Category: National Security

Texas Republican files articles of impeachment against Mayorkas

Posted on (Updated by Rebecca Beitsch

A Texas Republican has filed articles of impeachment against Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, wasting little time in the new Congress to act on a GOP priority leadership has said would come after thorough investigation.

Rep. Pat Fallon (R-Texas) filed the paperwork for the resolution on Jan. 3, the first day of the 118th Congress, though with delays in securing a House Speaker, the document was officially filed late Monday.

The resolution claims Mayorkas “engaged in a pattern of conduct that is incompatible with his duties,” complaining that he has failed to maintain operational control over the border.

The resolution comes amid a busy week in the Biden administration. President Biden visited the border over the weekend for the first time since taking office, pledging to deliver more resources to the officers who patrol the region.

And Mayorkas is in Mexico this week, meeting with officials there on a variety of issues, including the shared migration agreement rolled out by the Biden administration last week.

Mayorkas is also due to discuss coordination on transnational crime with Mexican authorities.

Fallon’s resolution won’t move without further action from GOP leadership, but it would otherwise jump-start a process House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) has treaded carefully on.

“House Republicans will investigate every order, every action and every failure will determine whether we can begin impeachment inquiry,” McCarthy said at a press conference in El Paso, Texas, in November.

Still, impeachment charges against Mayorkas were all but certain under Republican control of the House, as the DHS secretary has been a constant foil for the party during the Biden administration.

Republicans claim that under Biden, the DHS has dismantled the border security apparatus built under former President Trump, leading to border chaos.

The primary basis for the articles of impeachment is the claim that Mayorkas lied to Congress — a case they back by pointing to two instances in which the secretary told lawmakers he believed the Southern border was under control.

“His willful actions erode our immigration system, undermine border patrol morale, and imperil American national security. He must be removed from office,” Fallon said in a release.

DHS said Tuesday that Mayorkas has no plans to resign and argued that the grounds for impeachment pointed to by the GOP were both inaccurate and failed to meet the standards to qualify as high crimes and misdemeanors.

“Secretary Mayorkas is proud to advance the noble mission of this Department, support its extraordinary workforce, and serve the American people. The Department will continue our work to enforce our laws and secure our border, while building a safe, orderly, and humane immigration system,” Assistant Secretary for Public Affairs Marsha Espinosa said in a statement.

“Members of Congress can do better than point the finger at someone else; they should come to the table and work on solutions for our broken system and outdated laws, which they have not updated in over 40 years.”

Most border and immigration analysts agree that increased migration due to security, economic and governance conditions in the Western Hemisphere is the primary reason for the high number of migrants encountered at the border.

Attorney General Merrick Garland, left, and Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas speak before a meeting with President Joe Biden and Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador at the National Palace in Mexico City, Mexico, Monday, Jan. 9, 2023. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik)

And Mayorkas has taken flak both from the right and the left, as the DHS has maintained many of the Trump administration's border policies, which immigrant advocates say violate human rights.

Still, Republicans see the border as a winning issue for them, and Mayorkas is the Biden administration's face on that issue.

Mayorkas, the first Latino to ever hold that post, has often butted heads with congressional Republicans at oversight hearings.

In April, Mayorkas clashed with Republicans on the House Judiciary Committee, including a notable exchange with Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.) over the agency's record on deportations from the interior of the country.

That combative exchange could set the tone for impeachment proceedings.

The potential for a political circus is concerning for Republicans fresh off a nationally televised Speaker's race that highlighted divisions in the party.

Some Republicans have expressed reservations about going after Mayorkas without careful study. 

“You’ve got to build a case. You need the facts, evidence before you indict,” Rep. Michael McCaul (R-Texas).

“Has he been derelict in his responsibilities? I think so,” he added.

—Updated at 5:15 p.m.

Trump responds to Biden classified document discovery, asks when FBI will raid his ‘many homes’

Posted on (Updated by Julia Mueller

Former President Trump responded Monday to the breaking news that the Justice Department is reviewing classified documents from President Biden’s tenure as vice president that were found last fall in a private office Biden had previously used.  

“When is the FBI going to raid the many homes of Joe Biden, perhaps even the White House? These documents were definitely not declassified,” Trump said on his Truth Social account, sharing an article on the document discovery from CBS News.  

The Obama-Biden era documents were found by the president’s attorneys while clearing out an office he used when he served as an honorary professor at the University of Pennsylvania’s Penn Biden Center for Diplomacy and Global Engagement in Washington, according to Biden’s special counsel Richard Sauber.

Biden’s legal team notified the National Archives, which took possession of the materials, Sauber said. The documents are now reportedly being looked at by the U.S. attorney general for Chicago, with cooperation from the White House.  

Trump was referring to the FBI’s execution of a search warrant last summer at his Mar-a-Lago residence, where investigators found more than a hundred classified documents kept past his time in the White House.  

Trump is now under investigation for his handling of the classified materials.  

“We were told for months that this was treasonous… grounds for impeachment... & meriting the death penalty, yet I have a feeling nothing will happen!?” wrote Trump’s son Donald Trump Jr. on Twitter, retweeting the CBS article.  

Notably, Biden’s team notified the Archives and turned over the documents upon discovery, while Trump apparently kept classified materials even after requests from the Archives to return them.  

