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Lawmakers berate Mayorkas on Laken Riley murder: ‘Your policies in action’

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Republican lawmakers on Thursday tore into Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas over the release of the Venezuelan illegal immigrant now charged with the murder of Georgia nursing student Laken Riley -- accusing the agency of having released him into the U.S. unlawfully.

Lawmakers grilled the embattled secretary on Jose Ibarra, an illegal immigrant from Venezuela, who is accused of killing Riley on Feb. 22, while she was jogging at the University of Georgia in Athens.

Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) confirmed with Fox News Digital previously that U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) had encountered Ibarra on Sept. 8, 2022, and he had been "paroled and released for further processing."

HAITIAN MIGRANT CHARGED WITH RAPE OF 15-YEAR-OLD GIRL ENTERED VIA CONTROVERSIAL PAROLE PROGRAM: SOURCES 

But lawmakers cited the parole case file showing that Ibarra had been released due to an alleged lack of detention space – although some conservatives have pointed to data showing that ICE was not near maximum capacity at the time of Ibarra's release. The statute governing parole, however, says that releases are only allowed due to urgent humanitarian reasons or "significant public benefit." Republicans have accused the administration of abusing parole with its broad policies at the border, saying that the paroles often do not meet these criteria.

Ranking Member Rand Paul asked Mayorkas about Ibarra’s release and about the legality of the basis for his parole. Mayorkas said that he would not comment on the case.

"All our hearts break for the family of Miss Riley. Secondly, the perpetrator of this heinous criminal act needs to meet justice to the fullest extent of the law. And I will not comment on the particulars of the case, because the matter is being prosecuted by authorities now," he said.

When Paul followed up, including asking the secretary if he was pleading the Fifth, Mayorkas said "I have provided my answer" but later expanded.

"There are different bases for parole. I am not a legal expert in this regard, but let me assure you that when an individual is encountered at the border, and they are deemed to be at the time of encounter a threat to public safety or national security, they are a priority for detention," he said. "If not, they receive a notice to appear and are placed in immigration enforcement proceedings. The number of individuals encountered at the border exceed the number of beds available in our detention facilities. That is not something specific to this administration."

But Sen. Josh Hawley, R-Mo., then turned up the heat by reading directly from the parole file, which lawmakers had obtained. He also revealed that Ibarra had been given a work permit, despite having been accused of a crime against a child in New York and having the charges later expunged by local authorities.

"Nothing is done to this guy. He had a criminal record to start with, he's in the country on illegal grounds. You have falsely and illegally allowed him in. He committed a crime against a child. He's not prosecuted, it's expunged. In November, get this, in November, Ibarra files an application for employment authorization. And unbelievably, on December 9, 2023, it's approved," he said.

"So this is your policies [sic] in action, Mr. Secretary," he said.

JIM JORDAN ACCUSES MAYORKAS OF WITHHOLDING FILES OF ALLEGED ILLEGAL IMMIGRANT CRIMINAL

"I am confident that justice will be vindicated in the criminal prosecution of the case," Mayorkas responded, which led Hawley to make a reference to the recent impeachment effort against Mayorkas.

Well, hopefully he'll get more of a trial than you got," he said. "Otherwise, there'll be no justice for anyone at all." 

Separately, Sen. Roger Marshall, R-Kansas, raised the CHNV (Cuban, Haitian, Nicaraguan and Venezuelan) parole program, which allows up to 30,000 migrants a month to fly or travel directly into the U.S. via parole.

"Why are you mass importing tens of thousands of Venezuelans into our country via parole, knowing they can't be deported, because Venezuela isn't exactly accepting removal flights? He asked him.

CLICK HERE FOR MORE COVERAGE OF THE BORDER SECURITY CRISIS

"We are not doing that, senator," Mayorkas said. "The term ‘importation’ is incorrect."

Mayorkas also said it was false to say that Venezuela won’t take return flights.

"So, why do you say it's not correct when it's been suspended? That's why Americans don't trust you," Marshall fired back.

Fox News' Aubrie Spady and Greg Wehner contributed to this report.

