Republican Representative Pat Fallon filed articles of impeachment in the House against Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas. He is accusing the official of failing to "maintain operational control" over illegal immigration at the U.S. border.
Fallon mentioned the secretary's intent to eliminate Title 42, end the Migrant Protection Protocols, and terminate contracts to build an additional border wall. In addition, it says Mayorkas "knowingly provided perjurious, false and misleading testimony to Congress" and "knowingly slandered his own Border Patrol agents and misled the general public." According to a statement from Fallon's office:
Secretary Mayorkas has violated the law and implemented policies that undermine law enforcement activities at our southern border (...) His deliberate actions erode our immigration system, undermine border patrol morale, and jeopardize U.S. national security. He should be dismissed.
First step toward impeachment
The resolution was expected among GOP representatives in the House. However, it will not move forward without further action from party leaders, who have yet to comment on whether they will do anything about it.
However, introducing articles of impeachment is the first important step in what could be a lengthy process, which would include an investigation by the House Judiciary Committee. This does not mean that Mayorkas will eventually be indicted. If so, he would be tried by the Senate.
The articles of impeachment were originally filed on January 3 but they were delayed due to the protracted vote to appoint the Speaker of the House. Kevin McCarthy, who was elected, asked Mayorkas to resign last November 2022 and threatened to expose him to an impeachment investigation.
The Republican said the incoming majority in the House would open investigations that could lead to impeachment. At that time, he called for Mayorkas' resignation by January 3 or investigations would begin the following day:
If Secretary Mayorkas does not resign, House Republicans will investigate every order, every action, and every failure to determine if we can initiate an impeachment investigation (...) Enough is enough.
DHS Response
In a statement sent to ABCNews, DHS spokeswoman Marsha Espinosa said, "Secretary Mayorkas is proud to promote the noble mission of this Department, support its extraordinary workforce and serve the American people."
The Department will continue our work to enforce our laws and secure our border while building a secure, orderly, and humane immigration system (...) Members of Congress can do better than point fingers at someone else; they should sit down at the table and work on solutions to our broken system and outdated laws, which they have not updated in over 40 years.
An anonymous DHS official reiterated that the secretary has no plans to resign and that he believes the articles of impeachment have no factual basis. Mayorkas has repeatedly defended his handling of the border: "I have a lot of work to do." (...) "I am proud to do it alongside 250,000 incredibly dedicated and talented people at the Department of Homeland Security, and I will continue to do my job."