The Presidential Records Act requires that presidential and vice presidential records be turned over to the National Archives at the end of a given administration for preservation and to protect classified material.

Mayorkas Falsely Claimed Border is ‘Closed’ Ahead of Biden Trip to El Paso

Posted on by The Center Square

By Bethany Blankley (The Center Square)

Ahead of President Biden’s first trip to the southern border on Sunday in El Paso, Texas, Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas again said the U.S. southern border is closed.

His comments came despite thousands of illegal border crossers pouring into the city, filling the airport, sidewalks, homeless shelters. Over the past few days, many were bused out of town and otherwise cleared out ahead of the president’s visit.

RELATED: Theater: El Paso Cleared Out Illegal Immigrant Camps Prior to Biden’s Border Visit

On Jan. 5, after the president announced his expanded immigration plan, Mayorkas announced the Department of Homeland Security was preparing for the end of the public health authority Title 42 after its challenges in court end.

Mayorkas said, “Title 42 or not, the border is not open. We will continue to fully enforce our immigration laws in a safe, orderly and humane manner. Individuals without a legal basis to remain in the United States will be subject to expulsion under Title 42 or removal under Title 8.”

Mayorkas also said the crisis at the southern border was “because our immigration system is broken, outdated, and in desperate need of reform. The laws we enforce have not been updated for decades. It takes four or more years to conclude the average asylum case, immigration judges have a backlog of more than 1.7 million cases, and we have more than 11 undocumented people in our country, many of whom work in the shadows …”

He mentioned that there are 2.5 million Venezuelans living in Columbia and 1.5 million living in Peru. Over 350,000 Haitians are living in Brazil and Chile and the number of Nicaraguans living in Costa Rica has more than doubled over the past year.

He made the remarks as the number of apprehensions of illegal entries by Venezuelans, Nicaraguans and Haitians have surged in the U.S. in the past few months and after more than 5 million foreign nationals were apprehended or evaded capture from law enforcement. This includes over 3.3 million in fiscal 2022, of which nearly 1.8 million occurred in Texas alone.

The El Paso Sector, which includes two west Texas counties and all of New Mexico, has experienced a surge in the last two months, breaking all-time records.

RELATED: Another Record: Nearly 314,000 Apprehensions, Gotaways at Southern Border in December

In December, agents apprehended over 55,700 people and reported nearly 33,000 gotaways, according to preliminary CBP data obtained by The Center Square.

In November, they apprehended more than 53,000 illegal foreign nationals in the sector and reported over 24,000 gotaways.

The number of people crossing the board every month are greater than the individual populations of all but four cities and all but five of counties in New Mexico, according to 2022 Census data analyzed by The Center Square.

The record numbers increased after Mayorkas reversed several policies, including releasing illegal foreign nationals into the U.S. and limiting ICE enforcement of detention and deportation policies. Nineteen attorneys general filed a brief with the Supreme Court over them; Florida heads to trial Monday in another lawsuit in which the plaintiffs argue the administration is continuing to violate federal law.

Multiple members of Congress have called for Mayorkas to be impeached; multiple attorneys general, led by Florida, have called for him to resign.

Last November, U.S. Rep. Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., now Speaker of the House, said “if Secretary Mayorkas does not resign, House Republicans will investigate every order, every action, and every failure will determine whether we can begin impeachment inquiry.”

On Sunday morning, when asked to respond, Mayorkas told ABC News This Week he was joining the president in El Paso and at the North American Leaders Summit in Mexico City on Monday, where world leaders will discuss “the security of the homeland.” When asked if he planned to resign he said: “I do not. I’ve got a lot of work to do, and we’re going to do it,” according to Fox News.

RELATED: State of Emergency in El Paso as Border Patrol Reports Record Illegal Entries

On Saturday, Mayorkas reiterated his “secure border” language in an interview with CNN anchor Poppy Harlow. She asked him, “Border officials have been consistently telling” a CNN correspondent “they feel abandoned by this administration, by the federal government. So why has it taken two years for President Biden to go to the southern border?”

Mayorkas replied, “We have been dedicating our efforts to the situation at the border since day one. We are incredibly proud of our frontline personnel who are tirelessly and selflessly dedicated to the mission. The president knows the border very well. … He is going to see the border not for the first time in his public service career this Sunday.”

The National Border Patrol Council, the union representing BP agents, has argued the Biden administration, which defunded CBP enforcement mechanisms while sending $45 billion more to Ukraine, said the administration “doesn’t want more money for DHS to enforce laws and deport people. They only want more money to process more people so they can release more people. Don’t be fooled by their propaganda.”

The union also said, “No administration in modern history of this country has done more damage, killed the morale of Border Patrol agents and unleashed death, destruction, rapes, murders and mayhem at our border like the Biden administration.”

In a statement it issued on Saturday, it said, “As Biden and Harris sit around DC patting themselves on the back and lying about the border, things in the real world continue to deteriorate at record-setting levels. Rampant lawlessness, dead bodies piling up and human suffering are not part of the gated fantasyland they live in.”

Syndicated with permission from The Center Square.

The post Mayorkas Falsely Claimed Border is ‘Closed’ Ahead of Biden Trip to El Paso appeared first on The Political Insider.