Dem senator’s claim downplaying border crisis resurfaces after staffer killed by illegal immigrant

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Sen. Catherine Cortez-Masto, D-Nev., claimed that there were "no open borders," just two days before the migrant arrested in a deadly car accident that killed her adviser illegally entered into the U.S.

In a resurfaced video from March 10, 2021, a month when Customs and Border Patrol (CBP) reported over 170,000 migrant encounters at the border, Cortez Masto is seen telling MSNBC that there was "a lot of misinformation" surrounding the southern border crisis.

"There's no open border," the Democrat Senator claimed. "As someone who was attorney general for eight years, my state worked very closely on the border with Mexico. There are no open borders."

Just two days later, on March 12, 2021, an illegal immigrant by the name of Elmer Rueda-Linares reportedly entered at or near the Rio Grande City, Texas, Port of Entry without inspection by an immigration official, ICE confirmed to Fox News Digital. That same migrant would go on to be arrested in connection with the death of one of Cortez Masto's own senior advisers.

ILLEGAL IMMIGRANT ARRESTED IN CRASH THAT KILLED DEMOCRATIC SENATOR'S ADVISER

Kurt Englehart, senior advisor to Cortez Masto, was killed in a car collision south of Downtown Reno, Nevada, on April 6, 2024. Rueda-Linares, the illegal migrant driving the vehicle that collided with Englehart, was arrested and charged with failing to stop at the scene of the accident.

HAITIAN MIGRANT, NOW A DOUBLE HOMICIDE SUSPECT, WAS ALLOWED INTO US BY BIDEN ADMIN VIA CONTROVERSIAL APP

CBP noted that encounters increased by 71 percent over February 2021 in March of that year, the same month Cortez Masto made the claim about the border.

Also that month, Fox News Digital reported that CBP agents had encountered a "large group" of illegal immigrants near Las Lomas, Texas, apprehending 134 illegal immigrants who had come to the southern border from Honduras, El Salvador, Guatemala and Nicaragua.

When asked about the 2021 comment, a spokesperson for Cortez Masto stated that the Senator "has repeatedly pushed for additional border security funding under both the Trump and Biden administrations." Cortez Masto signed a letter in 2020 that demanded the reversal of Trump-era border policies, "condemning the Trump Administration for its harmful policies that have dismantled the United States’ asylum system."

"Senator Cortez Masto has repeatedly pushed for additional border security funding under both the Trump and Biden administrations and voted in February for the bipartisan border security package that Donald Trump and Senate Republicans refused to consider," Lauren Wodarski, spokesperson for Cortez Masto, told Fox News Digital in a statement. "To indicate otherwise is a distortion of her record."

In February 2021, Cortez Masto voted against an amendment that would prioritize "taking into custody aliens charged with a crime resulting in death or serious bodily injury."

Again in August 2021, Cortez Masto voted against establishing "a deficit-neutral reserve fund relating to ensuring that the Department of Homeland Security, pursuant to Title 42, United States Code, conducts expulsions of illegal immigrants who may contribute to the spread of COVID-19, including any of the dangerous variants originating overseas, in order to protect the public health of the American People, save American lives, and assist in eradicating the COVID-19 pandemic in the United States." 

The Senator has since cosponsored pieces of legislation that seek to combat the ongoing fentanyl crisis. In 2024, Cortez Masto cosponsored the Stop Fentanyl at the Border Act "to improve border security, imposing new reporting requirements relating to border security, and enhancing criminal penalties for destroying or evading border controls," as well as signing onto the bipartisan Fentanyl Eradication and Narcotics Deterrence (FEND) Off Fentanyl Act with GOP Sen. Tim Scott, R-S.C.

Most recently, the Democrat voted to dismiss the articles of impeachment filed against Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas over his handling of the southern border crisis.

Republicans in the House unveiled articles of impeachment against Mayorkas in January, claiming that the Biden administration secretary has "repeatedly violated laws enacted by Congress regarding immigration and border security."

