House may vote on impeaching Mayorkas without a motion to table: source
Fox is told by a senior House Republican leadership source the vote could take place Tuesday
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}A senior House Republican leadership source says the House will likely hold a vote Tuesday on impeaching Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas.
Fox is told to expect a straight up or down vote on a privileged resolution to impeach Mayorkas, which Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., introduced Thursday morning.
The source suggested it would be unlikely a motion to table or set the measure aside is introduced. Such a vote could serve as a fig leaf to protect members who make a lot of noise about impeaching Mayorkas but may be unwilling to vote on the record.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro Mayorkas testified during a hearing with the Senate Homeland Security Committee in the Dirksen Senate Office Building April 18, 2023, in Washington, D.C. (Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)
If that’s the case, Mayorkas could be impeached without a hearing or a committee markup.
That would automatically trigger a process that would compel the House to send articles of impeachment for Mayorkas and impeachment managers to the Senate.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}That does not necessarily mean there would be a Senate trial. But the Democrat-controlled Senate would have to receive the articles of impeachment from the House.
U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas testified during a Senate Homeland Security and Government Affairs Committee hearing on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C., Oct. 31, 2023. (Mandel Ngan/AFP via Getty Images)
Such a turn of events could be extraordinary considering how many Republicans spoke about "process." Former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., prevented an effort this spring by Rep. Lauren Boebert, R-Colo., to impeach President Biden. The House extinguished the effort by dispatching the Boebert impeachment gambit of the president to committee.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}McCarthy often spoke about handling impeachments "by the book." That involves depositions, hearings and a markup on the articles of impeachment themselves. None of that has happened with Mayorkas.
HOUSE HOMELAND SECURITY GOP REPORT ACCUSES MAYORKAS OF CEDING BORDER CONTROL TO CARTELS
A senior House Republican leadership source says the House could vote Tuesday on the possible impeachment of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas. (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)
Notably, the House voted to table an effort last week to expel Rep. George Santos, R-N.Y., largely because he had not received "due process." The House Ethics Committee had not finished a report on Santos nor held a public hearing. A report on Santos is due by Nov. 17.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}But many lawmakers from both sides opposed expelling Santos out of concern for due process.
House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., spoke out on Fox about potentially expelling Santos because of "due process."
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{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Fox is told the resolution to impeach Secretary Mayorkas is authored by Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga. (Getty)
But now it’s possible the House could impeach Mayorkas without the usual parliamentary mechanics that come with that special congressional power.
That said, it’s possible the House could reject an effort to impeach Mayorkas. That could be an embarrassment for hardline Republicans who have talked about impeaching Mayorkas for months — yet possibly stumbled when an actual impeachment resolution went to the floor.