Five things to know ahead of the Jan. 6 committee’s crucial week

Posted on (Updated by Mychael Schnell

The House select committee investigating the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol is heading into a crucial week as it prepares to hold its final presentation, release a highly anticipated report outlining findings from the panel’s year-plus probe and vote on criminal referrals to the Department of Justice.

The votes on criminal referrals are expected during Monday’s business meeting, marking a significant step for the panel, which has said one of its goals is to prevent what happened on Jan. 6 from happening again.

The week’s closely watched events are the culmination of the committee’s sprawling investigation, which began months after last year’s deadly riot and has consisted of almost a dozen hearings, testimony from more than 1,000 witnesses and millions of documents.

Here are five things to look for as the committee kicks off a pivotal week:

Committee to vote on referrals Monday

Sunrise at the U.S. Capitol, Monday, Dec. 19, 2022, as the House select committee investigating the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol prepares to hold its final meeting on Capitol Hill in Washington.

The committee will vote on criminal referrals to the Department of Justice (DOJ) during its final business meeting on Monday.

Multiple outlets reported on Friday that the committee will vote on urging the DOJ to pursue at least three charges against former President Trump, including obstruction of an official proceeding of Congress, insurrection and conspiracy to defraud the United States.

The referrals will be closely watched inside and outside Washington, but they are also largely symbolic. The DOJ is not obligated to consider recommendations from congressional committees and is in the midst of conducting its own investigation into Jan. 6.

Criminal referrals likely won’t be the only ones the panel considers. 

Rep. Bennie Thompson (D-Miss.), the chairman of the committee, previously said the panel was considering “five or six categories” for referrals. The committee has highlighted behavior that would be under the purview of the Justice Department, House Ethics Committee and professional organizations, such as bar associations.

“We’re focused on key players and we’re focused on key players where there is sufficient evidence or abundant evidence that they committed crimes, and we’re focused on crimes that go right to the heart of the Constitutional order such that the Congress can’t remain silent,” Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-Md.), a member of the committee, told reporters last week.

Raskin suggested earlier this month that the five Republican lawmakers who ignored subpoenas from the committee — House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (Calif.) and Reps. Scott Perry (Pa.), Jim Jordan (Ohio), Andy Biggs (Ariz.) and Mo Brooks (Ala.) — could be referred to the Ethics Committee.

On Sunday, Rep. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.), a member of the panel, told CNN's "State of the Union" that the committee has considered censure and ethics referrals.

Asked last week if he or any of his GOP colleagues are concerned about being referred for criminal contempt for ignoring subpoenas, McCarthy told reporters “no, not at all, we did nothing wrong.” 

The committee could also be mulling referrals to bar associations as a rebuke to the lawyers who assisted Trump in his quest to challenge the results of the 2020 presidential election.

Panel to release full report on Wednesday

Representatives sit on the dais as the House select committee investigating the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol holds a hearing at the Capitol in Washington, July 12, 2022.

The committee is set to release its report, which will be comprised of eight chapters outlining the findings of the panel’s months-long investigation, on Wednesday.

Those chapters, according to Politico, will closely correspond with the evidence presented at its nine public hearings this year. The committee will also provide an executive summary.

After Monday's business meeting, the panel is expected to release certain materials, including an executive summary of the report, details on referrals, and additional information about witnesses who have appeared before the committee, according to a select committee aide.

But on Wednesday, the public will get access to the full report, including “attachments and some other things,” according to Thompson. The public may have to wait longer, however, to sift through transcripts of witness interviews.

Committee to release legislative recommendations

Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-Md.)

Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-Md.) speaks during a House Jan. 6 committee hearing on Thursday, October 13, 2022 to focus on former President Trump’s efforts to remain in power following his 2020 election defeat.

Monday’s business meeting will also feature some legislative recommendations, Thompson told reporters, which are core part of the Jan. 6 committee’s purpose.

“A lot of our work is also focused on recommendations, legislatively what needs to be done to prevent coups, insurrections, political violence and electoral sabotage in the future,” Raskin, who is a constitutional law expert, said in the Capitol last week.

“And in some sense that’s the heart of it because we think there is a clear, continuing, present danger to democracy today,” he added.

The House has already passed one legislative proposal crafted by members of the committee — the Presidential Election Reform Act, which clarifies the vice president’s role in certifying elections and significantly increases the number of lawmakers needed to object to the certification of a state’s electors.

But Raskin told reporters that the measure was “a very minimal first step.”

In September, he laid out a laundry list of areas the committee wanted to address following its investigation.

“We want to strengthen and fortify the electoral system and the right to vote. We want to do what we can to secure the situation of election workers and keep them safe from violence. We want to solidify the states in their determination that private armed militias not operate in the name of the state. You know, we don’t have any kind of federal law or policy about private armed militias,” the Maryland Democrat said.

It remains to be seen what the scope of the final recommendations will be. And they will be released just as Republicans take control of the House, leaving no time for the Democratic majority to pursue legislation.

Asked last week if there is any regret that the recommendations are coming at such a late stage, Raskin told reporters “I hope that they will have an impact on the thinking of Congress going forward.”

DOJ will finally get committee’s report Wednesday

The Department of Justice logo is seen at their headquarters in Washington, D.C., on Thursday, August 5, 2021 prior to a press conference regarding a civil rights matter.

