The House of Representatives voted to block a resolution from Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene to impeach Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas over his handling of the border crisis.
The resolution was referred to the House Homeland Security Committee by a bipartisan vote of 209-201, effectively killing it.
Greene, a conservative firebrand and staunch supporter of former President Donald Trump, introduced the resolution as “privileged,” which forced the House to consider it on the floor within two legislative days. She accused Mayorkas of violating his oath of office by failing to secure the southern border and enforce immigration laws.
“I’m outraged,” Greene said after the vote. “I can assure you that Republican voters will be extremely angry that they’ve done this.” She added that she might introduce the resolution again in the future.
The Department of Homeland Security dismissed Greene’s impeachment effort as “baseless” and “a harmful distraction from our critical national security priorities.” A spokesperson for the department said that Mayorkas was “laser-focused on the safety and security of our nation.”
The resolution had some backing from GOP lawmakers, including House Majority Whip Tom Emmer, who announced his support on X, a social media platform previously known as Twitter. “A vote to impeach Mayorkas is a vote to get our border under control. I’ll be voting to impeach,” Emmer said.
However, eight Republicans joined all Democrats to defeat the measure: Cliff Bentz of California, Ken Buck of Colorado, Darrell Issa of California, Patrick McHenry of North Carolina, Tom McClintock of California, Virginia Foxx of North Carolina, John Duarte of California and Mike Turner of Ohio.
The move to impeach Mayorkas was a rare and unlikely attempt, as the House has only impeached one Cabinet member in its history, in 1876. The push also came amid a broader effort by House Republicans to impeach President Joe Biden over his withdrawal from Afghanistan and other issues. The House Judiciary Committee launched an impeachment inquiry into Biden last month, but it is unlikely to succeed in the Democrat House.
By Salam Bustanji
