The Department of Homeland Securityon Wednesday pushed back against GOP House Leader Kevin McCarthy’s call for Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas to step down or potentially face impeachment — with the agency saying lawmakers can “do better than point the finger at someone else” for the problems at the southern border.
“Secretary Mayorkas is proud to advance the noble mission of this Department, support its extraordinary workforce, and serve the American people,” a DHS spokesperson told Fox News Digital. “The Department will continue our work to enforce our laws and secure our border, while building a safe, orderly, and humane immigration system.”
McCarthy, who is seen as favorite to take over as speaker when Republicans take control of the House next year, held a press conference at the southern border on Tuesday, when he said the DHS chief must resign or face potential impeachment due to his handling of the migrant crisis.
“His actions have produced the great wave of illegal immigration in recorded history,” McCarthy said at the press conference in El Paso, Texas. “This is why today I am calling on the secretary to resign.”
“He cannot and must not remain in that position,” he said. “If Secretary Mayorkas does not resign, House Republicans will investigate every order, every action and every failure to determine whether we can begin an impeachment inquiry.”
McCarthy’s comments mark some of the strongest from Republican leadership about Mayorkas, who has faced enormous criticism from lawmakers over the migrant crisis — which has seen a historic wave of migration at the border. There were more than 1.7 million migrant encounters in fiscal year 2021 and more than 2.3 million in fiscal year 2022. Meanwhile, so far in fiscal year 2023, there were over 230,000 migrant encounters in October — the highest number for October in years. Additionally, there has been a daily average of more than 2,500 “gotaways” getting past Border Patrol agents.
