Garbarino Votes To Hold DHS Secretary Mayorkas Accountable For The Border Crisis

WASHINGTON, D.C. - Tonight, Congressman Andrew R. Garbarino (R-NY-02) voted to pass H. Res. 863, Impeaching Alejandro Nicholas Mayorkas, Secretary of Homeland Security, for high crimes and misdemeanors. Following the passage of this Resolution, Rep. Garbarino released a statement: 

“Following an extensive and months-long investigation by the Homeland Security Committee into Secretary Mayorkas’ handling of the border crisis, and having exhausted all other means of holding the Secretary accountable, the House has fulfilled its constitutional oversight responsibility by voting to impeach.

“From Texas to New York, every state in the nation has felt the impact of Secretary Mayorkas’ dereliction of duty. The border crisis has cost American lives and poses an immense threat to our national security, public safety, and public health. It is no victory to have a person in a place of public trust proven to have failed so completely at their designated mission, but nevertheless, that is where we find ourselves. I voted for this measure on behalf of my constituents and all Americans who have suffered as a result of the Secretary’s failures, and it is for them that I have accepted the solemn duty of serving as an impeachment manager to the Senate.

“The information and the witness testimony gathered throughout this process made it clear that Secretary Mayorkas has both willfully and systemically refused to comply with existing law and breached the public trust by failing to faithfully discharge his duties in violation of his oath of office. These Articles are backed by specific statutory offenses in violation of the Immigration and Nationality Act, as well as numerous instances of making false statements to Congress and obstruction of the Homeland Security Committee’s vital oversight role. History tells us that the constitutional basis for impeachment of ‘high crimes and misdemeanors’ was not meant to encompass only indictable crimes, but also the broader concepts of abuse of power and injury to the nation. By this standard, there is ample evidence to warrant Secretary Mayorkas’s impeachment and I urge the Senate to consider these facts as they take up this matter.”

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