(The Center Square) – U.S. Rep. Andy Biggs, a Republican from Arizona, said Wednesday he will introduce impeachment articles against Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas for dereliction of duty in protecting our nation’s borders, claiming it constituted high crimes and misdemeanors.
Biggs was the first member of Congress to introduce articles of impeachment against Mayorokas when he did it in August 2021, according to a news release.
It’s rare for a presidential cabinet member to be impeached. The last time a cabinet member was impeached was in 1876. That’s when Secretary of War William Belknap was impeached by the House but was later acquitted of all charges, according to Ballotpedia.
In January, U.S. Rep. Pat Fallon, a Republican from Texas, also filed articles of impeachment against Mayorkas.
The Democrats had control of the House before the November 2022 midterm election so impeachment motions prior to the election by Republicans didn’t move forward.
The border crisis has caused several counties in Texas to declare an invasion of immigrants crossing the border.
The Center Square reported U.S. Border Patrol agents arrested 38 people on the FBI’s Terrorist Screening Database during the first quarter of fiscal 2023. Border patrol agents apprehended a record 98 on the FBI’s terrorist list in fiscal 2022.
