Members of the House of Representatives on Tuesday afternoon walked the chamber’s articles of impeachment against Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas to the Senate.
Senate receives articles of impeachment:
Update 2:40 p.m. ET, April 16: The Senate received the impeachment articles from the House of Representatives at about 2:40 p.m. ET. The impeachment alleges that Mayorkas “willfully and systematically” refused to enforce the country’s immigration laws, The Associated Press reported.
Historic moment: The House has transmitted the articles of impeachment against Secretary Mayorkas to the Senate, the first impeachment of a sitting Cabinet official. pic.twitter.com/z0mzXRe0Kh
— House Homeland GOP (@HomelandGOP) April 16, 2024
The Senate is required under the rules of impeachment to take up the matter now that they have received the charges, but CNN reported that the Democratic-controlled Senate will probably dismiss the charges without a trial, or hold a quick session that doesn’t convict the secretary.
— Natalie Dreier, Cox Media Group National Content Desk
Original report: According to Johnson’s office, the impeachment managers will escort a pair of articles from the House chamber, across the Rotunda and onto the Senate floor sometime after 2 p.m. EDT.
The Senate will receive the articles, and all 100 senators will be sworn in as jurors in the trial on Wednesday afternoon.
It is unclear exactly how long the trial will last.
The House narrowly voted in February to impeach Mayorkas for his handling of the border.
House Republicans charged in two articles of impeachment that Mayorkas has not only refused to enforce existing law but also breached the public trust by lying to Congress and saying the border was secure.
The articles of impeachment were to be sent to the Senate last week, but the House delayed the move.
In a letter sent Thursday to Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., Johnson and House impeachment managers said they planned to present the impeachment articles to the Senate on April 10, after Congress returned from a two-week break.
The Senate is facing a deadline on Friday to pass a bill that expands a Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) tool, and votes on aid to Israel and Ukraine could be coming in the next two days, as well.
Legislative and executive business can be done on the same calendar days that the Senate meets for a trial, but it must meet in legislative or executive session to do so, according to Senate rules.
When the Senate is sitting as a Court of Impeachment, legislative and executive business cannot be conducted.
It’s expected that Senate Democrats, who control the chamber, will band together and vote to dismiss or table the issue, according to NBC News.
Democrats and some Republicans in the Senate have shown little interest in impeaching Mayorkas, The Associated Press reported.
“Impeachment should never be used to settle a policy disagreement; that would set a horrible precedent for the Congress,” Schumer said in a floor speech Monday.
“Nevertheless, the Senate’s plan has not changed since last week. We are ready to go whenever the House sends us the articles. We want to address this issue as expeditiously as possible.”
© 2024 Cox Media Group
