Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell expects Majority Leader Chuck Schumer to table the motion to hold an impeachment trial of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas next week. McConnell believes that Democrats, who hold the majority in the Senate, will likely prevent the trial from proceeding for long, even though his preference would be to have a trial. Schumer has not indicated a trial date for Mayorkas, but has committed to swearing in jurors once the two articles of impeachment are delivered on April 10. Any US senator serving as a juror could motion to table or dismiss the articles, requiring a simple majority of the Democrat-controlled chamber to approve.
Schumer has dismissed the impeachment push against Mayorkas as a “new low for House Republicans” and accused Speaker Johnson of doing it to further appease Donald Trump. However, Johnson has called for a “public trial” of Mayorkas to hear arguments in favor of impeaching the Cabinet official for failing to enforce immigration law and lying to Congress about the security of the US border. Johnson believes that Mayorkas has violated the public trust and the American people demand accountability for those responsible for the border crisis. He is urging Schumer to quickly schedule a full public trial to hear the impeachment managers’ arguments.
The last Cabinet official to be impeached was Secretary of War William Belknap in 1876, who resigned from office before the House held a vote on five corruption-related articles. Belknap was later acquitted in the Senate. The Department of Homeland Security has dismissed the impeachment vote against Mayorkas as a farce and a distraction from other national security priorities. After a failed first vote, a second vote narrowly impeached Mayorkas. President Biden has criticized the move as a political stunt and denounced House Republicans for blocking a bipartisan Senate border bill earlier this year.
It is unclear when a trial of Mayorkas would take place and whether it would ultimately lead to his removal from office. The decision lies with Senate Democrats, who control the majority and have the power to either proceed with the trial or dismiss it. McConnell’s preference for a trial suggests that he believes Mayorkas should face impeachment charges, while Schumer’s dismissal of the impeachment push indicates that he does not see merit in the case. The outcome will depend on the arguments presented during a potential trial and the votes of the senators who ultimately decide Mayorkas’s fate.
The impeachment of a Cabinet official is a rare occurrence in American politics, with the last instance dating back to the 19th century. Mayorkas’s case raises questions about the accountability of government officials and the role of Congress in overseeing their actions. If a trial does take place, it will be a significant moment in the ongoing debate over immigration policy and border security. The accusations against Mayorkas highlight the challenges facing the Department of Homeland Security and the need for transparency and integrity in addressing these issues. The outcome of the impeachment trial will have implications for the Biden administration’s immigration policies and its handling of the border crisis.
