President Joe Biden’s secretary of Homeland Security, Alejandro Mayorkas, survived an impeachment vote in the House of Representatives on Tuesday evening.
In a narrow vote of 214-216, the lower chamber rejected two articles of impeachment against Mayorkas for “Willful and Systemic Refusal to Comply With the Law” and “Breach of the Public Trust.” Three Republicans — Colorado’s Ken Buck, Wisconsin Rep. Mike Gallagher, and California Rep. Tom McClintock — joined Democrats to block the impeachment resolution. House Republicans had reportedly expected just two defections — from Buck and McClintock — but lost a third in Gallagher’s “no” vote at the last minute.
Buck, who announced in November he would not seek reelection this fall, said he was a “solid” no on the impeachment proceedings last week. The New York Post reported in September that the outgoing Colorado congressman is in talks for a television gig with CNN.
Rep. Blake Moore, R-Utah, switched his vote to “no” seconds before the vote finished to allow lawmakers to reconsider the measure next week. Rep. Anna Paulina Luna, R-Fla., wrote on X that she expects the articles to ultimately pass after the 214-216 failure.
Republicans argue Mayorkas deliberately violated his oath to secure the homeland with years of initiatives aimed at circumventing constitutional mandates to enforce the nation’s immigration laws. Examples include expanding immigrant parole programs and the CBP One App, allowing illegal aliens to enter the country so long as they schedule an appointment with federal officials. According to the Washington Examiner, criminal cartels have exploited the app to conduct their business.
The House chamber moved on impeachment this week after the Senate unveiled a $118 billion “bipartisan” bill, which was dreamed up by leadership behind closed doors and includes more than $60 billion for Ukraine and roughly $20 billion for the border. The legislation would allow for up to 5,000 immigrant entries per day for a week, or up to 8,500 for a single day, before the border would be shut down — with the caveat that President Joe Biden can keep it open if he decides that doing so is in the “national interest.” From the time Biden took office through the beginning of October 2023, an estimated 1.7 million known “gotaways” had come into the United States unvetted, according to the House Judiciary Committee. More than 10 million illegal immigrants have reportedly crossed the border since Biden’s inauguration.
On Sunday, CBS’s flagship weekend program, “60 Minutes,” published a “bonkers” segment showcasing the total breakdown of U.S. security along the southern border. Armed federal agents stood by and watched as “maybe 3,000 migrants a week,” according to a nearby landowner, entered through an open hole in the border fence some 70 miles east of San Diego and were hastily released into the country within 72 hours. The migrants, who were primarily Chinese, said they learned of the opening with step-by-step instructions on how to access the barrier through the Chinese-owned social media app TikTok.
“The illegal entryway is a new route for those hoping to live in America,” CBS’s Sharyn Alfonsi reported.
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