Alejandro Mayorkas Impeached

Aaron M. Sprecher via AP

The House of Representatives voted to impeach Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro Mayorkas on Tuesday night, exactly one week after Republicans came up short in their first attempt to impeach him.

The impeachment resolution, which required a simple majority to pass, was adopted by a 214-213 vote.

Last week, Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) was caught off guard when Rep. Al Green (D-TX), who was not expected to vote because of a medical issue, showed up and voted “no.”

Republicans have blamed Mayorkas and President Joe Biden for the surge in illegal border crossings at the U.S. border with Mexico. Last week, congressional Republicans thwarted a bipartisan border and immigration bill hammered out by Sen. James Lankford (R-OK). After initially showing openness to the legislation, some Senate Republicans opposed the measure after Republican frontrunner and former President Donald Trump urged them not to support any immigration deal unless it is “perfect.” Trump is looking to use immigration as a cudgel against Biden on the campaign trail.

Republican leadership in the House said that even if the bill passed the Senate, it would be “dead on arrival” in the lower chamber. The threat was moot, as the legislation failed to clear a procedural hurdle in the Senate when Republicans blocked it.

As they did in last week’s vote, Reps. Ken Buck (R-CO), Mike Gallagher (R-WI), and Tom McClintock (R-CA) were the only Republicans to vote against the measure. No Democrats joined the Republican majority.

Mayorkas is now just the second cabinet member in U.S. history to be impeached. The other was Secretary of War William Belknap in 1876.