"In large part because of his unlawful conduct, millions of aliens have illegally entered the United States on an annual basis with many unlawfully remaining in the United States," Republicans alleged. "Alejandro N. Mayorkas knowingly made false statements to Congress that the border is 'secure,' that the border is ‘no less secure than it was previously,’ that the border is 'closed,' and that DHS has ‘operational control’ of the border."

Cortez Masto called the impeachment inquiry a "waste of time." 

"There is no evidence that @SecMayorkas committed high crimes and misdemeanors, so I voted to end this waste of time," the Senator said in an April 17 post on X. "Republicans could have made real policy changes, but they decided to play games and killed the bipartisan border package in favor of this frivolous impeachment."

During the Senate's meeting Wednesday on the dismissal of impeachment articles against Mayrokas, Sen. Mike Lee, R-Utah, appeared to mention the incident in which Cortez Masto's staffer was killed as an example of ramifications of the ongoing southern border crisis. 

"The consequences of our open border policy can touch all of us," Lee said. "One of our dear, respected colleagues having lost a beloved staff member in the last few days. Having lost that staff member as a consequence of the actions taken by an immigrant in this country, who was here unlawfully, who shouldn't have been here. That's a troubling thing."

Fox News' Michael Dorgan contributed to this report.

Biden mocks Trump for legal woes: ‘A little busy right now’

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President Biden took a jab at his presumptive Republican rival for the presidency while campaigning in Pennsylvania.

Biden made the remark while speaking at the United Steelworkers headquarters in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, on Wednesday.

"Under my predecessor, who’s a little busy right now, Pennsylvania lost 275,000 jobs," Biden said while boasting of his economic policies' benefit to blue collar workers.

WHITE HOUSE DEEMS HOUSE IMPEACHMENT INQUIRY 'OVER,' PRESIDENT BIDEN FORMALLY DECLINES TO TESTIFY

United Steelworkers endorsed the Biden-Harris ticket last month, applauding the president's investments in "worker-centered trade policy."

"President Biden proved time and again during his first term that he stands with working families," USW International President David McCall said in the March announcement. 

He added, "His vision and leadership allowed our nation to strengthen workers’ access to collective bargaining, grow the middle class, and embark on a path to widespread prosperity."

BIDEN RETURNS TO CAMPAIGN TRAIL AS TRUMP FORCED TO REMAIN IN COURT FOR SECOND DAY OF NEW YORK HUSH MONEY TRIAL

While Biden is on the road campaigning, Trump is currently stuck in New York City for his criminal trial surrounding alleged hush money payments to Stormy Daniels during his successful 2016 presidential campaign. 

Trump has been charged with 34 counts of falsifying business records in the first degree. It is the first ever criminal trial of a former president.

Trump has been ordered to attend the daily court proceedings of the trial. Judge Juan Merchan told Trump that if he fails to be present, a warrant will be issued for his arrest.

"It’s a scam. It’s a political witch hunt," Trump said after court adjourned Monday. Trump pleaded not guilty to all counts last year.

Fox News Digital's Lawrence Richard contributed to this report.

‘Constitutional authority’ of Senate Dems quashing Mayorkas impeachment trial questioned by experts

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Constitutional law experts are examining the implications of the precedent set by Senate Democrats on Wednesday, when they killed the impeachment trial of Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, effectively dismissing it. 

After the Senate deemed both articles of impeachment unconstitutional, the upper chamber adjourned, quashing all hope for a trial on Mayorkas' alleged crimes. This was historically significant, as an impeachment trial had never been dismissed, tabled or otherwise discarded without the accused official having first exited their role in one way or another. 

"The Senate has no constitutional authority to rule that the articles approved by the House do not state impeachable offenses," explained Andrew McCarthy, a former chief assistant United States attorney in the Southern District of New York and a senior fellow at the National Review Institute. 

SENATE STRIKES DOWN BOTH IMPEACHMENT ARTICLES AGAINST BIDEN BORDER CHIEF

The sole power to determine impeachable offenses lies with the House, McCarthy noted. This means neither the Senate nor a court of law would be within their rights to undermine the House's ability to make such determinations. 

