In a stunning move, House Republicans successfully impeached Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas. With a paper thin margin of 214-213, this marked the first time that a sitting Cabinet member has been impeached. This was the second time this vote was set after it failed by a 214-216 margin after an intense evening of debates. The first time, all Democratic House representatives and three Republicans (Ken Buck of Colorado, Mike Gallagher of Wisconsin, and Tom McClintock of California) voted against impeachment after a fourth Republican was convinced to switch his vote in order to allow another attempt at an impeachment trial. While the decision is set to go to trial in the Senate, it is highly unlikely to have any significant result since neither Democratic nor Republican leaders seem keen to move this forward.
The Republican controlled House impeached Mayorkas on two counts: one, that he did not execute his duties in upholding current immigration laws at the border and two, that he lied to Congress about the current state of the border. The issue of the southern border has and is still a major point of contention, especially since Biden ran on the promise of being an alternate to Trump-era border wall regulations. However, with the House still controlled by Republicans, major legislation on this matter is difficult to pass with bipartisan support. While Mayorkas did not personally attend the impeachment, he sent a letter with his thoughts:
“My reverence for law enforcement was instilled in me by my parents, who brought me to this country to escape the Communist takeover of Cuba and allow me the freedoms and opportunity that our democracy provides… the problems with our broken and outdated immigration system are not new.”
According to Democratic Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer,
“The House impeachment managers will present the articles of impeachment to the Senate following the state work period. Senators will be sworn in as jurors in the trial the next day. Senate President Pro Tempore Patty Murray will preside… This sham impeachment effort is another embarrassment for House Republicans. The one and only reason for this impeachment is for Speaker Johnson to further appease Donald Trump.”
Particularly with the 2024 presidential election looming on the horizon, both Democrats and Republicans are looking to strengthen their base and stack their wins before the vote comes to the hands of the citizens. Border security is and will remain to be a significant issue and whether or not Mayorkas will be tried at Senate, his impeachment signals the extreme divisiveness of the issue and the weight it will have at the polls in the coming months.