GOP Defeated: Homeland Security Secretary Impeachment Fails by One Vote

Rejected with one vote… 4 AWOL votes from Republican
The vote on the impeachment was held to make an immigrant polity into an issue
Republic opposed the budget that both Senates agreed
Separate budget for Israel is also rejected, egg on Republican’s face

The Republican Party in the United States recently pushed for the impeachment of Alejandro Mayorkas, Secretary of Homeland Security, blaming him for the increase in illegal immigration at the Mexico border. However, the impeachment was rejected in the House vote. Previously, the immigration issue has been turning into political strife ahead of the presidential election, such as the border security enhancement plan prepared by both the Democratic and Republican parties in the Senate failed to pass in the House due to former President Donald Trump’s opposition.

Foreign press, including The Washington Post (WP), reported unanimously that the House of Representatives held a plenary session on the 6th (local time) and voted on the impeachment of Secretary Mayorkas. It was rejected with 214 votes in favor and 216 votes against. Although the Republican Party, which has a majority in the House, was expected to pass the impeachment, it failed to secure a majority as all 212 Democratic members and some Republicans voted against it. Four Republican House members, including Mike Gallagher, Ken Buck, Tom McClintock, and Blake D. Moore, voted against the impeachment.

The Republicans proposed an impeachment bill against Secretary Mayorkas on the 28th of last month, accusing him of failing border management between the U.S. and Mexico. They claimed that Secretary Mayorkas deliberately and systematically refused to comply with immigration-related laws and committed serious and minor crimes violating public trust. However, Representative McClintock said, “We failed to identify any impeachable crimes committed by Secretary Mayorkas,” and “The Constitution did not intend to use impeachment as a weapon in ‘political disputes,'” and cast his vote against it.

The biggest blow was to Mike Johnson, the Speaker of the House, who led the impeachment. Speaker Johnson is considered a close ally of former President Donald Trump, a strong presidential candidate for the Republicans. He said, “We will soon re-propose the Mayorkas impeachment,” but the blow is inevitable. The New York Times (NYT) called it a “miserable day for Speaker Johnson, who has just celebrated his 100th day in office” and pointed out that “the vulnerability of the Republicans, who hold the majority by only a difference of seven seats, has been exposed.”

The issue of U.S. immigration policy is a sharp issue in the political world ahead of the presidential election in November this year. The number of illegal immigrants arrested by the U.S. Border Patrol in the U.S.-Mexico border area during the 2023 fiscal year has reached 2 million. The immigration policy of the Biden administration has been caught in a whirlwind of political strife as former President Trump intensively attacked it to consolidate his support base. Democratic and Republican senators in the United States proposed a budget of $118.3 billion to strengthen border security and support allies such as Ukraine and Israel. Still, it is unclear whether it will pass the House as the Republicans are against it. The package includes a plan to automatically close the border if the number of illegal immigrants exceeds 5,000 a day, and the president can declare the closure of the border by authority if it exceeds 4,000. President Biden said in an emergency speech on the day, “A security budget agreement has been reached at the end of the Senate’s efforts, but it is difficult to process. It’s because of Trump. Trump sees this as not politically helpful to him,” he criticized.

Meanwhile, House Republicans also proposed a separate budget for additional aid to Israel, but it was also dismissed. House Republican leadership, including Speaker Johnson, sought to pass a $17.6 billion budget for Israel, including military support and support for U.S. troops in the region. Speaker Johnson intended to fast-track this budget, requiring more than two-thirds approval, but it failed to meet the quorum with 250 votes in favor and 180 votes against. Representative Lois Frankel, who voted for the opposition, expressed concerns that the division in Congress could embolden Israel’s enemies and endanger our military.