The House of Representatives on Tuesday afternoon formally delivered the articles of impeachment against Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas to the Senate as the fate of a trial remains uncertain amid Democrat attempts at upending tradition and constitutional duty.
Historic moment: The House has transmitted the articles of impeachment against Secretary Mayorkas to the Senate, the first impeachment of a sitting Cabinet official. pic.twitter.com/z0mzXRe0Kh
— House Homeland GOP (@HomelandGOP) April 16, 2024
The House narrowly cleared the Mayorkas impeachment articles for "high crimes and misdemeanors" in a 214-213 vote held in February. The first article of impeachment deals with the DHS secretary's "willful and systemic refusal to comply with the law" and the second article addresses the "breach of public trust" exhibited by Mayorkas in his actions creating and failing to handle the border crisis for the last three-plus years.
It took Mayorkas multiple years and countless press conferences, congressional hearings, and media interviews to finally admit last week that what is going on at the border is, in fact, a "crisis," as Townhall previously reported.
As the impeachment resolution passed by the House explained:
In all of this, Alejandro N. Mayorkas breached the public trust by knowingly making false statements to Congress and the American people and avoiding lawful oversight in order to obscure the devastating consequences of his willful and systemic refusal to comply with the law and carry out his statutory duties. He has also breached the public trust by willfully refusing to carry out his statutory duty to control the border and guard against illegal entry, notwithstanding the calamitous consequences of his abdication of that duty.
Wherefore Alejandro N. Mayorkas, by such conduct, has demonstrated that he will remain a threat to national and border security, the safety of the American people, and to the Constitution if allowed to remain in office, and has acted in a manner grossly incompatible with his duties and the rule of law. Alejandro N. Mayorkas thus warrants impeachment and trial, removal from office, and disqualification to hold and enjoy any office of honor, trust, or profit under the United States.
Members of the U.S. Senate are expected to convene on Wednesday to fulfill their duty as jurors, according to Senate rules. Senator Patty Murray (D-WA) will preside over the Senate trial in her role as president pro tempore — if there's a trial, that is.
With Democrats in control of the upper chamber, Majority Leader Chuck Schumer calls the shots for what happens after the articles of impeachment have arrived in the Senate and "can speed up, delay or dismiss the impeachment outright," CBS News noted in a recent report. Schumer has said he wants to deal with the impeachment "as expeditiously as possible" and spurned Republicans for using impeachment "to settle policy disagreements" and setting an "awful precedent." Democrats, of course, already made impeachment a blatantly partisan bludgeon when they used it twice against former President Donald Trump.
Sen. Schumer knows how unpopular Pres. Biden and Sec. Mayorkas’s border policies are.
— John Kennedy (@SenJohnKennedy) April 15, 2024
He won’t let us hold an impeachment trial because he doesn’t want the American people to see the evidence. pic.twitter.com/EjrbMzFcRL
It remains to be seen what, exactly, Schumer tries to do on Wednesday once the impeachment trial is in his hands — and if he can get his slim majority on board with his expected efforts to obstruct accountability for the Biden administration.
Republicans in the House and Senate have urged Schumer to uphold Senate tradition and the upper chamber's constitutional duty to hold a full trial, but Democrats — Schumer in particular — have not shown themselves to value the U.S. Constitution or established norms.
“After the House transmits the articles of impeachment to the Senate later today, we expect and we demand that all 100 Senators listen to the arguments of the House impeachment managers. They have a constitutional and institutional obligation to do so. If Senator Schumer cares at… pic.twitter.com/LCpeMDekjs
— House Republicans (@HouseGOP) April 16, 2024
If a trial is allowed by Schumer, the House impeachment managers will make their case to the Senate. They include GOP Reps. Mark Green (TN), Michael McCaul (TX), Andy Biggs (AZ), Marjorie Taylor Greene (GA), Ben Cline (VA), Andrew Garbarino (NY), Michael Guest (MS), Clay Higgins (LA), Laurel Lee (FL), August Pfluger (TX), and Harriet Hageman (WY).
This is a developing story and may be updated.