Tipsheet

House GOP Moves Forward With Another Priority: Filing Articles of Impeachment Against Mayorkas

Rebecca Downs
Rebecca Downs  |  January 11, 2023 7:15 PM

In the first few days of the 118th Congress, House Republicans have been moving forward with a list of promises and priorities, which includes seeking to hold the Biden administration accountable. On Monday, Rep. Pat Fallon (R-TX), filed articles of impeachment against Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas due to his mishandling of the crisis at the southern border. The articles, known as House Resolution 8, have also been referred to the House Judiciary Committee.

A report from Fox News, which Fallon linked to in hs pinned tweet, notes that the move is fulfilling a promise Fallon made last week, before being sworn in. "Since day one, Secretary Mayorkas’ policies have undermined law enforcement activities at our southern border," Fallon said in a statement at the time. "From perjuring himself before Congress about maintaining operational control of the border to the infamous ‘whip-gate’ slander against our border patrol agents, Secretary Mayorkas has proven time and time again that he is unfit to lead the Department of Homeland Security." Fallon also added that Mayorkas' willful actions have eroded our immigration system, undermined border patrol morale, and jeopardized American national security. He has violated the law and it is time for him to go."

In addition to laying out the "high crimes and misdemeanors" that the resolution accuses of Mayorkas of having violated, a background is provided on how bad the crisis at the border has become. Not only has there been record-high border crossings, but a particularly high amount of terrorists coming over the border. There are also concerns with fentanyl as well as the process being used to detain illegal immigrants. 

As is laid out:

Over 5,500,000 illegal aliens have crossed our southern border under the leadership of Secretary Mayorkas. There have now been 20 straight months with over 150,000 illegal border crossings. Secretary Mayorkas has presided over a 180-percent increase in encounters at the southern border compared to the previous administration.

In fiscal year 2022, 98 individuals on the Terrorist Screening Database (TSDB) were apprehended at the southern border, more than during the previous 5 years combined. In total, more than 100 individuals on the TSDB have been apprehended under Secretary Mayorkas.

Under Secretary Mayorkas, more fentanyl has crossed the border in the last 2 months than in all of fiscal year 2019 under President Trump’s leadership. In fiscal year 2022, over 14,000 pounds of poisonous fentanyl was seized at the southern border. Fentanyl overdoses are the number one cause of death for individuals ages 18 to 45 nationwide.

Under Secretary Mayorkas, the Department of Homeland Security is also in violation the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1101 et seq.). This Act requires the Department of Homeland Security to detain inadmissible aliens arriving in the United States or aliens who are present in the United States without inspection until processed. In violation of the law, Secretary Mayorkas implemented catch-and-release directives such as the Notice to Report process and the parole plus Alternatives to Detention process. Through these misguided programs, over 1,000,000 illegal aliens have been recklessly released into the interior of the United States.

The resolution goes on to claim the following:

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Secretary Mayorkas has undermined the operational control of our southern border and encouraged illegal immigration by doing the following:

(1) Terminating contracts for additional border wall construction, in contradiction of Congressional appropriations.

(2) Ending the Migrant Protection Protocols, also known as “Remain in Mexico”, which was an indispensable tool to address the border crisis and restore integrity to the immigration system.

(3) Attempting to eliminate title 42 authority, a critical tool enabling the U.S. Customs and Border Protection to quickly expel illegal aliens.

Secretary Mayorkas has violated the law and gravely endangered the national security of the United States through these actions.

Also brought up are claims of perjury, especially when it comes to him reassuring members of Congress, under oath, that the border is secure. When asked "do you continue to maintain that the border is secured" by Rep. Dan Bishop (R-NC) during a committee hearing last November, Mayorkas responded "yes, and we are working day in and day out to enhance its security, Congressman." In asking his question, Bishop had pointed out that the secretary had claimed the border was secure in numerous previous instances.

Not long after that November hearing mentioned above, Kevin McCarthy (R-CA), who is now the Speaker of the House, called on Mayorkas to resign, though the secretary and DHS remained stubborn and steadfast that Mayorkas was not going anywhere. "Secretary Mayorkas is proud to advance the noble mission of this Department, support its extraordinary workforce, and serve the American people," the DHS spokesperson even told Fox News in a stunningly tone deaf statement. "The Department will continue our work to enforce our laws and secure our border, while building a safe, orderly, and humane immigration system."

Mayorkas, as has Vice President Kamala Harris and the Biden administration overall, also bent over backwards to smear border patrol agents by lying about how they had whipped Haitian migrants. Mayorkas is revealed to have pushed the narrative despite being told it wasn't true. Julio has covered the incident and the mishandling of it extensively, including when it comes to how emails shared with Townhall showed that Mayorkas was meeting with left-wing groups for guidelines on how to push the hoax narrative.

A Tuesday report from The Hill has a similar, more recent statement, one which adds an even deeper layer of gaslighting. 

"Secretary Mayorkas is proud to advance the noble mission of this Department, support its extraordinary workforce, and serve the American people. The Department will continue our work to enforce our laws and secure our border, while building a safe, orderly, and humane immigration system," Assistant Secretary for Public Affairs Marsha Espinosa is mentioned as having said in a statement. 

"Members of Congress can do better than point the finger at someone else; they should come to the table and work on solutions for our broken system and outdated laws, which they have not updated in over 40 years." Espinosa continued, looking to place the blame elsewhere. 

Republicans have been steadfast in impeaching Mayorkas, with certain members having mentioned it as a priority years ago, back when they were still in the minority. Rep. Chip Roy, called on impeaching Mayorkas in the summer of 2021. He has since doubled down on the idea by repeating those calls for impeachment. Last March, he also sent a letter to his fellow House Republicans asking them to join him in leading the charge to impeach Mayorkas, which followed a memo sent to his Texas delegation colleagues from October 2021 that had also made the case for impeachment. 

The mishandling of the Southern border is hardly on Mayorkas alone, though. Up until last weekend, President Joe Biden had yet to pay a visit. The three-hour visit that he did make to El Paso was heavily criticized, as it involved the president going to a process facility, and those migrants camped out had been quickly cleared up off of the streets before he arrived. Gov. Greg Abbott (R-TX) made news as well, for hand-delivering a letter to Biden that called him out for being "$20 billion too little and two years too late" with the visit. 

Not only did the visit highlight Biden's failure on the immigration issue, but it showed his age and potential mental decline, as video footage appears to have showed him mixing up the Salvation Army with the Secret Service.