As the immigration crisis drags on at the southern border, officials with roles relating to immigration are increasingly on the defense against talk of impeachment from Republicans.
The House has been hinting at impeachment for Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas for months as the GOP says he has failed to get a grasp on the border amid record illegal immigration.
The sentiment stalled somewhat as debt ceiling talks have taken over DC’s focus.
But Senator Roger Marshall (R-KS) said the Senate must take charge as he pledged to introduce a vote of no confidence resolution against Mayorkas.
“I stand at the ready to receive articles of impeachment from the House and conduct an impeachment trial in this body,” Marshall said. “But in the meantime, I think the Senate must show our colleagues in the House that we’ve had enough of the failures from the Department of Homeland Security and believe that the Secretary is not fit to faithfully carry out the duties of his office.”
During his most recent appearance before the Senate Homeland Security Committee, various Republicans brought up a New York Times report about the Biden administration’s ignorance of how many unaccompanied minors are being trafficked into child labor.
“As the administration scrambled to clear shelters that were strained beyond capacity, children were released with little support to sponsors who expected them to take on grueling, dangerous jobs,” the Times reported.
Senator Josh Hawley (R-MO) accused Mayorkas of “pressuring officials and agencies to skip the vetting process and get these kids out as soon as possible to sponsors who weren’t vetted.”
Mayorkas said the lawmakers criticisms “disparagingly mischaracterizes our commitment to address trafficking and the exploitation of vulnerable individuals, including children.”
Democrat Senator Alex Padilla (CA) attempted to steer the blame away from Mayorkas, saying, “It is the employers breaking child labor laws. We should not misplace the blame here.”
