US House Votes to Impeach Mayorkas

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Facts

  • The US House of Representatives has, by 214-213, passed a resolution to impeach Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas for 'high crimes and misdemeanors.' 214 Republicans voted for the bill, while three Republicans voted alongside 210 Democrats against the measure.1
  • The resolution, submitted by Rep. Majorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) before being referred to the Committee on Homeland Security, accuses Mayorkas of 'systemic refusal to comply with the law,' alleging the 'unlawful mass release' and parole of migrants on America's southern border.2
  • The resolution has passed on its second attempt, having been rejected by a margin of 214-216 on Feb. 6. The bill had been considered as 'unfinished business' by the House before a motion to reconsider was passed.3
  • According to the US Constitution, while the House contains the 'sole Power of Impeachment,' the Senate contains the 'sole Power to try all Impeachments.' Although the House's impeachment process occurs via a simple majority vote, two-thirds of the Senate is required to convict.4
  • While House Majority Leader Steve Scalise (R-La.) said the vote showed that the GOP would 'not sit by' while Mayorkas 'fails to do his job at keeping our homeland safe,' Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) described the resolution as a 'new low for House Republicans.'5
  • According to federal data, the US Customs and Border Protection saw approximately 3.2M total enforcement actions in FY2023, compared to around 2.8M a year prior, and approximately 700K in FY2018.6

Sources: 1Clerk.House.gov, 2Congress, 3congress.gov, 4Senate, 5Associated Press and 6U.S. Customs and Border Protection.

Narratives

  • Republican narrative, as provided by The Western Journal. Democrats have thrown a tantrum over the House's historic decision to hold a member of the Biden administration responsible. Despite the outcries from the liberal establishment, the reality remains the same — Mayorkas has actively refused to enforce immigration law. If the rest of Biden's cabinet wishes to avoid a similar fate to Mayorkas, it would be wise to use its executive powers on the southern border instead of continuing to play partisan games.
  • Democratic narrative, as provided by The Guardian. In a move unable to survive the Senate, House Republicans are using their razor-thin majority in the House to pursue baseless and politically motivated accusations instead of focusing on productive policy solutions to better the country. While the Democrat-led Senate has recently passed a $95B national security package, the GOP-led House continues to engage in petty point-scoring — undermining the very integrity and gravity of the impeachment process.

Predictions