Senate to swear in jurors for brief and intense Mayorkas impeachment trial
The Senate will swear in jurors for a potentially intense yet brief impeachment trial involving Homeland Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas. House managers may face limitations in presenting their case. Senators anticipate a motion to table or dismiss the articles of impeachment, potentially sparking controversy. The trial, seen as a political move, aims to be structured despite objections from some conservatives.
Washington will enter into uncharted waters on Wednesday afternoon when senators are sworn in for what is expected to be a confrontational but brief impeachment trial for Homeland Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas.
By all indications, House managers will not be allowed to prosecute their case against Mayorkas, who is accused of willfully ignoring federal immigration law in his capacity as President Joe Biden’s border chief. There likely will not be a vote on guilt or innocence, either.
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) is expected to make a motion to table or dismiss the articles of impeachment, infuriating a band of conservatives who have vowed to draw out the proceedings as long as they can.
The Senate has never skipped a trial for a sitting Cabinet official, but Democrats view the impeachment as a political spectacle meant to damage the president in an election year. They plan to allow a number of objections on the Senate floor on Wednesday but will eventually move to cut them off.
Democratic leadership had spent days negotiating a compromise that, while short of a trial, would give structure to Wednesday. Republicans were offered space to raise points of order and request procedural votes. A short amount of debate was also on the table.
But conservatives including Sen. Eric Schmitt (R-MO) objected to the offer, circulated to Senate offices on Tuesday evening, on the grounds it would make Republicans “complicit” in Schumer breaking Senate norms.
“I will not aid Senator Schumer in lighting the match to set hundreds of years of precedent, the Senate, and our very Constitution ablaze,” he said in a statement.
The proceedings, as of Tuesday, had the trappings of a trial. House managers walked the articles over the Senate, reading aloud the charges against Mayorkas from the floor of the chamber.
On Wednesday, Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-IA) will administer the oath to Sen. Patty Murray (D-WA), who as president pro tempore will oversee the proceedings. She, in turn, will swear in all 100 senators.
But absent will be the one man at the center of the impeachment: Mayorkas. He traveled to New York City on Wednesday morning to announce a public awareness campaign on child exploitation and abuse.
“The Senate is going to do what the Senate considers to be appropriate as it proceeds,” he said of the trial, adding that his department is “focused on our mission.”
“Our mission is an imperative to keep everyone safe and secure,” he added.
Under Senate rules, Schumer must issue a summons to Mayorkas that requests his written response to the charges. But he may choose to ignore the directive as he weighs a quick dismissal motion.
The lack of summons is just one point of order Republicans hope to raise. Sen. John Cornyn (R-TX), who is running to be the next GOP leader, plans to highlight the growing number of persons crossing the border on the terror watch list.
But Murray ultimately controls the floor and could declare Republicans “dilatory” and refuse to recognize them. The proceedings are not expected to last longer than a day.
It takes a simple majority to cut the trial short, meaning all 51 Democrats would need to band together to table or dismiss. But even if Schumer faces defections – Sen. Jon Tester (D-MT) has been noncommittal – a number of centrist Republicans have signaled impatience with the charges.
Sen. Mitt Romney (R-UT) does not believe Mayorkas has committed the “high crimes and misdemeanors” that would warrant his conviction.
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Conservatives have attempted to counterprogram the proceedings in the absence of a trial. They held a press conference with the House managers on Tuesday afternoon, shortly after the articles were transmitted to the Senate.
And their rebellion could extend beyond Wednesday. Sen. Mike Lee (R-UT) has thrown up procedural hurdles for unrelated business on the Senate floor to register his protest.
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