. Just the News quoted him on that point:

"DEI is a Marxist ideology built to destroy us, so we crushed it."

Just the News also reported that Hegseth defended removing transgender troops, calling it a mental illness, said climate change should not be a military objective, and argued that sealing the border and carrying out mass deportations are military functions. Those remarks, along with the DEI quote, appear only in the Just the News account of the video.

Fox's related links also say the Iran war is being blamed for the Republican midterm losses, though the excerpt we reviewed did not elaborate.

What Happens Next

Neither outlet laid out a schedule. The open questions are whether the reconciliation bill advances in the lame-duck session, whether the House takes any action on Massie's articles, and what the incoming Democratic leaders do about impeachment. The president, according to Fox, says Hegseth stays.