Republican dissidents upset two crucial floor votes on Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas' impeachment and a billion-dollar Israel assistance measure Tuesday evening, hurting House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA).
In what GOP leadership thought would be a definite thing, Mayorkas barely avoided two House indictments. One Republican voted against the provisions as a procedural step to bring the package back soon.
After voting, House Homeland Security Chairman Mark Green (R-TN) and Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA) informed the Washington Examiner that they anticipate leadership to vote on the resolution again next week.
Lawmakers rejected Mayorkas' impeachment articles 214-216. Despite the narrow majority, leadership expressed confident the impeachment would succeed. Two Republicans had defied before the vote. However, Rep. Al Green (D-TX)'s wheelchair following surgery threw the calculations off.
Johnson spoke with Republican lawmakers on the floor to win back one of the three GOP no's. With all Democrats, Reps. Mike Gallagher (R-WI), Tom McClintock (R-CA), and Ken Buck (R-CO) opposed the impeachment articles.
Green's last-minute arrival helped Democrats defeat the impeachment motion because Majority Leader Steve Scalise (R-LA) was sick.
Rep. Blake Moore (R-UT) became the fourth GOP no by voting against impeaching Mayorkas so the GOP could procedurally bring up the articles again.
Rep. Anna Paulina Luna (R-FL) claimed Republicans will tackle the subject “next week,” and Johnson's office stated Republicans will bring it back when they “have the numbers for passage.”
Republicans may be able to narrowly impeach Scalise this month after his cancer treatment.
Greene also said the conference looks "forward to seeing [Scalise] come back" and might bring the Mayorkas pieces back next week. We anticipate a yes from him.”
Rep. Tony Gonzales (R-TX), whose district borders the southern border for 800 miles, supported the GOP's second vote.
“I will not stop until Secretary Mayorkas is FIREED. House Republicans will hold the government responsible regardless of vote count! Gonzales wrote to X after the vote.
The Department of Homeland Security chastised House Republicans for failing to vote on Tuesday and promising to impeach Mayorkas.
“This false impeachment should never have proceeded further; it faces bipartisan opposition and legal experts resoundingly agree it is unconstitutional,” said DHS spokesperson Mia Ehrenberg. “If House Republicans care about border security, they should stop playing politics and embrace the Senate's bipartisan national security accord to provide DHS enforcement funding. Secretary Mayorkas works across the aisle to push genuine border solutions and keep our nation safe.”
Over the weekend, Johnson introduced a $17.6 billion stand-alone assistance plan to help Israel fight Hamas, which failed. Johnson's measure followed rumors about the Senate's bipartisan border compromise, which House GOP leadership has subsequently deemed dead.
After President Joe Biden threatened a veto, 14 Republicans and 166 Democrats opposed the Israel aid, which needed two-thirds of the House to pass.
Johnson accused Biden and Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) for the assistance measure's collapse after Democrats rallied earlier in the day to oppose Johnson's plan since it was not part of the Senate's larger package that contained Ukraine cash.
“After nearly four months of waiting for the Senate to act, House Republicans, working in good faith, placed a clean, stand-alone bill on the floor, a major concession we were willing to make given the gravity of the situation, to address Democrats' stated concerns with the prior aid package,” Johnson President Biden and Leader Schumer's decision to kill this measure to help Israel battle Hamas is a terrible disrespect to our closest Middle East partner in their time of need.”
Rep. Bennie Thompson (D-MS), the leading Democrat on the House Homeland Security Committee, warned Republicans who want to impeach Mayorkas. “This bogus impeachment vote failed because it was unconstitutional. It failed because the secretary committed no ‘high crime or misdemeanor.’ Impeachment failed because it would not protect the border, Thompson argued. If Republicans keep going this way, history will judge them poorly. This farce must end.”
In what GOP leadership thought would be a definite thing, Mayorkas barely avoided two House indictments. One Republican voted against the provisions as a procedural step to bring the package back soon.
After voting, House Homeland Security Chairman Mark Green (R-TN) and Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA) informed the Washington Examiner that they anticipate leadership to vote on the resolution again next week.
Lawmakers rejected Mayorkas' impeachment articles 214-216. Despite the narrow majority, leadership expressed confident the impeachment would succeed. Two Republicans had defied before the vote. However, Rep. Al Green (D-TX)'s wheelchair following surgery threw the calculations off.
Johnson spoke with Republican lawmakers on the floor to win back one of the three GOP no's. With all Democrats, Reps. Mike Gallagher (R-WI), Tom McClintock (R-CA), and Ken Buck (R-CO) opposed the impeachment articles.
Green's last-minute arrival helped Democrats defeat the impeachment motion because Majority Leader Steve Scalise (R-LA) was sick.
Rep. Blake Moore (R-UT) became the fourth GOP no by voting against impeaching Mayorkas so the GOP could procedurally bring up the articles again.
Rep. Anna Paulina Luna (R-FL) claimed Republicans will tackle the subject “next week,” and Johnson's office stated Republicans will bring it back when they “have the numbers for passage.”
Republicans may be able to narrowly impeach Scalise this month after his cancer treatment.
Greene also said the conference looks "forward to seeing [Scalise] come back" and might bring the Mayorkas pieces back next week. We anticipate a yes from him.”
Rep. Tony Gonzales (R-TX), whose district borders the southern border for 800 miles, supported the GOP's second vote.
“I will not stop until Secretary Mayorkas is FIREED. House Republicans will hold the government responsible regardless of vote count! Gonzales wrote to X after the vote.
The Department of Homeland Security chastised House Republicans for failing to vote on Tuesday and promising to impeach Mayorkas.
“This false impeachment should never have proceeded further; it faces bipartisan opposition and legal experts resoundingly agree it is unconstitutional,” said DHS spokesperson Mia Ehrenberg. “If House Republicans care about border security, they should stop playing politics and embrace the Senate's bipartisan national security accord to provide DHS enforcement funding. Secretary Mayorkas works across the aisle to push genuine border solutions and keep our nation safe.”
Over the weekend, Johnson introduced a $17.6 billion stand-alone assistance plan to help Israel fight Hamas, which failed. Johnson's measure followed rumors about the Senate's bipartisan border compromise, which House GOP leadership has subsequently deemed dead.
After President Joe Biden threatened a veto, 14 Republicans and 166 Democrats opposed the Israel aid, which needed two-thirds of the House to pass.
Johnson accused Biden and Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) for the assistance measure's collapse after Democrats rallied earlier in the day to oppose Johnson's plan since it was not part of the Senate's larger package that contained Ukraine cash.
“After nearly four months of waiting for the Senate to act, House Republicans, working in good faith, placed a clean, stand-alone bill on the floor, a major concession we were willing to make given the gravity of the situation, to address Democrats' stated concerns with the prior aid package,” Johnson President Biden and Leader Schumer's decision to kill this measure to help Israel battle Hamas is a terrible disrespect to our closest Middle East partner in their time of need.”
Rep. Bennie Thompson (D-MS), the leading Democrat on the House Homeland Security Committee, warned Republicans who want to impeach Mayorkas. “This bogus impeachment vote failed because it was unconstitutional. It failed because the secretary committed no ‘high crime or misdemeanor.’ Impeachment failed because it would not protect the border, Thompson argued. If Republicans keep going this way, history will judge them poorly. This farce must end.”