The DOJ has spent months requesting evidence from the panel as it conducts its own investigation and on Wednesday it will finally get its hands on the committee’s final report.

Attorney General Merrick Garland had said the department would like to view the transcripts and other materials “so that we can use it in the ordinary course of our investigations.”

In June, the DOJ wrote in a court filing that the committee’s refusal to share information was making its work more difficult.

“The Select Committee’s failure to grant the Department access to these transcripts complicates the Department’s ability to investigate and prosecute those who engaged in criminal conduct in relation to the January 6 attack on the Capitol,” a letter in the filing read.

“Accordingly, we renew our request that the Select Committee provide us with copies of the transcripts of all the interviews it has conducted to date,” it added.

But Thompson told reporters last month that the DOJ would have to wait until the final report was published to view evidence the committee collected throughout its year-and-a-half investigation. 

The DOJ will finally get its wish on Wednesday, when the committee’s report is made available to the public — including those who work in the agency.

Cheney, Kinzinger to have final moments in the spotlight

Reps. Adam Kinzinger (R-Ill.) and Liz Cheney (R-Wyo.)

Reps. Adam Kinzinger (R-Ill.) and Liz Cheney (R-Wyo.) are seen during a House Jan. 6 committee hearing on Thursday, July 21, 2022 to focus on former President Trump’s actions during the insurrection.

Monday’s business meeting will also mark a swan song of sorts for Reps. Liz Cheney (R-Wyo.) and Adam Kinzinger (R-Ill.), who are departing Congress at the end of this month after breaking from the Republican Party and denouncing Trump.

Cheney, one of two Republicans serving on the panel, is leaving the House after losing reelection over the summer, in part because of her participation on the Jan. 6 committee.

She has emerged as an outspoken critic of Trump, using her prominent position as vice chair of the committee to lay out the case that the former president was responsible for what happened at the Capitol on Jan. 6.

It is a main reason why she lost reelection last year to Wyoming lawyer Harriet Hageman, who Trump handpicked to challenge Cheney after she voted for his impeachment and joined the Jan. 6 committee.

Kinzinger has also become a top GOP critic of Trump, though he opted out of running for reelection this year.

Despite their departures, the GOP duo has continued in their crusades against Trump, criticizing him for recent comments he made regarding the Constitution and for dining with noted white supremacist Nick Fuentes.

But Monday’s meeting will likely be the last time they can make the case against Trump with the audience and platform that come with being a member of Congress.

Experts Warn of Major Post-Title 42 Border Surge

Posted on by The Center Square

By Cameron Arcand (The Center Square)

As Title 42 – a COVID-19 policy that allowed border authorities to turn away asylum seekers – ends next week, Arizona officials are concerned about the consequences of allowing more people to remain in the United States after crossing the southern border illegally.

The Department of Homeland Security said that the order would no longer be in effect on Dec. 21, as it was originally intended to be a way to remove migrants based on fear of COVID-19 spread.

RELATED: Record Number of Border Apprehensions, Gotaways in November

There are concerns that an even greater influx of migrants will strain authorities and border communities. Many Trump-era border policies were removed by President Joe Biden, but this is one of the few policies that’s remained.

Jobe Dickinson, president of the Border Security Alliance, said in a statement that Title 42 is a necessary “mitigation strategy” that was “heavily relied upon for nearly 3 years.”

“With the forthcoming termination of this policy, the Border Security Alliance believes there could be another surge of illegal immigrants who will take advantage of our flawed border policies,” Dickinson said. “We urge policy makers to work to fix the current and anticipated surge immediately by going back to a ‘Remain in Mexico’ program for asylum seekers.”

RELATED: Republicans Call for Impeachment of Biden’s DHS Chief Over Border Invasion

Meanwhile, the state government is in an ongoing battle with the Biden administration over the state’s decision to use shipping containers as barriers in the Yuma sector of the border.

“The number one public safety risk and environmental harm has come from inaction by the federal government to secure our border,” Anni Foster, general counsel of the Arizona governor’s office, said in a recent letter to the U.S. Justice Department and U.S. Attorney’s Office.

There were over 2.3 million border encounters at the southern border in the fiscal year 2022, according to Customs and Border Protection data. In Arizona alone, there were over 500,000 border encounters, the Arizona Daily Star reported.

RELATED: Texas Gov. Abbott Calls for Investigation into Groups Assisting With Illegal Entry into US

Syndicated with permission from The Center Square.

The post Experts Warn of Major Post-Title 42 Border Surge appeared first on The Political Insider.

Biden Pledges BILLIONS to Africa Under the Ruse of Climate Change

Posted on by Kathleen J. Anderson

The U.S. dollar printing press is burning up under the Biden administration, with the President throwing money around like he’s the Oprah of the free world.

But, this time, instead of well-to-do college graduates or Ukraine, it’s the continent of Africa that will receive cash prizes from the United States.

Naturally, the song the Biden administration is singing is that our investment in the vast continent is about renewable energy and elevating a valuable international partner that should be seen as an equal to the United States. But, unfortunately, the reality is quite a bit different.

Like a child stuck between two divorced parents, African leaders found themselves in the uncomfortable and insulting position of listening to President Biden tell them how special they are and try to buy their love in the hopes that they will rethink their partnerships with China.

