- House Homeland Security Committee advances articles of impeachment against Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, accusing him of breaching public trust and refusing to comply with the law regarding the migrant crisis.
- Republicans argue for Mayorkas’ impeachment, citing the need for accountability, while Democrats characterize the effort as a “sham” lacking evidence of high crimes.
- Mayorkas would be the second Cabinet official to be impeached in history, but is expected to be acquitted in the Democratic-controlled Senate.
Additional Coverage:
The House Homeland Security Committee is moving forward with the Republican-led effort to impeach Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas. The committee is expected to vote along party lines to advance the articles of impeachment against Mayorkas, accusing him of refusing to comply with the law and breaching public trust in relation to the administration’s handling of the migrant crisis at the U.S.-Mexico border.
GOP Rep. Mark Green, the committee’s chairman, stated that they have exhausted all other options to hold Mayorkas accountable for defying laws passed by Congress and emphasized the need for accountability.
House Democrats, on the other hand, characterized the impeachment effort as a “sham” and argued that the articles lack evidence of high crimes or misdemeanors, the constitutional basis for impeachment.
The first article of impeachment accuses Mayorkas of repeatedly violating the law by allowing the release of migrants awaiting court proceedings, while the second article alleges that he lied to lawmakers about the security of the southern border and obstructed congressional oversight.
If Mayorkas is impeached, he is expected to be acquitted in the Democratic-controlled Senate, where a two-thirds majority would be required to convict and remove him from office. However, his impeachment would still be historic, making him the second Cabinet official to be impeached in U.S. history and the first in almost 150 years.
The GOP’s push for Mayorkas’ impeachment aligns with their attempt to make border security a central theme of the 2024 campaign. However, some House Republicans also oppose the bipartisan immigration deal that Mayorkas helped negotiate to address illegal border crossings.
During the committee meeting, Republicans argued that the charges against Mayorkas meet the constitutional threshold for impeachment, while Democrats pushed back and highlighted that the Constitution does not allow impeachment based on perceived job performance.
Democrats also rejected the notion that impeachment was the only option, pointing out that Congress should focus on passing legislation to address the country’s problems.
Ahead of the committee’s meeting, Democrats released a report defending Mayorkas’ actions and accusing Republicans of abusing their impeachment power. They argued that impeachment should not be used as a political tool and highlighted that Mayorkas was not given a chance to testify.
Mayorkas, in a letter to lawmakers, called on Congress to provide a legislative solution to the border crisis and criticized the politically motivated nature of the impeachment accusations against him.
The Department of Homeland Security characterized the impeachment effort as a distraction from other national security priorities and the need to actually work on fixing immigration laws.
In conclusion, the House Homeland Security Committee is moving closer to impeaching Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, with the GOP and Democrats clashing over the allegations and the constitutional basis for impeachment. The outcome of the impeachment process is expected to follow party lines and Mayorkas is likely to be acquitted in the Senate.