The impeachment of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas is likely to die a quick death in the Senate after the House succeeded in its second attempt to rebuke the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) chief Tuesday night.
Faced with a potential third impeachment trial in five years, the Senate is likely to avoid the matter entirely. Senators expect Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) to move to either dismiss the two articles against Mayorkas or to refer them to the committee level, effectively killing the process.
The Senate returns to work on Feb. 26 and will immediately be faced with having to fund part of the government by the end of that week. Schumer is likely to focus on that issue and not Mayorkas.
“Whether they move quickly to dismiss or bury in committee, I’m not sure. I see no need for the Senate at this point and time, given the fact that we need to, among other things, fund the government, spend any time on this — and there will be plenty of Republicans who agree,” said Jim Manley, a former top aide to former Senate Democratic Leader Harry Reid (Nev.).
A dismissal could be slightly trickier, however, as it would force Democrats in tough Senate races to vote to get rid of the charges against Mayorkas without a trial. Sending the matter to committee would allow Democrats in competitive races to point to the need for more investigation.
One factor helping Schumer is that he is likely to have the votes no matter what route he takes. Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) told reporters last week that he is supportive of moving to dismiss the effort, saying that he “just want[s] to get rid of it as quick as possible.”
A vote to dismiss the charges requires only a simple majority, as the filibuster is not in play on impeachment matters.
It’s also far from clear that GOP senators want to deal with an impeachment trial, as a number of Republicans have been dismissive of the House effort.
“I don’t know that there’s anyone gunning to make this a thing,” one Senate Democratic aide said, referring to Republicans. “Whatever is the least dramatic and fastest way to get rid of this is what we’ll likely end up doing.”
A Senate Republican who spoke to The Hill was dismissive of the impeachment effort.
“Most people are like, ‘Why? You’re batting .500,’” the Senate Republican said, referring to the failed initial vote to impeach the DHS secretary. “Most people think: ‘Why don’t you focus on the politics of the border crisis and everyday images down there rather than stuff on the Senate floor.’ … It’s a misplaced emphasis.”
While Schumer has not said how he will proceed, he was highly critical of the impeachment vote.
“This sham impeachment effort is another embarrassment for House Republicans,” Schumer said in a statement. “House Republicans failed to produce any evidence that Secretary Mayorkas has committed any crime. House Republicans failed to show he has violated the Constitution. House Republicans failed to present any evidence of anything resembling an impeachable offense.”
Schumer’s office announced that impeachment managers will officially present the pair of articles once the upper chamber returns later this month, with senators set to be sworn in as jurors a day later.
The rocky road to securing a vote in the House was a reflection of both the slim GOP majority and the Republican opposition to the bill.
A trio of House Republicans sided with Democrats to kill the bill, expressing concerns their colleagues were abusing impeachment power after failing to meet the standards of high crimes and misdemeanors laid out in the Constitution.
House Republicans’ novel case for impeachment accused Mayorkas of violating immigration laws and “breach of public trust.”
According to the articles, Mayorkas is alleged to have violated immigration laws by failing to detain all migrants — something no administration has ever done. Immigration law experts who have weighed the claim determined Mayorkas did not violate any laws and is making the same tough choices past administrations have grappled with about whom they have the resources to detain.
The articles also accuse him of “breach of public trust,” which includes misleading claims about Mayorkas’s interactions with Congress and his response to subpoenas from the House Homeland Security Committee. It also says he “failed to take action to fulfill his statutory duty to control the border.”
“House Republicans will be remembered by history for trampling on the Constitution for political gain rather than working to solve the serious challenges at our border,” DHS spokesperson Mia Ehrenberg said in a statement after the vote.
“Without a shred of evidence or legitimate Constitutional grounds, and despite bipartisan opposition, House Republicans have falsely smeared a dedicated public servant.”