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., proposed two points of order during the court of impeachment deeming both articles of impeachment unconstitutional, which were passed by the Democratic majority. 

"This essentially nullifies the House’s important role in the impeachment process," McCarthy said. 

Alternatively, the Senate would have been well within its rights to "hold a trial and ultimately acquit Mayorkas of the charges," he added. 

REPUBLICANS PREDICT DEMS TO PAY 'HEAVY PRICE' IN ELECTION AFTER MAYORKAS IMPEACHMENT BID FAILS

The brief impeachment trial proceedings revealed "yet another of our constitutional norms is being undermined," said Randy Barnett, a renowned legal scholar and professor of constitutional law at the Georgetown University Law Center. 

However, Alan Dershowitz, a prominent constitutional scholar and emeritus professor of law at Harvard Law School, claimed, "There are no constitutional impeachment criteria charged."

He explained further that "dismissal is proper."

SENATE DEMS REVEAL MASSIVE $79M AD SPEND TO PROTECT MAJORITY AHEAD OF KEY MATCHUPS

McCarthy warned that "Democrats will come to regret it." He explained that in the case that Democrats take over the House's majority and Republicans the Senate, "Democrats will be undermined by the precedent they have set — especially if Donald Trump is elected president again."

Democrats would likely seek to once again impeach former President Trump if he is elected in November, McCarthy said, and "they have now handed Republicans a precedent authorizing the Senate to ignore the House."

Barnett claimed that impeachment is "ultimately a political power" and thus, political use of it is expected. However, he suggested that "the political nature of impeachment" is exactly what "necessitates the House having the opportunity to present its case both to the Senate and to the electorate in a public trial." This was prevented from taking place in the Senate. 

WHITE HOUSE DEEMS HOUSE IMPEACHMENT INQUIRY 'OVER,' PRESIDENT BIDEN FORMALLY DECLINES TO TESTIFY

"The only reason Republicans impeached Mayorkas was to get a high-profile hearing that would rivet the public’s attention to Biden’s border crisis," added McCarthy, who noted that the House understood they would never see a conviction or removal. 

"The Senate Democrats’ move does deny that public hearing," he said. For this, Democrats will "take a political hit," he continued. 

However, McCarthy described that Senate Democrats made a political calculation, ultimately determining that "it would be better to be criticized for not conducting a trial than to hold a trial," placing President Biden's border policies at the forefront and Democratic senators on record acquitting Mayorkas. 

This, he said, would look like the Democrats "endorsing Biden’s non-enforcement policies."

Republicans predict Dems to pay ‘heavy price’ in election after Mayorkas impeachment bid fails

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Republicans warned that vulnerable Senate Democrats would be punished in the upcoming November general election for their votes to kill the impeachment trial of Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas. 

"Every Democrat will pay a heavy price in November for willfully refusing to end this border crisis," said Republican conference Chairman John Barrasso, R-Wyo., in a statement following the impeachment trial proceedings. 

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., proposed points of order after senators were sworn in as jurors to deem both of the House-passed articles of impeachment unconstitutional. Votes on the points of order were along party lines, with all Democrats agreeing that both articles were in fact unconstitutional. 

SENATE DEMOCRATS KILL BOTH ARTICLES OF IMPEACHMENT AGAINST DHS SECRETARY MAYORKAS

This included all five of the most vulnerable Democratic incumbents, Sens. Tammy Baldwin, D-Wis., Jon Tester, D-Mont., Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio, Bob Casey, D-Penn., and Jacky Rosen, D-Nev. 

"The American people will hold Senate Democrats accountable for this shameful display," warned House Republican leaders in a joint statement from Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., Majority Leader Steve Scalise, R-La., Majority Whip Tom Emmer, R-Minn., and Republican conference Chairwoman Elise Stefanik, R-N.Y.

"History will not be forgiving of Democrats' decision to table this hearing," echoed Sen. Roger Marshall, R-Kan., in a statement. "The American people will hold Mayorkas accountable at the ballot box this November."

Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, additionally slammed his Democratic counterparts for disregarding "their duty to the American people."

