Arizona Representatives React to Schumer's Dismissal of Mayorkas Trial

U.S. Capitol

House Republicans sought to have Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro Mayorkas impeached due to his handling of the border crisis. However, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) moved to dismiss the Senate jury trial, claiming the impeachment illegitimate and politicized. Several Arizona Republicans aired their frustrations on X (formerly Twitter), while Arizona Democrats said the grounds for impeachment did not meet high crime and misdemeanor standards.

"Unsurprisingly, Senate Democrats unanimously voted to dismiss the impeachment charges against Alejandro Mayorkas. They refused to even hold a trial. Democrats have American blood on their hands," Representative Andy Biggs (R-AZ) declared.

Similarly, Representative Eli Crane (R-AZ) accused Democrats of being "complicit in the destruction of our communities by continuing to allow Mayorkas to usher in terrorists, fentanyl, & gangs," because they "refused to hold a trial for Secretary Mayorkas’ intentionally orchestrated invasion at our southern border."

Representative Juan Ciscomani (R-AZ) said he was "disappointed" by Sen. Schumer's decision, accusing Sec. Mayorkas of having "fanned the flames of the border crisis & Americans deserve a transparent, thorough investigation. Yet the Senate dismissed that chance in a matter of minutes."

Just before Sen. Schumer's decision, Representative Debbie Lesko (R-AZ) said, "The Senate has a constitutional responsibility to conduct the Mayorkas impeachment trial – anything less is a violation of public trust and the Constitution. The American people deserve a secure border and Secretary Mayorkas has failed them."

As mentioned, Arizona Democrats argued the grounds for impeaching Sec. Mayorkas did not qualify as high crimes and misdemeanors, instead, they were about "policy disagreements," as Representative Raul Grijalva (D-AZ) suggested.

"The Senate's action to dismiss the Mayorkas impeachment articles was warranted as there was no evidence that he committed any unlawful actions. Policy disagreements are not grounds for impeachment," said Rep. Grijalva before criticizing Republicans as enacting "political stunts" and demanding "real immigration solutions."

Similarly, Senator Mark Kelly (D-AZ) chastised the impeachment effort as "all about politics, and it doesn’t fix the challenges we’re facing at the border," adding, "Just like when my Republican colleagues walked away from a bipartisan border bill, there are a lot of politicians who would rather talk about problems than solve them."

His colleague Senator Kyrsten Sinema (I-AZ) was more neutral in her response, saying while she agreed the Biden Administration has failed to secure the border, "serious and honest policy disagreements do not meet the constitutional standard for impeachment."

Grayson Bakich

Florida born and raised, Grayson Bakich is a recent recipient of a Master’s Degree in Political Science at the University of Central Florida. His thesis examined recent trends in political polarization and how this leads into justification of violence.