But, as usual, our reactive foreign policy will cost the taxpayer billions and do little to help anybody, except maybe China.

It’s Only Money

This week President Biden promised a cumulative of about $55 billion over the next three years to the continent of Africa, chump change in comparison to our investment in Ukraine, but still quite the Christmas check if you ask me. However, it was an announcement related explicitly to South Africa that caught a fair amount of criticism.

President Biden announced:

“Today’s announcement joined a portfolio of partnership for global infrastructure investment projects already underway in Africa. Including mobilizing $8 billion in public and private finance to help South Africa replace coal-fired power plants with renewable energy sources.”

Keep in mind that South Africa is the third largest economy in Africa, behind Egypt and Nigeria. In addition, President Biden continued to list out other investments across the continent:

“…develop cutting edge energy solutions like clean hydrogen, a deal worth $2 billion to build solar energy projects in Angola, $600 million high speed communications cables that will connect Southeast Asia to Europe via Egypt and the Horn of Africa…”

So why the push to cozy up to Africa, particularly when plenty of these African countries can fund their own projects?

Stuck In The Middle

Say what you want about China, but you can’t deny their foreign policy and international strategic maneuvering are impressive. For example, over the last few years, China has dumped close to $700 billion into infrastructure loans in Africa.

Why the interest in Africa? Just as Africa was known for its diamonds, its also highly sought after for its minerals, specifically cobalt and lithium.

For China, that means cornering the market on minerals used in the coveted batteries everyone needs, particularly our country, to power everything from our phones to our war machines. For the Biden administration, that means stripping Africa of the materials needed to build all those electric vehicles they want to force us all to purchase. 

RELATED: Record-Breaking ‘Defense’ Bill Wastes Unfathomable Amounts on Dysfunctional, Unwanted Weapons Systems

The investment in Africa has also enabled China to build its first overseas military installation in Djibouti in 2017, and they have their eyes set on a second base in Equatorial Guinea.

China has already extended its global reach economically and politically, and now that they have started stretching its military reach into Africa, that will undoubtedly have future repercussions for the United States and the world at large.

We Just Want To Be Friends

Suppose you listen to what the President said to the African leaders this week.

In that case, you’d almost believe that our pledge to invest in their countries isn’t about China but our desire to treat them as equals. According to the President, the goal “is not to create political obligation or foster independence” but to do our part to help Africa “succeed.” 

RELATED: Climate Activist Pete Buttigieg Took Twice as Many Taxpayer-Funded Private Jet Flights as His Predecessor

Copying a page from his domestic policy speeches, the President promised:

“The United States is all in on Africa’s future. Together we want to build a future of opportunity where no one, no one is left behind.”

He even went so far as to do what Democrat leaders tend to do best and apologize for how terrible our country is, harkening back to the past:

“We remember the stolen men and women and children who were brought to our shores in chains, subjected to unimaginable cruelty – my nation’s original sin was that period.”

Curious if the African countries view their ancestor’s role in selling their men, women, and children into slavery as their original sin. It brings up an interesting follow-up question: are the African nations ready to be considered on par with the United States?

Strange Bedfellows

Africa isn’t necessarily known for its civility, democracies, or advancement in human rights. It’s known for government corruption, with South Africa, in particular, making international news not that long ago.

South African President Cyril Ramaphosa narrowly dodged an impeachment over a scandal dubbed ‘FarmGate.’ Allegedly he had neglected to disclose to authorities after his farm was robbed that anywhere from $4 million to $8 million in U.S. cash was snatched that he had stored in his sofa.

There is nothing suspect there at all; utterly normal behavior for an African leader. But unfortunately, the continent has also become a welcome location for terrorist organizations to set up training and planning camps.

RELATED: Democrat Claims Any Desire to Track Money Sent to Ukraine is Evil Russian Propaganda

The two most notable groups are Boko Haram in west Africa and Al-Shabaab in the Horn of Africa. No doubt, two groups that have also benefited from China’s ongoing investment in Africa.

So while the Biden administration never backs off of an opportunity to accuse its own citizens of racism, extremism, and violence, it has no problems sending your taxpayer dollars to countries that welcome terrorists, steal from their own people, and in many ways still participate in the original sin our President apologized for.

Modern-Day Risk

I don’t believe any of the African leaders here this week for the summit think they are being used as anything other than cold war pawns between us and China. But, unfortunately, our interest is typically too much too late.

The Chinese infrastructure investments have included spreading Huawei communications far and wide, a company that came under fire in our own country for posing a significant national security risk. As the deputy assistant secretary for African affairs, Chidi Blyden, explains:

“China’s Huawei network, which is very robust across the continent, makes it hard for us to be able to work with African partners who may adopt some of these systems.”

But, thanks to the cover story of climate change, our country has thrown money at other countries in an attempt to build up our international presence and their dependence on us. For example, at the G20 summit, we pledged to partner with the United Kingdom in sending $10 billion to Indonesia to transition their country to renewable energy.

And we also bought into sending part of the $15.5 billion to Vietnam for the same. The world is starting to look more and more like the board game Risk; who will end up winning? Doubtful it will be Africa or any other countries we pretend to care about.