GOP SENATOR EYES LEGISLATION TO DEFUND 'PROPAGANDIST' NPR AFTER SUSPENSION OF WHISTLEBLOWER

In his own statement following the decision to vote in line with his party, Tester said, "Montanans want real solutions that secure the border, not partisan games from D.C. politicians."

He urged "President Biden and Secretary Mayorkas to use their remaining executive authorities to help secure our border," and asked his colleagues in the Senate to revisit the bipartisan border package that was abandoned following former President Trump's public disapproval.  

Tester's race is considered one of the most competitive races in the country heading into November. 

"Senate Democrats just showed voters they will do nothing to hold Joe Biden and DHS Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas accountable for the disastrous border policies that caused this crisis," National Republican Senatorial Committee spokesman Tate Mitchell said in a statement. 

SENATE DEMS REVEAL MASSIVE $79M AD SPEND TO PROTECT MAJORITY AHEAD OF KEY MATCHUPS

Republicans further lamented the precedent set by Wednesday's impeachment trial proceedings. "This means that the Senate can ignore, in effect, the House's impeachment," Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., remarked on the chamber floor following the Senate adjourning. 

"This is a day that's not a proud day in the history of the Senate," he added. 

Throughout the Senate's history, charges and trials have only ever been dismissed when the impeached individual had resigned or was otherwise no longer in office. 

Cornyn noted the precedent set is "unfortunate" and part of the Democrats' larger effort "to sweep the Biden administration’s failing border policies under the rug."

"In 2020, Dems voted to impeach Trump without even charging a crime. Today they voted that a *felony* CANNOT be an impeachable crime. It’s beyond absurd," claimed Sen. Josh Hawley, R-Mo., comparing the impeachment trial proceedings to those of Trump during his presidency. 

TRUMP'S LOAN PROPOSAL FOR UKRAINE AID MAY BE COMMON GROUND FOR COMPREHENSIVE FOREIGN AID PACKAGE

While Republicans denounced the proceedings that unfolded on the Senate floor, President Biden's administration rejoiced over the result. 

"Today’s decision by the Senate to reject House Republicans’ baseless attacks on Secretary Mayorkas proves definitively that there was no evidence or Constitutional grounds to justify impeachment," said Mia Ehrenberg, DHS spokesperson, in a statement. 

Ian Sams, White House spokesperson for Oversight and Investigations, added in his own statement, "Once and for all, the Senate has rightly voted down this baseless impeachment that even conservative legal scholars said was unconstitutional."

He also noted that Biden and Mayorkas would "continue doing their jobs to keep America safe and pursue actual solutions at the border."

Get the latest updates from the 2024 campaign trail, exclusive interviews and more at our Fox News Digital election hub.

Fox News Politics: Capitol grill

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Welcome to Fox News’ Politics newsletter with the latest political news from Washington D.C. and updates from the 2024 campaign trail. 

What's happening? 

- Democrats express openness to saving Speaker Mike Johnson

- Seven jurors have been selected in Trump's trial

- Far left reps launch "Protect the Squad" fundraising effort

In the Senate, the impeachment trial was over practically before it began.

Before House managers even presented the articles of impeachment against Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, Democrats in a series of party-line votes dismissed the matter altogether.

The first of two articles of impeachment alleged Mayorkas engaged in the "willful and systemic refusal to comply with the law" regarding the southern border in his capacity as DHS secretary. The second claimed Mayorkas had breached public trust.

"This process must not be abused. It must not be short-circuited. History will not judge this moment well," said Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., as he motioned to table the point of order from Schumer.

House Republicans on Wednesday grilled Columbia University president on the employment of a professor who celebrated the Oct. 7 Hamas attacks as "awesome." The university president at first said the professor had been removed as chair of a committee, but Rep. Elise Stefanik pointed out he was still listed in that role online. Columbia's president later promised that the prof would be removed as chair, if he still served in the role.

