WASHINGTON – House Speaker Mike Johnson will delay sending articles until next week impeachment Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas v. Senate, his spokesman said, Senate Republicans are considering ways to inflict political pain on Democrats, including threatening to suspend the upper chamber.
Johnson had originally planned to send the articles to the Senate on Wednesday. Taylor Haulsee, a spokesman for Johnson, said the House will send the articles of impeachment to the Senate next week to ensure the Senate has adequate time to do its constitutional duty.
Johnson’s decision came after Senate Republicans urged the speaker to delay sending the articles to give senators more time to discuss the issue earlier in the week, rather than later this week, when lawmakers are set to return to their home states.
“It just doesn’t make sense for them to spend all their time and effort highlighting the abuse of this administration [the articles] Come here and get drunk,” said Sen. Ron Johnson, U.S is close to the speaker and one of the senators who personally called him to silence.
Senate Democrats, who control the chamber, were expected to vote quickly this week to reject or discuss Mallorca’s two articles of impeachment and move on to other business. But Republicans have spent this week demanding that the Senate hold a full Senate hearing focused on the administration of Mallorca. border security.
“There is no reason for the Senate to abdicate its responsibility to hold an impeachment trial,” Haulsee said.
On Tuesday, some Republicans issued a new threat to Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y.: If he doesn’t agree to full testing, Republicans could begin a procedural blockade of all Senate business and shut down the chamber. .
Noting that the Senate “operates by unanimity” – where all 100 senators must agree to perform basic functions such as adjournment of the chamber – Sen. Johnson warned: “Going forward, we may not secure that consent.” hold court.
The effect would be, in short, chaotic.
Sen. Eric Schmitt, R-Mo., also left the door open for a GOP blockade, saying “there has to be a real cost to Chuck Schumer in my personal opinion.”
The days-long delay would give the GOP a few extra days to negotiate the articles and prevent the other party from firing them.
“I’m very grateful to Speaker Johnson for wanting to delay this,” said Sen. Mike Lee of Utah. The GOP has called for full testing in the Senate. “We don’t want this to happen on the eve of a moment when members could be acting under the influence of jet fuel intoxication. That was the exact plan and it would be better for us to do it at the beginning of the legislative week, not towards the end.”
Sahil Kapoor, Frank Thorpe W, Rebecca Kaplan and Syedah Asghar contributed.