Stansbury Apologizes After Missing Hegseth Impeachment Vote
On November 10, the House voted 211-204 to reject a proposal to impeach War Secretary Pete Hegseth. Rep. Melanie Stansbury, a New Mexico Democrat, was among 11 Democrats who did not vote. The measure, brought by Rep. Thomas Massie, a Kentucky Republican, was defeated after 18 lawmakers missed the vote overall.
In a video posted on November 11, Stansbury apologized and said she had driven toward the Capitol as the vote approached but became stuck in rush-hour traffic on Independence Avenue. She said a police motorcade escorting a bus blocked traffic in both directions, and that she asked her staff to alert the House floor. She acknowledged she should have arrived sooner and said she was sorry.
Stansbury also said Democrats did not have enough votes to advance the impeachment effort and that conviction in the Senate would require a two-thirds vote. She maintained that missing the House vote was her responsibility, while saying some circumstances were beyond her control.
An explanation posted by her office said a traffic incident and police escort prevented her from entering the Capitol. Stansbury did not identify where she had been before getting into her car. Axios reported that some Democrats who missed the vote had been returning from a gathering for Elect Democratic Women at a nearby venue. The report said lawmakers faced gridlock, with one walking to the Capitol and another getting dropped off on the Senate side.
Stansbury’s apology drew criticism on social media. In a Wednesday exchange with Fox News reporter Bill Melugin, she said she had been trapped in her vehicle. Melugin later said the vote, initially set to last 15 minutes, stayed open for over half an hour.
Missed Vote Doesn’t End Fight Over Hegseth
The House voted 211-204 to block a proposal to impeach War Secretary Pete Hegseth on November 10. Rep. Melanie Stansbury, a New Mexico Democrat, was one of 11 Democrats absent from the vote. Her absence deserves an apology, and she gave one the next day—but the result does not erase the effort to hold Hegseth accountable.
Stansbury said she was driving toward the Capitol as the vote approached when rush-hour traffic on Independence Avenue stopped her. She described a police motorcade escorting a bus and blocking traffic in both directions. She said she could see the Capitol, asked her staff to notify the House floor, and accepted that she should have arrived sooner.
She also acknowledged that Democrats did not have enough votes to move the resolution forward, and that conviction in the Senate would require a two-thirds majority. Her explanation does not change the narrow House tally or the importance of being present for a vote on impeachment. But the debate over her delay should not obscure the underlying question raised by the resolution: whether Hegseth should face accountability.
Some Democrats who missed the vote were returning from a gathering for Elect Democratic Women at a nearby venue, Axios reported. The account said traffic trapped lawmakers, with one walking to the Capitol and another being dropped off on the Senate side. Stansbury did not say she had attended the event.
Social media users criticized her apology. She told Fox News reporter Bill Melugin she had been trapped in her car; he later said a vote set for 15 minutes stayed open for over half an hour. Stansbury said the effort was not finished, even though the resolution failed.
Democrats’ Hegseth Vote Failure Exposes Cost of Absence
A House impeachment effort against War Secretary Pete Hegseth failed 211-204 on November 10, with 11 Democrats among the 18 lawmakers who did not vote. Rep. Melanie Stansbury’s apology after missing the vote cannot change the basic fact: lawmakers were absent when the House decided whether to advance the resolution.
Stansbury said she was driving toward the Capitol but got caught in rush-hour traffic on Independence Avenue. She described a police motorcade escorting a bus and blocking traffic, and said she asked her staff to alert the House floor. She conceded she should have arrived earlier and said she was sincerely sorry.
The vote was scheduled for 5:30 p.m. and was initially set to remain open for 15 minutes. Fox News reporter Bill Melugin later said it stayed open for more than 30 minutes. Stansbury disputed his suggestion that it had been left open for a while, saying the House gaveled it as soon as it could. Her explanation has not quieted criticism from people who expect elected officials to show up for consequential votes.
Axios reported that Stansbury and several other Democrats had been at a PAC gathering for Elect Democratic Women at a restaurant nearby around the time of the vote. Its account said some lawmakers were caught in traffic, while one walked to the Capitol and another was dropped off on the Senate side. In her video, Stansbury did not identify where she was before entering her car.
Stansbury also acknowledged Democrats lacked the votes to advance impeachment and that a Senate conviction would require a two-thirds vote. That reality makes the missed House votes no less consequential: the resolution was defeated, and the apology came afterward.
Reported by The Daily Beast, New York Post, Fox News.
