Alejandro Mayorkas, Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), recently had two articles of impeachment dismissed by the U.S. Senate. The vote, which was divided along party lines at 51-49, resulted in the Democrat-controlled chamber determining that Mayorkas had not committed any crimes by refusing to comply with federal immigration law and breaching public trust.
According to The Hill, White House spokesperson for oversight and investigations, Ian Sams, stated, "Once and for all, the Senate has rightly voted down this baseless impeachment that even conservative legal scholars said was unconstitutional."
When the allegations were initially raised in February, President Biden expressed his view that House Republicans who were pushing for Mayorkas' impeachment were employing tactics characterized by a "blatant act of unconstitutional partisanship."
Biden went on to say at the time, "This impeachment already failed once on a bipartisan vote. Instead of staging political stunts like this, Republicans with genuine concerns about the border should want Congress to deliver more border resources and stronger border security." He further criticized Republicans for rejecting bipartisan plans developed by Mayorkas and others in his administration aimed at strengthening border security.
In response to these developments, DHS spokesperson Mia Ehrenberg said in a statement reported by USA Today: "As he has done throughout more than 20 years of dedicated public service, Secretary Mayorkas will continue working every day to enforce our laws and protect our country." She added that it was time for Congressional Republicans "to support the Department’s vital mission instead of wasting time playing political games and standing in the way of commonsense, bipartisan border reforms."
Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) argued that it was incumbent upon the Senate to at least hear the charges brought forth by the House. Following the vote he stated: "Today is not a proud day in the history of the Senate. By doing what we just did, we have in effect ignored the directions of the House which were to have a trial. No evidence, no procedure."
