War Secretary Pete Hegseth pushed back against an impeachment effort during a press conference at the Pentagon in Arlington, Virginia, arguing that military actions conducted under his leadership were lawful operations ordered by President Donald Trump. Hegseth portrayed the operations as part of his responsibilities rather than impeachable offenses.

Those actions include the ongoing war with Iran, airstrikes against Houthi fighters in Yemen, the raid that captured Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro, and strikes against alleged drug trafficking boats. The maritime strikes in the Caribbean Sea and eastern Pacific Ocean have killed at least 240 people.

“Iran, the cartels, Maduro, Yemen: every one was a lawful operation ordered by the commander-in-chief, then ordered by myself, notified to Congress and executed by American warriors who did their jobs,” Hegseth said at the Pentagon press conference.

“These are not high crimes,” Hegseth added later. “This is the job. And it’s the job well done.”

The remarks followed Republican Rep. Thomas Massie of Kentucky filing articles of impeachment against Hegseth on Monday. Massie introduced eight articles in the House of Representatives targeting the country’s top civilian war official.

The articles accuse Hegseth of usurping congressional authority to wage war, overseeing extrajudicial killings abroad, and attempting to suppress a member of Congress’ freedom of speech. Hegseth rejected that characterization and defended the operations carried out under his watch.

The fifth impeachment article, titled “Extrajudicial Killings,” focuses on the strikes against alleged drug trafficking boats. It alleges Hegseth ordered the strikes without legal authorization from Congress.

That article argues the administration’s designation of drug cartels as “designated terrorist organizations” does not authorize the military to use force against them. The dispute places the legal basis for the maritime strikes at the center of Massie’s impeachment effort.

U.S. Southern Command has released little evidence showing that the targeted boats were involved in drug trafficking. The Washington Post reported in December that Hegseth’s guidelines required only “reasonable certainty” that a targeted crew member was affiliated with a terrorist organization.

That standard is lower than the “near certainty” threshold used for lethal force against members of Al-Qaeda or similar organizations during the Global War on Terror. The impeachment article also raises separate concerns about how the strikes were conducted.

Even if the boat crews belonged to a group against which military force was authorized, the article argues that the War Department allegedly failed to comply with international laws of armed conflict. It cites reports of a second strike against survivors of a boat that had already been destroyed.

“In denying quarter and refusing rescue, Secretary Hegseth endangered members of the United States Armed Forces in future military engagements by encouraging adversaries to subject American service members to such treatment,” the article reads.

The United Nations issued a report in September taking a similar position on the maritime campaign. That report argued that the boat strikes may constitute crimes against humanity.

A confidential Drug Enforcement Administration assessment published in July found that the strikes had not reduced the amount of cocaine entering the United States, according to a Washington Post report at the time. The assessment added another challenge to the administration’s defense of the operation.

Fentanyl remains the leading cause of illicit drug deaths in the United States, but the drug largely enters the country over land rather than by sea. That distinction further complicates claims about the maritime strikes’ effect on the nation’s drug supply.

Hegseth argued Tuesday that punishing military and civilian officials over the operations would send a damaging signal to American adversaries. “[This resolution] tells our enemies … that the United States will actually punish its own warriors and its own civilian leadership for successfully executing lawful military operations,” he said.

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