Sen. Roger Marshall (R., Ks.) will force a vote of no confidence in embattled Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas Tuesday evening, the Washington Free Beacon has learned.
Marshall will invoke "unanimous consent," which gives individual senators the power to force votes on certain bills, to bring to the floor his resolution of no confidence in Mayorkas. The bill, which Marshall introduced last year, says "Mayorkas … in violation of his constitutional oath, has engaged in a pattern of conduct that is incompatible with his constitution and statutory duties as Secretary of Homeland Security."
A declaration of no confidence from the Senate would weaken Mayorkas as he braces for impeachment proceedings over his handling of the border crisis. America’s southern border last year saw the highest number of illegal crossings in more than two decades. Law enforcement encountered more than 225,000 aliens along the U.S.-Mexico border last month alone.
The House of Representatives will hold its first impeachment hearing on Wednesday. If the effort succeeds, Mayorkas would be the first cabinet secretary impeached in over 150 years.
"As [President Joe Biden] actively tries to erase our borders and undermine our sovereignty, millions of special interest aliens, Chinese nationalists, suspected terrorists, and ‘gotaways’ continue to pour into our homeland, threatening our democracy," Marshall told the Free Beacon. "Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas is complicit in undermining our law and order, refusing to do his most basic job—protecting the homeland."
Marshall has emerged as a leading critic of the Biden administration’s handling of immigration. He has visited the border four times during his time in the Senate, and has introduced several bills to reform the nation’s immigration system.
The resolution is not expected to pass. But "no" votes could pose political problems for vulnerable Democrats, as Americans increasingly sour on the Biden administration’s handling of the border crisis.
White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre has called Republican opposition to Mayorkas a "political stunt," and has repeatedly defended Mayorkas as the southern border deteriorates.