House Republicans send Mayorkas impeachment articles to Senate
WASHINGTON » T he House sent t wo a rticles of i mpeachment against Homeland S ecurity Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas to the Senate on Tuesday, forcing a trial on allegations that he has “willfully and systematically” refused to enforce immigration laws.
While the Senate is obligated to hold a trial under the rules of impeachment once the charges are walked across the Capitol, the proceedings may n ot last long. Democrats are expected to try to dismiss or table the charges later this week before the full arguments get underway.
After delivering the articles, the Republican prosecutors appointed by House Speaker Mike J ohnson stood in t he w ell of t he Senate. The Senate sergeantat- arms, t he c hamber’s top security official, called t he s ession t o order with a “hear ye! hear ye!” and a notice that “all persons are commanded to keep silence, on pain of imprisonment.”
The House Homeland Security Committee chairman, Mark Green, a Tennessee Republican who is one o f the impeachment managers, read t he a rticles aloud as most senators sat in their seats, following along with their own paper copies.
Republicans have argued there should be a full trial. As Johnson signed the articles Monday in preparation for sending them a cross the Capitol, h e said S enate Majority Leader Chuck
Schumer should convene a trial to “hold those who engineered this crisis to full account.”
Schumer “is the only impediment to delivering accountability for the American people,” Johnson said. “Pursuant to the Constitution, the House demands a trial.”
After Tuesday’s ceremonial procession and presentation o f the articles, the proceedings will not begin until Wednesday. Senators will be sworn in as jurors, turning the chamber into the court of impeachment. The Senate will then issue a summons to Mayorkas to inform him of the charges and ask for a written a nswer. He will not have t o appear.
The entire process could be d one within h ours o n Wednesday. Majority Democrats have said the GOP case a gainst M ayorkas doesn’t rise t o the “high crimes a nd m isdemeanors” laid out as a bar for impeachment in the Constitution, and Schumer probably has enough votes to end the trial immediately if he decides to do so.
Schumer has said h e wants to “address this i ssue as expeditiously as possible.”
“Impeachment s hould never be u sed to s ettle a policy d isagreement,” Schumer said. “That would set a horrible precedent for the Congress.”
The House narrowly voted in February to i mpeach Mayorkas f or h is handling o f the U. S.Mexico border. House Republicans charged in two articles o f impeachment that Mayorkas has not only refused to e nforce e xisting law but also breached the public trust by lying to Congress a nd s aying the border was secure. It was the first time in nearly 150 years a Cabinet secretary was impeached.
Since then, Johnson has delayed sending the articles t o the Senate f or weeks while both chambers finished work on government funding legislation and took a two- week recess. Johnson had said he would send them to the Senate l ast week, but he punted a gain a fter S enate Republicans said they wanted more time to prepare.
South Dakota Sen. John Thune, the Senate’s No. 2 Republican, h as said the Senate needs to hold a full trial at which it can examine the evidence a gainst Mayorkas a nd c ome to a conclusion.
“This is an absolute debacle at the southern border,” Thune said. “It is a national security crisis. There needs to be accountability.”
House impeachment managers previewed some of t heir a rguments a t a hearing with Mayorkas on Tuesday morning on President Joe Biden’s budget request for the department.
Green, the chairman of the House Homeland Security panel, told the secretary that he has a duty under the law to control and guard U. S. b orders, and “during your three years as secretary, you have failed to fulfill this oath. You have refused to comply with the laws passed by Congress, and you have breached the public trust.”
Mayorkas defended the department’s e fforts b ut said the nation’s immigration system is “fundamentally broken, and only Congress can fix it.”
Other impeachment managers are Michael McCaul of Texas, Andy Biggs of A rizona, Ben Cline of Virginia, Andrew Garbarino of New York, Michael Guest of Mississippi, Harriet Hageman of Wyoming, Clay Higgins of Louisiana, Laurel Lee of Florida, August Plfuger of Texas and Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia.
“The voice of the people is v ery clear,” said Texas Rep. M ichael M ccaul, chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee. “Secure the border and impeach this man, this criminal.”
Exactly how Democrats will p roceed o n Wednesday is still u nclear. Impeachment rules generally allow the Senate m ajority to decide how to manage the trial, and Schumer has not said exactly what he will do.
After the jurors a re sworn in, Senate R epublicans a re l ikely to t ry t o raise a series of objections if Schumer calls a vote to dismiss or table. But ultimately they cannot block a dismissal if majority Democrats have the votes.
Some Republicans have said they would like time to debate whether Mayorkas should be impeached. Negotiations were underway between the two parties over whether Schumer may allow that t ime and give senators in both parties a chance to discuss the impeachment before i t is dismissed.