Mayorkas facing articles of impeachment from GOP lawmaker

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GOP lawmaker announces articles of impeachment against Mayorkas

Arizona Republican Rep. Andy Biggs argues why the DHS secretary must be removed on 'Tucker Carlson Tonight.'

House Judiciary Committee member Andy Biggs, R-Ariz., announced he will bring articles of impeachment against Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas Tuesday on "Tucker Carlson Tonight."

Biggs, a member of the conservative House Freedom Caucus, said it is the responsibility of Congress to "remove a public official from office … who is causing public harm," citing the Founding Fathers' intents.

The lawmaker said he has been questioned about his plan, because Mayorkas has not been charged with any felonies or misdemeanors – in the vein of the impeachment clause's "high crimes and misdemeanors."

"High crimes means that you are a public official, and you have violated the public trust, and you have to be removed," Biggs said.

MAYORKAS SAYS HE WILL NOT RESIGN OVER BORDER CRISIS, INSISTS HE IS PREPARED FOR GOP INVESTIGATIONS

Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas pauses during testimony before the House Judiciary Committee, on Capitol Hill, Thursday, April 28, 2022, in Washington. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci) (AP)

Mayorkas, a Cuba native who grew up in Beverly Hills, Calif. after his family fled the Castros, has been under fire for his handling of the southern border crisis, with Republicans like Biggs claiming he has failed to adjudicate standing federal immigration laws, and instead has overseen a deluge of illegal immigrants.

"He basically got rid of every policy [from the Trump-era and prior] that was working," Biggs said on "Tucker Carlson Tonight."

The lawmaker, who hails from the Tucson area, said the Yuma border sector saw fewer than 9,000 illegal immigrant encounters prior to the Biden-Mayorkas administration. In 2022, that same sector saw 360,000 such encounters, according to Biggs.

"Quite frankly, the first thing that goes when a country is actually devolving is when you lose your geographical integrity," he said, adding that it is clear to him Mayorkas is intentionally causing chaos in his own country.

"And Secretary Mayorkas – that's his main job  -- he has willfully imposed his own dangerous policies on us. It's not negligence. It's not incompetence. It's willful."

Biggs is not the first House lawmaker to take a strong stand against Mayorkas' job performance.

(AP Photo/Andrew Harnik -- AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)

In November, Biggs' fellow Arizonan, Rep. Debbie Lesko, called on the secretary to step down or face investigation by the newly-GOP-led chamber

In April, Rep. Ken Buck, R-Colo., told the secretary during a hearing that he heard from many constituents, asking when such an impeachment would be forthcoming – with some comparing Mayorkas to the infamous Continental Army officer who conspired with British Maj. John Andre to surrender the Patriots' fort at West Point, New York during the Revolution:

"They don't believe that you've committed a high crime, and they don't believe you've committed a misdemeanor. My constituents want you impeached because they believe you've committed treason. They believe you're a traitor. They compare you to Benedict Arnold," Buck said during the hearing.

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At the time, Mayorkas returned a stern gaze and called the accusations "so profoundly offensive on so many different levels."

"Let me share with you quite succinctly: I am incredibly proud of my service to this country. It is more than 20 years of service in the civilian corps, as a federal prosecutor and as a member of the Department of Homeland Security," he replied.