Senators prep for Mayorkas impeachment as government funding deadline looms

Senators will move quickly this week to address the impeachment of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas as they look ahead to two federal funding deadlines.

The Senate returns to Washington from a two-week recess on Monday to consider a number of priorities, including avoiding a partial government shutdown. But first, he must address a pair of articles of impeachment against Mr. Mayorkas that the House approved earlier this month.

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer of New York said the articles would be sent as soon as the Senate returns and senators would be sworn in as jurors shortly thereafter.

It’s unclear how Schumer plans to remove the article. He can remove them or refer them to a special committee, both of which require a simple majority vote.

Whichever option he chooses, lawmakers on both sides of the aisle widely expect the chamber to spend the least amount of time possible on the topic, especially prioritizing government funding.

“I don’t know what the instructor’s intentions are, but I am convinced that it is desirable to spend as little time as possible and be able to concentrate. [appropriations]”Sen. Tim Kaine (D-Va.) told reporters last week that the Senate also needs to act on the House’s tax reform bill, focusing on the national security supplement bill it passed before recess. He pointed out that there is a possibility of returning it.

“Those are the items we want to focus on. They’re meaningful and substantive,” Kane continued. “This is different from the impeachment of Mr. Mayorkas.”

Many Republicans agree.

Some members of the Senate Republican conference question whether Mr. Mayorkas, who has many detractors, met the high and misdemeanor threshold and whether impeaching him was a good use of time. voices are getting louder.

Additionally, there are those who are vocally questioning whether impeachment is the correct remedy, as some believe that Mayorkas is merely carrying out the Biden administration’s policies and that replacing the director will not make much of a difference. I’m holding you.

“There’s so much going on. … Why waste time on a pointless exercise when you already know the outcome?” said Sen. Kevin Cramer, RN.D. said. “I’m reluctant to even impeach cabinet members. They work for the president. To the extent that their bosses encourage high crimes and misdemeanors within the cabinet, that’s the bosses’ fault.”

“I think it’s strange to impeach someone who already has a director,” Cramer said.

It remains unclear exactly when the article will be published. One Senate Republican official said the House has not yet made a decision because next week’s transmission could be complicated by the first federal funding deadline.

The first four funding bills must be processed by midnight Friday, with the remaining funding due the following Friday.

But leading senators still expect the articles to arrive this week, and Mr. Schumer will act quickly once they are sent. Sen. John Thune (S.D.), the No. 2 Republican, told The Hill in an interview that he expects Congress to take up the article this week and that Schumer will move on it almost immediately.

“That’s my guess on how he’s going to play,” Thune said. “I think I can understand more about that.” [this week], but that’s just my guess. ”

The two articles of impeachment accuse Mr. Mayorkas of refusing to comply with immigration laws passed by Congress, and of obstructing Congressional oversight and misleading Congress.

Despite skepticism on both sides, a group of Senate conservatives pressed Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) to hold Schumer to a full trial on the two articles against Mayorkas. I asked him to call. The letter, organized by Sen. Mike Lee (R-Utah), was signed by 13 Republicans.

“This is an action rarely considered in our nation’s history and never taken by the United States Senate,” the letter reads. “It remains to be seen whether the Senate rules would even allow us to ignore our obligations in this way, but if we had a white Republican majority and Senate Republicans were planning a similar strategy, If so, one thing is certain: House opposition will be fierce and the voices from Democrats will be deafening. ”

Mr. Cramer disputed the letter, saying, “I don’t understand why they’re pushing it,” and questioned why it was addressed to Mr. McConnell when Mr. Schumer controls the chamber. presented.

He also noted that the chamber did not discuss Mayorkas’ impeachment at recent lunches or meetings, and the last meeting was when it was debated on the floor and ultimately passed a supplemental bill on national security. It was conducted.

Meanwhile, Biden is considering an executive order that would tighten the handling of asylum seekers at the southern border, which would stem the flow of migrants at the southern border and give him a political boost heading into November. There is a purpose. The move comes after a bipartisan legislative effort supported by Biden quickly came under fire after months of negotiations.

But Republicans argue that it’s too little, too late, as the number of border crossings has exploded during his term, with more than 300,000 border crossings recorded in December. Criticizing the possibilities.

“The Biden administration is hopeless. There’s nothing they can do at this point. There’s no executive order he can issue. There’s nothing else that can restore his credibility at the border,” Cramer said. . “This is all his fault. In fact, for him to do anything to correct it would be an admission of his own failure.”

One question that remains hanging over is whether Mr. Schumer intends to reject or table the articles of impeachment, or refer it to a special Senate committee to consider it. The latter measure would hide the article until after Election Day, and many Senate Democrats, including Sen. Jon Tester (D-Mont.) and Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio), who are running for re-election in red or purple, It will be useful for MPs. States will avoid tough voting months before Election Day.

“People are already blaming Biden and the Democrats on the border issue, and we want to continue to talk about this issue,” said one Senate Republican aide.