'ALARMING': GOP bill cracks down on dark money after foreign billionaire donates eye- popping amount boosting Dems …Read more

JOHNSON'S COMPROMISE: Speaker Johnson says border security bill will get vote alongside foreign aid …Read more

FEELING BLUE: Democrats say they're 'very open' to making deal to save Speaker Johnson …Read more

STRONG ARM: Biden takes action against China’s unfair practices to protect US steel and shipbuilding industries …Read more

'NOTHING TO DO WITH ME': Biden dismisses Trump claim that president is behind GOP rival's criminal charges …Read more

'SEC UNDER FIRE': GOP attempts to overturn SEC climate rule …Read more

'SQUAD' UP: Far-left lawmakers launch 'Protect the Squad' fundraising venture …Read more

BELOVED FIGURE: Illegal immigrant arrested in collision that killed Democratic senator's advisor …Read more

BALLOT BLUNDER: Ohio AG shuts down Dem proposal to skirt election deadline to get Biden on ballot …Read more

COLUMBIA OCCUPIED: Anti-Israel agitators set up tents on campus as university president faces grilling from Congress …Read more

MEET THE JURY: Seven jurors have been selected in Trump's hush money trial …Read more

'ABANDONING GOD': Arizona governor vetoes Republican bills defining biological sex, allowing Ten Commandments in classrooms …Read more

WHISTLEBLOWER RESIGNS: NPR editor quits liberal outlet after he was 'disparaged' for speaking out …Read more

'EXTREME TACTICS': Experts warn Israel protests could foreshadow volatile summer ahead …Read more

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Senate votes down first impeachment article against DHS Secretary Mayorkas

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The first article of impeachment against Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas was deemed unconstitutional by the Senate on Wednesday in a party-line vote. 

The first of two articles of impeachment alleged Mayorkas engaged in the "willful and systemic refusal to comply with the law" regarding the southern border in his capacity as DHS secretary. 

Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., proposed a point of order declaring the article unconstitutional, to which the majority of senators agreed following several failed motions by Republicans.

The article was deemed unconstitutional by a vote of 51-48, with Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska voting present. 

This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.

Inside GOP plan to force as many votes on Mayorkas impeachment trial as possible

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Senate Republicans are looking to hold as many votes as possible during the initial proceedings of the impeachment trial into Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas before Democrats in the chamber are expected to succeed in dismissing the trial. 

Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., explicitly stated his intent to seek a dismissal of the House-passed articles of impeachment during a speech on the Senate floor on Wednesday morning. While he had previously indicated that he wanted to quickly get past the proceedings, he had yet to confirm the Democratic plan to dismiss the trial. 

According to five Senate Republican sources familiar with the discussions, the structure of the proceedings is being negotiated with the Democrats. 

SENATORS TO BE SWORN IN FOR MAYORKAS IMPEACHMENT TRIAL AHEAD OF EXPECTED DISMISSAL

The two parties are looking into a potential agreement for unanimous consent, in which Republicans are allowed to propose eight total points of order against the motions to dismiss. Each point of order, or fact that senators determine whether there is agreement on, will require its own vote. Lengthening the process and requiring Democrats to go on record on several components of the impeachment articles against Mayorkas. 

Schumer noted in his chamber floor speech on Wednesday that he would look to appease Republicans by allowing both points of order and debate time. "When we convene in trial today to accommodate the wishes of our Republican Senate colleagues, I will seek an agreement for a period of debate time that would allow Republicans to offer a vote on trial resolutions, allow for Republicans to offer points of order and then move to dismiss," he said. 

HOUSE DELIVERS MAYORKAS IMPEACHMENT ARTICLES TO SCHUMER, SETTING UP TRIAL PROCEEDINGS

This agreement will require that no senator objects, and Schumer urged them not to. 

The unanimous consent agreement which is being sought between the parties would allow 90 minutes of open debate after the senators are sworn in as jurors at 1:00 p.m. Then, two resolutions would receive votes, one from Sen. Mike Lee, R-Utah, calling for a full Senate trial, and another from Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, that would refer the matter to a Senate Impeachment Trial committee first. 

Representatives for Lee and Cruz did not confirm the unanimous consent agreement discussions before the time of publication. 

