House votes to impeach DHS Secretary Mayorkas over border crisis

Posted 79 days ago

From WWW.FOXNEWS.COM

Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas has been impeached by the House of Representatives.

A Cabinet secretary has not been impeached by the U. S. Congress since 1876.

Tuesday evening’s vote marked House Republicans’ second attempt at impeaching Mayorkas. GOP lawmakers targeted the Biden official over the ongoing migrant crisis at the U. S. border, accusing him of deliberately flaunting existing immigration law and worsening the situation.

The 214-213 vote was always expected to be tight; Mayorkas narrowly escaped impeachment last week when every single House Democrat showed up to shield him, including Rep. Al Green, D-Texas, who temporarily left the hospital where he was recovering from surgery to cast his vote.

Three Republicans also voted down the effort – Reps. Mike Gallagher, R-Wis., Ken Buck, R-Colo., and Tom McClintock, R-Calif.

Each criticized Mayorkas’ handling of the border but had reservations over whether it rose to the level of impeachment. McClintock warned it could set a precedent for political impeachments that could harm GOP officials in the future.

"Swapping one leftist for another is a fantasy, solves nothing, excuses Biden’s culpability, and unconstitutionally expands impeachment that someday will bite Republicans," McClintock said last week.

However, Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., dismissed any concerns about precedent in comments to reporters hours before the vote on Tuesday.

"Mayorkas is an exceptional case in U. S. history," Johnson said, accusing him of having done more "damage on the country than any Cabinet secretary that's ever been."

He also addressed the very likely scenario that the impeachment would go nowhere in the Democrat-held Senate.

"The House has a constitutional responsibility, as I've said many times. It's probably the heaviest next to a declaration of war. And we have to do our job regardless of what the other chamber does," Johnson said.

Two impeachment articles were approved against Mayorkas by the House Homeland Security Committee. One accused him of having "refused to comply with Federal immigration laws" and the other of having violated "public trust."... (Read more)










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