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Texas Gov. Abbott Calls for Investigation into Groups Assisting With Illegal Entry into US

Posted on by The Center Square

By Bethany Blankley (The Center Square)

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott has called for an investigation into the role non-governmental organizations are playing in helping foreign nationals illegally enter Texas from Mexico.

Abbott sent a letter Wednesday to Attorney General Ken Paxton requesting that his office “initiate an investigation into the role of NGOs in planning and facilitating the illegal transportation of illegal immigrants across our borders.”

RELATED: Biden Scoffs at Suggestion to Visit Border: ‘There Are More Important Things’ To Do

With the public health authority Title 42 slated to end Dec. 23, the number of people illegally entering Texas has reached an all-time high. Over a 24-hour period on Sunday, more than 2,600 people crossed the Rio Grande River near El Paso and illegally entered Texas.

Abbott writes, “there have been reports that NGOs may have assisted with” these illegal border crossings” and “may be engaged in unlawfully orchestrating other border crossings through activities on both sides of the border, including in sectors other than El Paso.”

Not only did he call for an investigation, but he also said he and the state legislature were willing to craft “any sensible legislative solutions” Paxton’s office might propose to solve “the ongoing border crisis and the role that NGOs may play in encouraging it.”

Abbott’s call came after Border Patrol El Paso Sector Chief Peter Jaquez announced, “Over the weekend, the El Paso Sector experienced a major surge in illegal crossings, with a 3-day average of 2,460 daily encounters, primarily through the downtown area of El Paso.”

The El Paso Sector, which covers two west Texas counties and all of New Mexico, has become a destination of illegal entry orchestrated by the cartels and the Mexican government. In November, the number who illegally entered the El Paso Sector was greater than the individual populations of all cities in New Mexico except for four.

RELATED: Republicans Call for Impeachment of Biden’s DHS Chief Over Border Invasion

Fox News captured some of the crossings on video, saying one group of 1,000 was the largest single group it had ever recorded. It also reported that “Border Patrol now has over 5,000 in custody and has released hundreds to city streets.”


Prior to entering El Paso, the foreign nationals were “dropped off” at an NGO in Mexico before they crossed into Texas illegally, Fox News reported.

“Video from one of the passengers inside one of the migrant buses showing their Mexican police escort, as well as a photo of part of the huge group walking to the border after they were dropped off at NGOs in Ciudad Juarez,” Fox News reported.

Publishing video and photographs online, Fox News showed a caravan of nearly 20 buses full of foreign nationals being “escorted by Mexican police into Ciudad Juarez before they crossed en masse into El Paso.”


On Monday, BP Chief Raul Ortiz announced that BP agents in the last 48 hours reported more than 16,000 encounters with illegal foreign nationals along the entire southern border. They also confiscated over $97 million in narcotics and four firearms and apprehended three gang members, two sex offenders, and two murderers.

RELATED: Record Number of Border Apprehensions, Gotaways in November

This is after a record number of over 306,000 illegally entered the U.S. through the southern border in November, according to preliminary data obtained by The Center Square.

“These numbers are likely to increase in the coming weeks,” Abbott said. “Although the burden to address the ongoing border crisis should not fall to Texas, the federal government has failed to take action to address this problem.”

While Abbott has taken unprecedented action to secure the border, he has yet to officially declare an invasion and repel it, something the Republican Party of Texas and at least 40 county judges have called on him to do. The Texas Military Department and Texas law enforcement are not preventing illegal entry as evidenced by the surge at the border, which is only expected to intensify, critics argue.

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Republicans Call for Impeachment of Biden’s DHS Chief Over Border Invasion

Posted on by The Center Square

By Casey Harper (The Center Square)

A group of U.S. House Republicans on Tuesday called for the impeachment of Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas.

The lawmakers, led by U.S. Rep. Andy Biggs, R-Ariz., made their remarks during a news conference outside the Capitol Building, calling for Mayorkas’ impeachment amid the soaring number of illegal immigrants crossing into the U.S.

RELATED: Record Number of Border Apprehensions, Gotaways in November

“Every day he remains in office, America is less safe,” Biggs said.

U.S. Customs and Border Protection have released a steady stream of figures showing that the number of illegal immigrants entering through the southern border has soared to record levels since President Joe Biden took office.

Those numbers are poised to get worse. Trump-era Title 42 protections that allowed feds to expel migrants more quickly because of COVID-19 concerns are set to expire later this month, and experts predict a surge of illegal immigrants are awaiting that expiration.

RELATED: Biden Scoffs at Suggestion to Visit Border: ‘There Are More Important Things’ To Do

Some areas, like El Paso, are seeing thousands of migrants cross over each day.

Those larger numbers of migrants have also brought large quantities of fentanyl, a deadly drug that is trafficked in the U.S. via cartels. Fentanyl overdoses have soared in recent years as well.

Some in the Senate have echoed the criticism of Mayorkas.

RELATED: Europe Shows a Clear Link Between Immigration and Crime – Like the One the U.S. Seriously Downplays

“The southern border has been an issue for a long time,” said Sen. Marsha Blackburn, R-Tenn. “Secretary Mayorkas only showed back up when the mainstream media caved and reported on the issue.”

Syndicated with permission from The Center Square.

The post Republicans Call for Impeachment of Biden’s DHS Chief Over Border Invasion appeared first on The Political Insider.