GOP SENATOR EYES LEGISLATION TO DEFUND 'PROPAGANDIST' NPR AFTER SUSPENSION OF WHISTLEBLOWER

One source noted the GOP was making an effort to use every option possible to require more votes within the impeachment trial process, putting their Democratic colleagues on record as much as possible. 

Following the proposal of each point of order and prior to voting, the deal being discussed for unanimous consent would require four minutes of debate ahead of each vote. This time would be equally divided between the parties. One source explained that some Republican senators see this debate time as an opportunity to have the case for Mayorkas's impeachment heard on the floor, even if it is not in the context of a full trial. 

SENATE DEMS REVEAL MASSIVE $79M AD SPEND TO PROTECT MAJORITY AHEAD OF KEY MATCHUPS

Several Senate Republican sources also indicated that the dismissal route, which Schumer revealed he planned to take, was preferable to a motion to table. Tabling the trial has never happened with an impeachment, as GOP senators have noted, and it also does not provide the ability for any arguments from impeachment managers or defense counsel or debate between senators. 

If agreed to, the Mayorkas impeachment trial is likely to ultimately see dismissal, but Republicans will have several opportunities to put Democrats, particularly vulnerable ones who are up for re-election in pivotal states, on the record on multiple immigration and border related topics. 

Senators to be sworn in for Mayorkas impeachment trial ahead of expected dismissal

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Senators are set to be sworn in as jurors at 1:00 p.m. on Wednesday to begin consideration of the House-passed articles of impeachment against Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, a process that Republicans have warned that their Democratic colleagues will try to quickly end. 

House impeachment managers officially delivered the articles of impeachment, which passed the lower chamber in February, to Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., on Tuesday on the Senate floor. 

HOUSE DELIVERS MAYORKAS IMPEACHMENT ARTICLES TO SCHUMER, SETTING UP TRIAL PROCEEDINGS

The long-awaited delivery set into motion a procedure in the Senate, requiring that lawmakers be sworn in as jurors the following day to address the articles. 

However, Republicans have spent the last few weeks speculating that their Democratic counterparts will look to off-ramp the impeachment trial before arguments begin. This was confirmed by Schumer on the Senate floor on Wednesday morning when he confirmed his intention to seek dismissal.

Several Democratic senators have voiced support for dismissing the articles in the lead up to the trial's consideration, including Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin, D-Ill., in a recent speech on the chamber floor. 

Schumer had previously stated his plans to "expeditiously" deal with the impeachment trial proceedings, without indicating the specific route the caucus was planning to take. 

SENATE DEMS REVEAL MASSIVE $79M AD SPEND TO PROTECT MAJORITY AHEAD OF KEY MATCHUPS

Republicans have expressed outrage at the likely refusal of their colleagues to allow a full impeachment trial against Mayorkas to play out. They have even threatened to shut down the Senate by making constant objections to requests for unanimous consent on regular business if a trial isn't seen all the way through. 

At a press conference following the article delivery on Tuesday, Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, previewed that "we're going to see Chuck Schumer throw out 200 years of history [and] ignore the Constitution," referencing the fact that an impeachment trial has never been tabled by the Senate. 

GOP SENATOR EYES LEGISLATION TO DEFUND 'PROPAGANDIST' NPR AFTER SUSPENSION OF WHISTLEBLOWER

"He does not want these [House impeachment] managers to present the evidence of the people dying because of their policies," he added. 

Several vulnerable Democratic senators were expected to be the deciding factors on whether a trial was allowed to play out. But in recent days, multiple Democrats in highly competitive races in battleground states have revealed they want to see the trial dismissed. 

Casey expressed his opinion for the first time on Tuesday, telling CNN, "I think we should move on and get to work on a bipartisan border security deal."

There have also been multiple Republicans whose planned votes were considered a mystery. Sens. Mitt Romney, R-Utah, Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, and Susan Collins, R-Maine, are concerns on the right, despite the conference being largely united. This unity was evidenced by 43 Republicans signing onto a letter last week calling on Schumer to allow the trial to be seen all the way through. 

With a narrow split in the upper chamber, agreement among the parties can be easily disrupted by just a few senators. Democrats hold the majority with just 51-49 over Republicans. 

