Democratic Rep. Shri Thanedar of Michigan accused Secretary of War Pete Hegseth of committing war crimes during a Thursday appearance on LiveNow from Fox, saying he would unveil impeachment articles.
United States military forces have conducted multiple strikes against vessels engaged in running drugs since Sept. 2, when forces sank a boat carrying 11 members of the Venezuelan prison gang Tren de Aragua (TdA), which Trump declared as a foreign terrorist organization when he took office on Jan. 20, 2025. Thanedar, who dropped a previous attempt to impeach President Donald Trump in May after facing criticism from fellow Democrats, told LiveNow from Fox anchor Josh Breslow that Hegseth was “incompetent” and needed to be removed. (RELATED: Rachel Maddow Spins New Conspiracy Theory About Drug Boat Strikes, Illegal Immigration)
“This secretary of defense is incompetent. He’s incompetent to do his job. He is putting American troops in harm’s way, in danger because he has total disregard to the war plans and the secrets and how he has disclosed classified information,” Thanedar, who is facing a left-wing primary challenge, claimed. “At the same time, we need to know what war laws is he following when he attacked those survivors, the two survivors on this boat that was destroyed by [the] U.S. military.”
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Hegseth came under fire after it was reported that the boat that was sunk on Sept. 2 was hit a second time, killing two personnel who had survived the initial strike. ABC News Chief Global Affairs Correspondent Martha Raddatz reported Wednesday that the survivors were apparently attempting to salvage the drugs on the boat.
“It needs to be done. You know, both parties need to come together and look at it. You know, Republicans need to look at this as laws have been broken,” Thandear claimed. “You know, war crimes have been committed and Hegseth, the secretary, is refusing to show up. You know, he did not show up for the investigation by the investigators about this Signal Gate. He did not submit his phone. He did not show up in person. What is he hiding? What do they are hiding?”
“This secretary is incompetent and this is the second major drawback, second major fault and this secretary must go and Congress must impeach him,” Thanedar continued. “He should resign or Congress must impeach him. And President Trump cannot continue to defend this incompetent secretary of state who is putting millions of service members lives in danger.” (RELATED: Kayleigh McEnany Points Out What Arrested Dems Pulling ‘Stunts And Tomfoolery’ Have In Common)
While liberals are claiming the strikes on the drug boats are illegal and war crimes, Democratic Sen. Elissa Slotkin of Michigan, one of six Democrats that appeared in a video urging members of the military and intelligence agencies to disregard “illegal” orders issued by Trump, was unable to name an illegal order Trump gave when she was pressed by Raddatz during a Nov. 23 appearance on “This Week.”
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