WATCH: MSNBC Grills Mayorkas About Record Number of Migrants Entering US Last Month, DHS Sec Responds By Blaming Climate Change

Alejandro Mayorkas surprisingly blamed the record number of migrants flooding into the United States in December on climate change and other factors from “across the globe.”

The Department of Homeland Security Secretary addressed the fact that more than 300,000 migrants were processed at the southern border in December, when questioned by Willie Geist and panelists on MSNBC’s Morning Joe Wednesday.

“As you know, Mr. Secretary, border patrol in the month of December processed more migrants entering the United States illegally than any month in the history of that agency. Why is that happening? How do you explain it?” Geist asked.

“So, we are seeing the greatest number of displaced people, not only at our southern border, not only in the western hemisphere, but across the globe,” Mayorkas said. He continued:

I am involved in bilateral and multi-lateral meetings with my counterparts from foreign countries in Europe, in Asia, in the Indo-Pacific — all over the world. And migration, the challenge of displaced people, is a subject that comes up in every single conversation. We have the effects of climate change, poverty, increasing level of authoritarianism. The very many challenges that are at the root cause of the displacement of people around the world.

Panelist Mike Barnacle then asked about Mexico’s role in the border crisis.

“Mr. Secretary, the thousands of human beings who arrive at the border of the United States, they don’t get there by Uber. They come through Mexico, all of them. Why can’t Mexico do more to be of assistance?” Barnacle asked.

“They have a migration challenge themselves, as does Colombia, as does Ecuador, as does Costa Rica, as does Panama, as does Guatemala,” Mayorkas said. “This is a regional problem that is challenging our entire hemisphere, and as I referenced earlier, so many countries around the world. But we spoke with Mexico last week about what we think they can do to assist us in enforcing their borders, so that we do not see the level of migration, irregular migration, at our border. And in fact, we’ve started to see the results of their increased cooperation and our increased collaboration on the enforcement measures.”

House Republicans are expected to file articles of impeachment against Mayorkas Wednesday. They blame his “failed border policies” for causing the migrant crisis.

Watch the clip above via MSNBC.