House Republicans failed to impeach Alejandro Mayorkas, the secretary of the Department of Homeland Security, during a high-stakes vote on Tuesday. The impeachment effort centered around the unprecedented level of illegal immigration at the southern border under Mayorkas’ leadership.
According to The Daily Wire, Tuesday’s impeachment vote failed 214-216 as three House Republicans joined the Democrats in voting against the two articles of impeachment that were brought against Mayorkas. Reps. Ken Buck (R-Colo.), Mike Gallagher (R-Wis.), and Tom McClintock (R-Calif.) voted against the impeachment effort.
Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) tweeted that House GOP Vice Chairman Blake Moore (R-Utah) also changed his vote to “no” at the last minute “for procedural reasons” to allow House Republicans to reconsider the impeachment of Mayorkas as soon as “next week.”
According to The Daily Wire, House Majority Leader Steve Scalise (R-La.) was not present for Tuesday’s impeachment vote. The majority leader has been receiving medical treatment for his battle with blood cancer. While House Republicans have not announced the exact date of the majority leader’s return to Capitol Hill, his vote could potentially give Republicans the extra vote needed to pass the articles of impeachment against Mayorkas.
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Following Tuesday’s vote, Raj Shah, a spokesman for House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La), tweeted, “House Republicans fully intend to bring Articles of Impeachment against Secretary Mayorkas back to the floor when we have the votes for passage.”
After investigating Biden’s Cabinet member for the past several months, House Republicans brought two articles of impeachment against Mayorkas. Mayorkas was accused of having “breached the public trust” by making false statements regarding the southern border, for obstructing oversight of the Department of Homeland Security, and for “willfully and systemically” refusing to follow the nation’s immigration laws.
The Daily Wire reported that if the impeachment effort against Mayorkas was successful, he would be the first presidential Cabinet secretary to be impeached since 1876.
After the House Committee on Homeland Security voted to advance the two articles of impeachment against Mayorkas last week, Chairman Mark Green (R-Tenn.) shared a statement, saying, “I am proud of the Committee for advancing these historic articles. I urge my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to do the right thing, put aside the politics, and agree that before we can fix Secretary Mayorkas’ mess, Congress must finally hold this man accountable.”
