How Al Green and the Democrats sank the Mayorkas impeachment vote

[House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La.]
“The Resolution is not adopted.”

[RAY BOGAN] 

Republicans failed to impeach Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas Tuesday night in a 214-216 vote. Three Republicans joined every Democrat to kill the impeachment resolution. 

Technically, if you look at the scoreboard, four Republicans opposed the measure,

but one member of GOP leadership, Congressman Blake Moore,

changed his vote to “no” at the very end which will allow them to bring it up for a second vote at a later date. 

That’s exactly what they plan to do as soon as next week. 

[Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene]

“There hasn’t been a failure yet. We’re going to bring it back.” 

[RAY BOGAN] 

House Majority Leader Steve Scalise missed the vote because he’s receiving cancer treatment. If everyone votes the same way when he returns, the resolution should be approved 216-215.  

Tuesday night’s failure went beyond Scalise’s absence. During a vote on another bill just minutes before,

Democratic Congressman Al Green was absent; everyone thought he was in the hospital. 

So when Republican leadership counted who was there they determined the impeachment resolution would pass by a single vote based on attendance. Little did they know that Green had checked himself out of the hospital and rolled into the Capitol on a wheelchair to cast his “no”  vote, making it a tie, and a tie vote fails. 

[Rep. Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y.]

Jeffries: “Al Green is a great American, a great patriot.// He made it clear to me that it was important for him to be present to cast a vote against the sham impeachment, led by Marjorie Taylor Greene targeting a hard working public servant, like Secretary Mayorkas.” 

[RAY BOGAN] 

The Republicans who voted against impeachment are Representatives Tom McClintock, Ken Buck and Mike Gallagher. 

McClintok released a ten page letter explaining his opposition beforehand. Buck also announced he’d vote no ahead of time. Gallagher was a surprise. 

He said in a statement: “Secretary Mayorkas has faithfully implemented President Biden’s open border policies and helped create the dangerous crisis at the southern border. But the proponents of impeachment failed to make the argument as to how this stunning incompetence meets the impeachment threshold Republicans outlined while defending former President Trump.” 

There was mixed reaction from Republicans about their colleagues who voted no. 

[Rep. Carlos Gimenez, R-FL]

“They think it’s on constitutional grounds. They certainly don’t believe that he’s done a good job. But no, I have no problem with them. And no, it doesn’t concern me at all.” 

[Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-GA]

“I would really love to see them go home and talk to their voters, the people that hired them to come here. I know that several of them have very strong Republican districts.”

[RAY BOGAN] 

Some Republicans appear to be holding out hope that at least one of them may change their mind and vote to impeach. Congresswoman Greene said they need to think about it over the weekend. Straight from DC, I’m Ray Bogan.