Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro Mayorkas has willfully facilitated and expedited the invasion of our borders, both by land and by air. Over 10 million illegals, a number 17 times the population of my home state of Wyoming, have been encouraged to enter, and there is no end in sight. Included in these numbers are over 340 known individuals who are on the terrorist watch list, which is more than the encounters in all of FY17, FY18, FY19, FY20, FY21, and FY22 combined.
We have now learned that Mayorkas has been flying illegal aliens to airports all across the country and releasing them into the general population in an attempt to suppress the number of invaders entering via the ground and to “expedite” the process. This is more than losing control of the border, it is a brazen and intentional violation of the rule of law.
Mayorkas has violated his oath of office and is derelict in his obligation to keep us safe from enemies foreign and domestic. The House has filed two articles of impeachment against him in response to his willful and systemic refusal to comply with – and violation of – federal immigration laws, and breach of the public trust. Despite Democrat assertions to the contrary, this is a serious and warranted impeachment, with the underlying facts and basis being deserving of a hearing in the U.S. Senate, with exposure to the American public. History has borne out the fact that when the House impeaches a president, the Senate should hold a public trial and deliberate the articles. There have been 21 impeachments in the history of the United States House of Representatives – the Senate has never simply dismissed such cases without a trial.
The House’s charges against Mayorkas are specific, and the laws that the Secretary violated are clear. On charge one, for example, the relevant statutes provide that all applicants for admission who are “not clearly and beyond a doubt entitled to be admitted…shall be detained for a removal proceeding.” Mayorkas has in fact violated four such ‘shall detain’ provisions of law and one ‘shall take into custody’. Use of the word ‘shall’ demonstrates that his responsibility is not optional, but is instead mandatory. Congress, in other words, has issued a mandate; Mayorkas has violated his obligation to comply.
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The first charge also specifically requires that for those aliens who are placed into expedited removal proceedings and determined to have a credible fear of persecution “shall” be detained “for further consideration of the application for asylum.” Secretary Mayorkas has willfully violated such statutory requirements, going so far as to issue “Guideline for the Enforcement of Civil Immigration Laws,” instructing DHS employees to ignore these legal requirements and release such individuals into our country.
Secretary Mayorkas has also willfully misused parole authority laid out in the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA) that permits parole to be granted “only on a case-by-case basis,” temporarily, and “for urgent humanitarian reasons or significant public benefit.” Mayorkas has used this limited and specific authority to “parole” entire categories of individuals into the United States, including all individuals who claim to be from a particular country.
Mayorkas has violated these statutory mandates literally millions of times. He has, in short, intentionally and with malice broken U.S. immigration law, the very purpose of his actions being to allow for the invasion of our country. He has intentionally and with malice violated his oath to protect and defend our country from all enemies, foreign and domestic, and to uphold our Constitution and our laws. He has intentionally and with malice expedited the importation of our mortal enemies, ensuring that we will most likely suffer a catastrophic and devastating attack at some point in the future.
The basis for the second charge of impeachment against Mayorkas rests on his willful failure and refusal to comply with the Secure the Border Act by replacing those enforcement initiatives he had abandoned (such as President Trump’s “remain in Mexico” policy) with viable alternatives that would enable the Department of Homeland Security to maintain operational control of the border. He has also breached the trust of Congress and the American people by knowingly making false statements about the results of his willful and systemic refusal to comply with the law. He has lied, under oath, to both the House and Senate.
The House did not impeach Secretary Mayorkas because of “differences in policy” as claimed by the Democrats. He has violated the law as outlined above and must be held accountable. The Senate has an obligation to hold a trial, to hear the evidence presented, and to seriously deliberate after the evidence is heard. This is not theater; it is a solemn duty that has been followed in all 21 prior impeachments. Now is not the time for the Senate to refuse to carry out their duty.
Harriet Hageman, a Republican, is the lone member of the U.S. House of Representatives for the State of Wyoming. She has been named by Speaker Johnson as an impeachment manager for a Senate trial of Secretary Mayorkas
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