GOP senator eyes legislation to defund ‘propagandist’ NPR after suspension of whistleblower

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FIRST ON FOX: Sen. Marsha Blackburn, R-Tenn., is planning to propose new legislative action that would threaten to cut National Public Radio's (NPR) federal funding if passed, prompted by the news that it suspended an editor who went viral for exposing the outlet's partisan uniformity in its newsroom.

The Tennessee Republican is weighing a variety of legislative options to take on federal funding that goes to the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB), which provides funding to NPR in the form of grants. She is specifically looking to prevent NPR from benefiting from public funds, due to what her office characterized as left-wing bias. 

"The mainstream media has become obsessed with doing the Left’s bidding and taking down strong conservatives — and NPR has led the pack," Blackburn said in a statement to Fox News Digital. "It makes no sense that the American people are forced to fund a propagandist left-wing outlet that refuses to represent the voices of half the country. NPR should not receive our tax dollars’."

NPR SUSPENDS VETERAN EDITOR WHO BLEW WHISTLE ON LIBERAL BIAS AT ORGANIZATION

Blackburn previously looked to sever the government's funding to NPR in 2011 when she was serving in the House of Representatives. At the time, the Republican-controlled House passed a measure that sought to cut $50 million from CPB.

"The time has come for us to claw back this money," Blackburn reportedly said at the time.

CPB is "fully funded by the federal government," per the nonprofit's website. The organization provides funding in the form of grants to both NPR and the Public Broadcasting Service (PBS). The grants to NPR are used for its international bureaus and distribution infrastructure that provides content to all public radio stations. 

NPR veteran editor Uri Berliner was recently suspended without pay from NPR following his public criticism of his employer. The suspension was made public on Tuesday but began last Friday, according to NPR media reporter David Folkenflik. The organization reportedly told Berliner on Thursday that his punishment was a final warning, and that if he violated NPR's policy on employees seeking approval to do work for other news outlet, he would be fired.

HOUSE DELIVERS MAYORKAS IMPEACHMENT ARTICLES TO SCHUMER, SETTING UP TRIAL PROCEEDINGS

"I love NPR and feel it's a national trust," Berliner said in an interview with Folkenflik. "We have great journalists here. If they shed their opinions and did the great journalism they're capable of, this would be a much more interesting and fulfilling organization for our listeners."

The senior NPR business editor said he made several attempts to relay his concerns before choosing to publish an essay in the Free Press, but they weren't heard by the organization's leadership.

SENATE DEMS REVEAL MASSIVE $79M AD SPEND TO PROTECT MAJORITY AHEAD OF KEY MATCHUPS

In Berliner's scathing review of his employer's ideological homogeneity, he revealed that there were "87 registered Democrats working in editorial positions" at the Washington, D.C., headquarters "and zero Republicans. None."

He said that such a lack of viewpoint diversity seeped into the outlet's coverage, criticizing NPR's approach to a variety of prominent stories over the years, including allegations that former President Trump colluded with Russia in the 2016 election, the laptop belonging to President Biden's son, Hunter Biden, and the theory that COVID-19 was triggered by a lab leak in China.

A spokesperson for Rep. Ronny Jackson, R-Texas, said that he is also trying to advance legislation in the House to defund NPR that he has introduced on multiple occasions, including the current Congress.

Jackson is actively seeking more co-sponsors for his bill and is pushing House leadership to consider it in the wake of recent events.

Rep. Andy Ogles, R-Tenn., similarly told Fox News Digital in a statement, "I think Congress should exercise oversight of NPR, especially in light of the recent whistleblower’s allegations and subsequent suspension."

"Taxpayers fund NPR, and it should be a source that provides a truly neutral and balanced perspective," he said. "That can only be achieved through a politically diverse staff, otherwise, it is nothing more than a propaganda machine for the Democrat party."

"Sen. Cassidy was clear that Congress should end public funding for NPR," a spokesperson for Sen. Bill Cassidy, R-La., said in a statement. "Our office is exploring options to do so." 

NPR did not provide comment in time for publication.