Vote Explainer: Impeaching DHS Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas

Transparency is vital to democracy. Below please find explainers for key votes I took in the 118th Congress.

H.Res. 863 - Impeaching Alejandro Nicholas Mayorkas, Secretary of Homeland Security, for high crimes and misdemeanors, as amended

This week, I voted against the impeachment of Department of Homeland Security secretary Alejandro Mayorkas. 

Congress does not, and should not, impeach on the basis of policy. The Constitution clearly reserves impeachment for “Treason, Bribery, or other high Crimes and Misdemeanors.” Republicans have produced zero evidence that Secretary Mayorkas is guilty of any of these things.

Our immigration system is broken and our border is not secure because–for decades–Congressional Republicans have rejected every bipartisan border deal so that they can make the border a political football. It’s happened repeatedly (in 2006, 2013, 2018, to name a few), but Donald Trump finally said it outloud when he told Republicans to cancel the deal they had just themselves negotiated to secure the border. Let’s not forget that when Republicans controlled the White House, the Senate, and the House under Trump, they didn’t pass one ounce of immigration reform. For House Republicans to then turn around and try to make one cabinet secretary the scapegoat for their failure is cynical at best.

It’s also dangerous. 

Congress has only ever impeached one cabinet secretary, and that was in 1876 for corruption accusations in connection to military trading posts. That is why multiple conservative legal scholars have told Republicans not to do this.

 I understand political games, but political games that undermine our democratic institutions are dangerous well beyond one election cycle.