Republican senators are planning to obstruct legislative business in the Senate if they don’t get a full trial into the articles of impeachment against Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas.
Roughly a dozen GOP senators have been discussing this plan for more than a week, intending to prevent any legislative proceedings from moving forward until points of order are agreed to in the impeachment trial of Mayorkas.
The Senate typically operates on unanimous consent, meaning any single senator can object to proceedings. Discussions have been ongoing since last week about the specific procedural steps needed for the impeachment trial once the articles arrive in the Senate.
Chief Alejandro Mayorkas (Credits: NPR)
Sen. Mike Lee of Utah described the negotiation process for the procedural aspects of the impeachment proceedings, while Sen. John Kennedy of Louisiana noted that Senate president pro tempore Patty Murray would preside over the proceedings, potentially limiting opportunities for Republican senators to make points of order.
Several senators voiced support for slowing or stopping legislative business if the impeachment trial proceeds. The plan is seen as a mechanism to pressure Democrats into negotiating the terms of the impeachment trial.
House Speaker Mike Johnson of Louisiana decided to delay delivering the articles to the Senate until next week, facing pressure from GOP senators who preferred not to hold the trial ahead of a weekend recess. However, if Democrats seek to table the impeachment trial next week, Republican senators could still object to basic procedural measures.
Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas (Credits: CNN)
Republican senators discussed this plan during a Senate lunch, and it received support without any dismissals. The obstruction would involve objecting to motions to adjourn, recess, and proceed to executive business, among other procedural actions, in an effort to bring Democrats to the negotiating table.
Sen. Mike Lee’s partial objection during the Senate’s daily wrap-up on Monday evening signaled the beginnings of Republican blowback against Democrats dismissing impeachment trial proceedings against Mayorkas. Lee’s objection aimed to demonstrate the difficulties Republicans could introduce in the Senate, prompting procedural hurdles to be cleared.
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and the White House Counsel’s office did not immediately provide comment on the matter.
