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Ted Cruz on the Importance of Holding an Impeachment Trial Against DHS Sec. Mayorkas

Rebecca Downs
Rebecca Downs  |  April 16, 2024 1:45 PM

On Tuesday afternoon, at around 2:15 pm, Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) and the 11 House impeachment managers are expected to hand deliver the articles of impeachment against Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas. The House impeached Mayorkas in February by a vote of 214-213. Although such a move would be unprecedented, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) is expected to dismiss or table the charges. Nevertheless, Senate Republicans are fiercely in favor of going through with taking action, with Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) being chief among them. 

In a statement shared exclusively with Townhall, Cruz highlighted the importance of the Senate fulfilling their constitutional duty.

"The Constitution is clear: the Senate has a duty to hold an impeachment trial for Alejandro Mayorkas. For over 200 years, the Senate has done its duty every single time. The Senate held a full trial for 17 out of the 21 impeachment proceedings referred to it by the House. In the remaining four cases, the Senate either did not have jurisdiction or the person resigned, mooting the issue. Even though I would happily accept his resignation, neither of these exceptions apply to Alejandro Mayorkas. Therefore, the Senate has a duty to hold his trial," he shared.

The senator also referenced why it is that Senate Democrats look to be avoiding a trial, speaking to a larger issue about the crisis at the southern border. "It is telling that Senate Democrats are desperate to avoid holding a trial for messaging reasons. If you turn on CNN, NBC, or ABC, you would have no idea that there is a border crisis. Democrats are desperate to keep it that way, which is why they don’t want the corrupt corporate media to be forced to cover the Mayorkas impeachment trial. The Constitution doesn’t care about Schumer’s messaging concerns, however: the Senate has a duty to hold an impeachment trial," Cruz continued. 

Mayorkas just last week acknowledged that what's going on at the southern is indeed a "crisis," as he was being questioned by Rep. Ashley Hinson (R-IA) when appearing before the House Appropriations Committee. Various polls from this year show a plurality or majority would also say it's a "crisis."

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Under President Joe Biden's administration, and during Mayorkas' time as secretary, the policies under former and potentially future President Donald Trump have been upended. This includes executive action that Biden took his first day in office to terminate the emergency at the border and construction of the border wall. 

Since then, Biden has issued a whole host of executive actions to make the border more wide open and thus less safe, which has led us to record high border numbers under his presidency as well as an alarming amount of people crossing over from the terror watch list.

Immigration remains a top issue for the 2024 election, according to several polls, with Trump maintaining an edge over Biden by double digits. RealClearPolling also has immigration as Biden's worst issue, with just 32.3 percent approving of his handling of this issue. 

From press conferences to Senate floor speeches to episodes of "The Verdict," Cruz has been continuously illustrating the need for the Senate to hold this trial. If Senate Democrats set a new precedent with impeachment, this could affect future impeachment trials when Democrats are in control of the House and Republicans are in control of the Senate, Cruz has also warned. 

Cruz isn't the only one to push for a trial. Last week, as Spencer covered, 43 Republican letters wrote a letter to Schumer demanding that a trial be held. Cruz was among them, as were members of Senate Republican leadership. 

And, as Katie covered earlier on Tuesday, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) called for a trial in a Senate floor speech.