Rep. Mark Green: Mayorkas has 'abused his position to push a woke agenda'
Rep. Mark Green, R-Tenn., discusses the Republican push to impeach Homeland Security Secretary Mayorkas over his handling of border on ‘Your World.’
For three years, an unprecedented and wholly avoidable crisis has unfolded at our borders, a crisis that Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas has intentionally caused.
This is a crisis of epic proportions. Between Feb. 1, 2021-November 2023, Customs and Border Protection (CBP) has recorded more than 8.1 million encounters of inadmissible aliens at our borders nationwide, including more than 6.7 million at the Southwest border alone.
More than 1.8 million known gotaways have slipped by the Border Patrol, and are now at large in communities all across the United States. That’s roughly the population of West Virginia. Worse, CBP knows nothing about these individuals, including potential criminal histories or nefarious intentions.
These numbers are just the tip of the iceberg. Secretary Mayorkas has demonstrated through his words and actions that he has failed to uphold his oath of office and in his duty to secure the homeland.
There is no longer any question that articles of impeachment must be considered.
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The evidence for this is compelling. As laid out extensively in the House Committee on Homeland Security’s investigative reports published throughout 2023, the historic crisis can be traced back to Secretary Mayorkas’ refusal to uphold the laws passed by Congress, his willful termination of extraordinarily effective border security policies despite being warned of the consequences, and his injection of operationally unsound policies in their place that blatantly defy the laws passed by Congress. Further, he has actively misled Congress and the American people about the causes and consequences of the crisis on multiple occasions since taking office.
Three years in, there is simply no other conclusion to draw—this is intentional.
These reports also document how Secretary Mayorkas’ policies have provided criminal cartels the opportunity to seize control at the Southwest border and profit handsomely from expanded drug and human smuggling operations. His policies are the geese that lay golden eggs for the cartels and rotten ones for the American people. This has allowed crime and chaos to spread to every state in this country.
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The human cost of the crisis is incalculable. Fentanyl flowing across the Southwest border is killing Americans in record numbers. The men and women of CBP and Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) have been overwhelmed, telling anyone who will listen—including the DHS Inspector General—that morale has tanked, and this secretary’s policies are responsible. Even worse, the Secretary has publicly castigated our brave Border Patrol agents for "misconduct" that he knows never occurred. Record numbers of criminal aliens are being apprehended by the Border Patrol and presumably coming into our communities, as more bad actors seek to take advantage of these lax policies. Yet, at the same time, DHS arrests of criminal aliens have fallen dramatically. Meanwhile, migrants are suffering and dying in record numbers on the treacherous journey north—even on U.S. soil.
And we cannot forget the fiscal impacts. From Brownsville, Texas, to New York City, communities are being forced to shoulder considerable financial burdens in response to the record influx of illegal immigration and cut police and other essential services for Americans. One study even found that the annual costs of the border crisis on the secretary’s watch could exceed $451 billion.
In November, 201 Democrats in the House voted to refer articles of impeachment to my Committee, and we intend to act on that mandate. Unlike recent impeachment proceedings, however, this Committee will provide the American people an unvarnished and holistic look at why the secretary must be held accountable.
These proceedings will not just be an examination of the chaos and devastation wrought by the historic crisis at our borders, but a deeper probe into the decisions and actions that brought us here, and the dishonesty displayed by Secretary Mayorkas. This is serious, and it will not be a partisan spectacle—despite what many on the other side of the aisle have turned the solemn process of impeachment into in recent memory.
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No, the American people will see us maintain our impeachment authority as our Founders intended—with gravity, sobriety, and an unflinching determination to ensure that those we represent understand that Secretary Mayorkas has failed to fulfill his oath of office, abused his power, and been dishonest with Congress and the American people.
Holding Secretary Mayorkas accountable for his reckless decision-making and blatant dishonesty is vital. It will be another crucial step in undoing the damage done by the last three years of his morally reprehensible policies that disregard the laws of Congress. However, there is more at stake.
U.S. Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas holds a press conference at a U.S. Border Patrol station on January 08, 2024 in Eagle Pass, Texas. (John Moore/Getty Images)
The Supreme Court told the states last year that the only recourse available to them in light of the consequences of the secretary’s mandates is for Congress to utilize its political powers, the foremost among them being impeachment.
In a constitutional republic built upon the separation of powers, Congress must demonstrate that it will defend that separation of power, and ensure the other two branches abide by the laws passed by Congress. If we fail to hold the line, our republic faces perhaps its most existential threat.
Secretary Mayorkas has run roughshod over the rule of law and doubled down when confronted with the failure of his policies, the questionable legality of his actions, and the duplicity of his words.
That is why this Committee will not be deterred from initiating impeachment proceedings against him.