McCarthy Speaker quest leaves balancing act on national security

Posted on (Updated by Rebecca Beitsch

House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) is toeing a delicate line on national security issues in the lame-duck session as he seeks to win enough votes on the House floor to win the Speakership in January.

McCarthy is torn between competing factions of the GOP as he weighs a series of moves targeting the Biden administration and other Washington Democrats in the next Congress — all while trying to convince conservative GOP lawmakers to back him for Speaker.

He’s vowed to boot California Democratic Reps. Adam Schiff and Eric Swalwell off the House Intelligence Committee and Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-Minn.) from the House Foreign Affairs Committee. He’s also threatened to impeach Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas for his handling of the southern border.

And McCarthy has indicated he will withhold GOP support for a lame-duck vote on a bipartisan defense policy bill as a way to fight “wokeism” in the military.  

If the delay is successful, it would mark the first time in more than 60 years that has Congress failed to reauthorize Pentagon spending by the end of a calendar year; the delay would allow a GOP House to take it up next year.

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Democrats have blasted McCarthy’s plans to boot Democrats from panels as purely political, while Republicans say Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) set Congress on that slippery slope when House Democrats impeached former President Trump twice and later expelled two Republicans from their committee seats.

The House voted last year to punish Rep. Paul Gosar (R-Ariz.) for sharing an animated video showing him killing Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.). Rep. Marjorie Taylor Green (R-Ga.) was removed months earlier for promoting the execution of leading Democrats before she was elected to office. 

McCarthy blamed Democrats for “this new standard.”

“Never in the history [of Congress] have you had the majority tell the minority who can be on committee,” McCarthy said at the start of 2022. “This is a new level of what the Democrats have done.”

For Schiff, McCarthy has zeroed in on his role in the investigation into Trump’s ties to Russia, accusing him of lying to the public about the former president’s ties to Moscow and Hunter Biden’s work in Ukraine. He’s bashed Swalwell for his ties to a Chinese spy with whom he cut off contact after being warned of her true identity by the FBI.

Schiff said his targeting is nothing more than an effort by McCarthy to win support for his Speakership bid.

McCarthy was elected Speaker-designate in a closed-door GOP conference vote, but lost 31 votes. He will need to win over many of them to be elected Speaker on the House floor.

“McCarthy’s problem is not with what I have said about Russia. McCarthy’s problem is, he can’t get to 218 without Marjorie Taylor Greene and Paul Gosar and Matt Gaetz,” Schiff said Sunday during an appearance on CNN’s “State of the Union." 

“And so he will do whatever they ask. And, right now, they’re asking for me to be removed from our committees. And he’s willing to do it. He’s willing to do anything they ask.”

The Mayorkas fight reflects the awkward line that McCarthy is trying to walk.

He courted conservative votes last week by vowing an investigation of Mayorkas but did not fully embrace an impeachment vote, allowing himself wiggle room to change his mind next year.

“If Secretary Mayorkas does not resign, House Republicans will investigate. Every order, every action and every failure will determine whether we can begin impeachment inquiry,” McCarthy said at a press conference in El Paso, Texas.

In an appearance on ABC’s “This Week,” Rep. Michael McCaul (R-Texas) expressed doubt the GOP would be able to impeach Mayorkas swiftly.

“You’ve got to build a case. You need the facts, evidence before you indict. Has he been derelict in his responsibilities? I think so,” he said.

Other Republicans, however, want to go full steam ahead, suggesting anything short of Mayorkas’s removal would put the country’s security at risk.

“He needs to go,” Rep. Ronnie Jackson (R-Texas) told Fox News on Sunday. “We need to make an example of Mayorkas. And he will be just the start of what we do in this new Congress.”

Other Republicans have dismissed an impeachment vote as a stunt.

“It would basically be putting form over substance to go through a big performance on impeachment that’s never going anywhere,” former Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff, a George W. Bush appointee, said over the weekend, “rather than actually working with the administration to solve the problem.”

McCarthy also faces divisions on delaying the defense bill, as some Republicans want to move forward and also pull back from threats to limit support for Ukraine. 

McCarthy says he wants to pump the breaks on the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) and another round of funding to aid Ukraine in its battle against Russia, saying he wouldn’t back a “blank check.”

“I’ve watched what the Democrats have done on many of these things, especially the NDAA — the wokeism that they want to bring in there,” McCarthy told reporters shortly after the midterms. “I actually believe the NDAA should hold up until the 1st of this year — and let’s get it right.”

McCarthy is far from the only Republican with complaints about the NDAA. Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) put out a report slamming the “Woke Warfighters” of the Pentagon. But McCarthy is also facing pressure from the right.

“Let’s hold the bill hostage. Let’s leverage what we have,” Rep. Andy Biggs (R-Ariz.), who opposes McCarthy’s Speakership bid, recently said on a podcast. 

Democrats and the Biden administration argue a delay will hurt the military.

“If you kick it off four, five, six months, you are really damaging the United States military. So I hope Kevin McCarthy understands that,” House Armed Services Committee Chairman Adam Smith (D-Wash.) said. “You are damaging the United States military every day past Oct. 1 that you don’t get it done, and certainly more so every day past" Jan. 1.

On Ukraine, some Republicans have bristled at the idea of holding back any funding as the country continues to make advances against Russia.

