Three Republicans voted against impeaching Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas on Tuesday night, after the House successfully impeached the border chief for mishandling the illegal immigration crisis at the U.S.-Mexico border. Ta.
Rep. Mike Gallagher (R-Wis.), Rep. Ken Buck (R-Colo.), and Rep. Tom McClintock (R-Calif.) sided with Democrats opposing Mr. Mayorkas’ impeachment. rebelled against the party.
This is the first time since 1876 that a Cabinet secretary has been impeached by the U.S. Congress.
Mayorkas’ impeachment failed by a narrow margin last week, in a 214-213 vote, including all House Democrats who appeared to defend Mayorkas, including voting They included U.S. Rep. Al Green, D-Texas, who was temporarily released from the hospital while recovering from surgery.
House votes to impeach Homeland Security Secretary Mayorkas over border crisis
Rep. Mike Gallagher (R-Wis.), Rep. Ken Buck (R-Colo.), and Rep. Tom McClintock (R-Calif.) sided with Democrats opposing Mr. Mayorkas’ impeachment. rebelled against the party. (Getty Images)
House Republicans have accused Mayorkas of ignoring current immigration laws and worsening the situation at the southern border.
The three Republicans who voted against impeachment on Tuesday criticized Mayorkas’ handling of the border issue, but expressed concerns about whether it would rise to the level of impeachment.mcclintock warned that there was a possibility It sets a precedent for political impeachments that could hurt Republican officials in the future.
“Swapping one leftist for another is a pipe dream that will solve nothing, absolve Biden of responsibility, and extend unconstitutional impeachment that will come back to haunt the Republican Party someday,” McClintock said last week. It will become.”
But House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-Louisiana) dismissed concerns about precedent to reporters hours before Tuesday’s vote.
“Mr. Mayorkas is an exceptional case in American history,” Johnson said, adding that Mayorkas had done “more damage to our country than any other Cabinet member in history.”
Johnson also spoke about a likely scenario in which impeachment goes nowhere in the Democratic-controlled Senate.
“As I’ve said many times, the House has a constitutional responsibility, perhaps second only to declaring war, and we have to do our job regardless of what other chambers do. ” he said.
House fails to impeach Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, dealing big blow to Republicans
Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro Mayorkas was impeached by the House of Representatives. (Getty Images)
two articles of impeachment The House Homeland Security Committee approved charges against Mayorkas, one alleging that Mayorkas “refuses to comply with federal immigration law” and the other alleging that he violated “the public’s trust.” did.
The Department of Homeland Security criticized House Republicans for holding a second impeachment vote against Mayorkas on Tuesday, citing comments from Republican lawmakers that the effort was a waste of time.
“House Republicans’ baseless push to impeach Secretary Mayorkas has already failed once due to bipartisan opposition,” the department said. “If members of Congress care about our national security, they should listen to their fellow Republicans and stop wasting their time on this pointless and unconstitutional impeachment. “Resources for border security could be spent addressing the problem by advancing bipartisan legislation to fix broken immigration laws and take necessary steps.” ”
A Department of Homeland Security spokesperson said House Republicans “will go down in history for trampling on the Constitution for political gain rather than working to solve serious challenges at our border.”
“While Secretary Mayorkas was supporting a group of Republican and Democratic senators to develop a bipartisan solution to strengthen border security and ensure necessary resources for enforcement, House Republicans “We’ve wasted months on an unconstitutional impeachment that doesn’t warrant any legal action,” the spokesperson said.
“Without a single shred of evidence or sound constitutional basis, and despite bipartisan opposition, House Republicans have refused to support the efforts of dedicated public servants who have served our country enforcing our laws for more than 20 years,” the spokesperson said. “He has unfairly defamed the country,” he added. “Secretary Mayorkas and the Department of Homeland Security continue to work every day to keep the American people safe.”
House Republicans accused Mayorkas of ignoring current immigration laws and worsening the situation at the southern border. (Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images)
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“History will not look kindly on this blatant act of unconstitutional partisanship by House Republicans targeting honorable public servants for petty political maneuvering,” President Biden said.
“This impeachment has already failed with a bipartisan vote,” Biden said. “Republicans with real concerns about the border should want Congress to provide more border resources and stronger border security instead of staging political stunts like this.”
The article will now be sent to the Senate, where Majority Leader Chuck Schumer of New York’s office said Mayorkas’ impeachment trial will begin later this month.
“House impeachment managers plan to introduce articles of impeachment to the Senate after the national work period,” Schumer’s office said in a statement. “Senators will be sworn in as jurors in the trial the next day, presided over by Senate President pro tempore Patty Murray.”
Fox News’ Elizabeth Elkind and Bradford Betz contributed to this report.
