White House to GOP: Failed Mayorkas impeachment effort was ‘waste of time’

The White House on Tuesday criticized Republican efforts to impeach Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas as a “waste of time” and a “political stunt” after the House vote failed.

The vote failed in embarrassing fashion for Republicans on Tuesday night, as three senators joined Democrats in voting against impeachment. The 214-216 vote was a defeat for Republicans, who argued Mayorkas was violating immigration laws by not detaining enough immigrants.

“It is clear that there is bipartisan agreement that this baseless and unconstitutional impeachment effort must fail,” White House Oversight and Investigations Press Secretary Ian Sams said in a statement.

“House Republicans recognize that extreme political stunts like this are a waste of time and instead want to work together with the President, Secretary Mayorkas, and others to provide real solutions that actually strengthen border security. “We should join the Republicans and Democrats,” he added.

President Biden earlier Tuesday criticized House Republican efforts to block a bipartisan Senate border bill aimed at curbing the flow of migrants into the United States. Biden accused former President Trump of repealing the bill for political reasons after he warned Republicans not to vote. He voted for the bill because it would be politically detrimental to Republicans in an election year.

Sams also shared statements from Republicans who do not support efforts to impeach Mayorkas, including Rep. Ken Buck (R-Colo.). Said Although this act is not impeachable, Sen. Mitt Romney (R-Utah) Said House Republicans had no reason to impeach him.

Buck and Rep. Tom McClintock (R-Calif.) were expected to vote “no.” But then a third House Republican, Rep. Mike Gallagher (R-Wis.), also voted against impeachment.

Rep. Blake Moore (R-Utah), vice chair of the Republican conference, then flipped the vote to “no” just before voting ended, allowing the conference to return the bill to the floor later. It is a procedural measure to .

After the vote, a spokesperson for House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-Louisiana) said Republicans intended to bring impeachment back to the floor, and the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) encouraged Republicans to abandon impeachment altogether. did.