The Republican chairman of the House Oversight and Accountability Committee has signaled an interest in taking the inquiry in another direction, including potential criminal referrals of alleged Biden family wrongdoing to the Justice Department for possible prosecution.
White House counsel Ed Siskel writes in a letter to Johnson that testimony and records turned over to the House Oversight and Judiciary Committees have failed to establish any wrongdoing.
Focused on border security, Republicans in the House argue that Mayorkas has "refused to comply" with immigration laws resulting in the record surge of immigrants at the U.S.-Mexico border and "breached the public trust."
Mayorkas has been meeting with senators on a border security package and argues the Republicans should instead be working with the Biden administration on U.S.-Mexico border issues.
Rarely has a Cabinet member faced impeachment's bar of "high crimes and misdemeanors," and Democrats called the proceedings a "sham" that could set a chilling precedent for other civil servants.
Committee Chairman Mark Green says "no American is safe" under Mayorkas' handling of the U.S.-Mexico border. But Democrats say disagreement over President Joe Biden's policies is not grounds for impeachment of Mayorkas.
House Speaker Kevin McCarthy's sudden decision to launch an impeachment inquiry into President Joe Biden appears to have won over even the most reluctant Republicans, and some GOP lawmakers are pushing for it to move quickly rather than drag into the 2024 election year.
The announcement comes as the Republican leader faces mounting pressure from his right flank to take action against Biden while he also is struggling to pass legislation needed to avoid a federal government shutdown at the end of the month.
