Senate Ducks Its Constitutional Duty, Rejects Articles of Impeachment against Mayorkas

FAIR Take | April 2024

Wednesday afternoon, Senate Democrats bypassed two centuries of precedent to dismiss the articles of impeachment against Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Mayorkas. Senate Republicans attempted to delay the inevitable take down– offering several motions to push for a full trial – but to no avail. Senate Democrats invoked multiple points of order to declare the articles of impeachment, duly approved by the House, were unconstitutional. And with that, they ended the months-long effort to remove Secretary Mayorkas with a party-line vote of 51-49.

The political wrangling began as soon as the Senators were sworn in as jurors. Majority Leader Schumer introduced a point of order calling for the dismissal of the first article of impeachment, arguing that it did not meet the standard for high crimes and misdemeanors. Article I details seven specific provisions of the Immigration and Nationality Act that Mayorkas has violated, leading to the worst border crisis in history. Senator Cruz assailed the move, asserting that Senator Schumer was “asking members of this Senate to vote on political expediency to avoid listening to arguments.” “The only rational way to resolve this question,” he argued, “is actually to debate it, to consider the Constitution and consider the law.” Despite these objections, Schumer’s point of order was ultimately approved along party lines 51-48, with Senator Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) voting present.

After the first article was dismissed, Schumer asserted that the second article also did not meet the standard for high crimes and misdemeanors. Senator Mike Lee (R-Utah) objected, arguing that knowingly lying to Congress, as detailed in Article II of the impeachment articles, is a federal crime and clearly constitutes a removable offense. Senator John Kennedy expressed the same frustration, stating that, “Even though lying to the United States Congress is a felony, under the precedent that the majority leader and our Democratic colleagues established, it’s not a high crime or misdemeanor… What do you have to do to get impeached now? I mean, [according to Democrats] a felony is not sufficient. What’s above a felony?” Despite the pushback, Senate Democrats defeated the second article of impeachment by a vote of 51-49.

House members who led the months-long effort to impeach Secretary Mayorkas decried the Senate’s willingness to summarily dismiss the articles of impeachment. They accused Majority Leader Schumer of simply trying to avoid a trial with primetime coverage, which would include days of laying out evidence that focused on Mayorkas’ abuse of power and dereliction of duty.

Senate Republicans also expressed outrage at the move. Senator Ted Cruz (R-Texas) wrote, “Every Democrat just voted against holding Alejandro Mayorkas’s impeachment trial… They have thrown out both articles of impeachment—they truly do not care about the Constitution, rule of law, or the safety and security of American citizens.” Building on those remarks, Senator Eric Schmitt (R-Mo.) issued a press release arguing that, “Mayorkas is responsible for the worst crisis at the Southern Border in American history, full stop. Senator Schumer and Senate Democrats diminished the institution of the Senate today and set ablaze the Constitution and long-standing precedent.”

Senate Democrats defended tossing Mayorkas’ impeachment trial, stating that the articles were politically motivated and without merit. Indeed, Senator Schumer went so far as to argue that throwing out the articles of impeachment was based on precedent. He posted on Twitter, “The Senate set a very important precedent that impeachment should be reserved only for high crimes and misdemeanors, and not for settling policy disagreements.” Senator Kyrsten Sinema (I-Ariz.) also defended the unprecedented action, noting that, “Under our Constitution, serious and honest policy disagreements do not meet the constitutional standard for impeachment—high crimes and misdemeanors. Attempting to change that standard is dangerous for our democracy… politicians in Washington continue to use the border crisis for their political gain.”

Majority Leader Schumer’s actions may have prevented a public hearing of the evidence that led to Mayorkas’ impeachment, but he cannot hide the impacts across the country of the record flood of illegal aliens under his watch, and the dangers it poses to public safety and national security. With Americans forced to contend daily with the devastating impacts of the border crisis, the Senate’s move to shield Mayorkas from being held accountable for more than three years of lawless disaster is an outright betrayal.