“We're going to make certain they get what they need,” House Intelligence Committee ranking member Mike Turner (R-Ohio) said in an appearance alongside McCaul.

“The fact is, we are going to provide more oversight, transparency and accountability. We're not going to write a blank check,” McCaul added. “Does that diminish our will to help the Ukraine people fight? No. But we're going to do it in a responsible way.” 

McCarthy calls on DHS Secretary Mayorkas to resign, threatens impeachment inquiry

Posted on (Updated by Emily Brooks

House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) called on Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas to resign over his handling of the U.S.-Mexico border, saying that GOP lawmakers will consider impeachment next year if he does not step down.

“If Secretary Mayorkas does not resign, House Republicans will investigate, every order, every action and every failure will determine whether we can begin impeachment inquiry,” McCarthy said at a press conference in El Paso, Texas, on Tuesday.

McCarthy cited the Department of Homeland Security head's statements to Congress that the border is under control, record border crossing numbers and his ending of the "Remain in Mexico" asylum policy instituted during the Trump administration as reasons for resignation.

“Our country may never recover from Secretary Mayorkas’s dereliction of duty,” McCarthy said.

The comments from the minority leader are his strongest words on impeachment to date, but they fall short of a promise to bring up articles against Mayorkas.

McCarthy was nominated by House Republicans to serve as Speaker in the next Congress last week during a closed-door vote.

But he still faces opposition from hard-line conservatives, who called on him to be more aggressive on topics including the impeachment of Biden administration officials and President Biden himself.

Rep. Andy Biggs (R-Ariz.), the former chairman of the House Freedom Caucus, mounted a last-minute protest challenge to McCarthy for Speaker, citing the minority leader's lack of commitment to impeach Mayorkas. Biggs has previously introduced articles of impeachment against the administration official. He won 31 votes in the secret-ballot House Republican Conference meeting, while McCarthy received 188.

McCarthy needs support from a majority of those voting for a Speaker candidate on the House floor on Jan. 3 in order to be elected to the post.

But Republicans won a narrow majority in the 2022 midterms, and McCarthy has little wiggle room for error on that vote. A few Republicans, including Biggs, have indicated that they will not vote for him.

The press conference with other House GOP members came after a day of touring the U.S.-Mexico border and meeting with border officials.

McCarthy said that Republican Reps. Jim Jordan (Ohio) and James Comer (Ky.), the likely chairs of the House Judiciary and Oversight Committees next year, “have my complete support to investigate the collapse of our border, and the shutdown of ICE enforcement.”

“Leader McCarthy is right. Americans deserve accountability for the unprecedented crisis on the southwest border. Republicans will hold Secretary Mayorkas accountable for his failure to enforce immigration law and secure the border through all means necessary,” Jordan, who would oversee impeachment proceedings if they occurred, said in a statement distributed during the press conference.

Republicans made a pledge to investigate the Biden administration’s border and migration policies a key part of their midterm campaign message, and Comer has long said he will hold hearings about the border. House Minority Whip Steve Scalise (R-La.) joked in September that the House GOP would give Mayorkas a reserved parking spot because he would be testifying so often.

Mayorkas, who has no plans to resign, pushed back on Congress in a statement issued shortly after McCarthy's speech.

“Secretary Mayorkas is proud to advance the noble mission of this Department, support its extraordinary workforce, and serve the American people. The Department will continue our work to enforce our laws and secure our border, while building a safe, orderly, and humane immigration system,” the Department of Homeland Security said in a statement.

“Members of Congress can do better than point the finger at someone else; they should come to the table and work on solutions for our broken system and outdated laws, which have not been overhauled in over 40 years,” the statement continued. 

In appearances before Congress last week, Mayorkas maintained that the border is under control, but he acknowledged that the fiscal year ending in September showed that a record 1.7 million migrants attempted to cross the Southwest border.

“The entire hemisphere is suffering a migration crisis. We are seeing unprecedented movement of people from country to country,” he said.

He also pledged to look for new ways to restrict immigration now that a federal court has struck down Title 42, which allowed the agency to quickly expel migrants without seeking asylum due to public health concerns.

Mayorkas said the department is currently evaluating how to expel Venezuelans at the border, a group that makes up a large part of migrants coming to America given the political and economic instability there.

The latest calls for Mayorkas to resign come shortly after U.S. Customs and Border Protection Commissioner Chris Magnus resigned from his position after being asked to do so by President Biden.

McCarthy first appeared to open the door to impeachment of Mayorkas at another press conference in April. 

“This is his moment in time to do his job. But at any time if someone is derelict in their job, there is always the option of impeaching somebody,” McCarthy said at an April press conference in Eagle Pass, Texas.

But he later tamped down expectations for impeachment, saying that he does not want the procedure to be political as he claimed Democrats' impeachment of former President Trump was. McCarthy reiterated that sentiment on Tuesday in El Paso.

“We never do impeachment for political purposes. We’re having investigation,” McCarthy said. 

“We know exactly what Secretary Mayorkas has done. We've watched across this nation, something that’s never happened before. We watched him time and again before committee say this border is secure, and we can't find one border agent who agrees with him,” McCarthy said. “So we will investigate. If investigation leads to impeachment inquiry, we will follow through.”

Rebecca Beitsch contributed.