Conservatives rejoice as House Republicans impeach Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas

WASHINGTON, DC: In an interesting turn of events on Tuesday, February 13, House Republicans voted to impeach Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, marking a rare move against a sitting Cabinet official.

The decision comes amid escalating tensions over immigration policy and border security, setting the stage for a potential showdown in the Democratic-controlled Senate.

What are the charges against Alejandro Mayorkas?

The House passed two articles of impeachment against Mayorkas by a narrow margin of 214-213.

The charges leveled against President Biden's chief border enforcement officer include "willful and systemic refusal to comply" with federal immigration law and allegations of lying to Congress regarding the border's security status.

At 64 years old, Mayorkas becomes only the second Cabinet official in history to face impeachment proceedings, following Secretary of War William Belknap's case in 1876.

Belknap resigned from President Ulysses S Grant's administration just hours before formal charges of corruption were brought against him by the House.

Despite his impeachment, Belknap was later acquitted by the Senate.

While some Senate Republicans vow to push for Mayorkas' removal from office, politically vulnerable Democrats like Jon Tester of Montana have dismissed the impeachment effort as mere "political games."

With Democrats holding the majority in the Senate, the likelihood of Mayorkas' removal appears slim, although some within the GOP remain committed to making their case.

“There will absolutely be many who believe his case merits removal from office and will vote accordingly,” a Senate GOP aide told the New York Post. “Since Democrats control the chamber, however, it’s basically certain that the vote will fail — if [Senate Majority Leader Chuck] Schumer [D-NY] allows it to happen in the first place.”

“There has never in American history been an impeachment where the Senate has refused to vote on the matter,” the source added. “If Schumer kills it procedurally, without a vote, it would be unprecedented.”

House Speaker names 11 GOP impeachment managers

House Speaker Mike Johnson wasted no time in appointing 11 GOP impeachment managers to present the case for conviction during a potential Senate trial.

These managers include House Homeland Security Committee Chairman Mark Green (Tenn) and Reps Michael Guest (Miss), Michael McCaul (Texas), August Pfluger (Texas), Clay Higgins (La), Ben Cline (Va), Andy Biggs (Ariz), Andrew Garbarino (NY), Harriet Hageman (Wyo), Laurel Lee (Fla), and Marjorie Taylor Greene (Ga), who authored the impeachment resolution.

“For nearly a year, the House Homeland Security Committee has taken a careful and methodical approach to this investigation and the results are clear: from his first day in office, Secretary Mayorkas has willfully and consistently refused to comply with federal immigration laws, fueling the worst border catastrophe in American history,” Johnson said in a statement after the vote.

The impeachment resolution, H.Res.863, accuses Mayorkas of failing to enforce key immigration laws and of providing misleading testimony to Congress regarding border control measures.

It points to a September 30, 2021, memo that allegedly weakened rules for detaining and expelling migrants, leading to a de facto "catch and release" policy and a staggering backlog of asylum cases.

Since President Biden's inauguration, over 8.5 million migrants have been apprehended by US Customs and Border Protection, with a significant portion of these encounters occurring along the southern border.

Meanwhile, the number of "gotaways" who have successfully evaded arrest upon entering the country is estimated at 1.8 million, per the Post.

Social media reacts to Alejandro Mayorkas' impeachment

Conservatives on social media celebrated the news of Mayorkas' impeachment.

"FINALLY Republicans can get something done for once," one posted on X.

"Well done @SpeakerJohnson! Let's keep it going! Much more work to be done!" another gushed.

"Been a while since this happened in America," someone else wrote.

"Hell yeah now put him on trial for treason," a comment read.

"Now do Biden," another added.