Romney calls for Senate debate on Mayorkas articles of impeachment

One of the leading Republican skeptics of the effort to remove Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas over his handling of the southern border is calling for debate on his impeachment as Democrats consider a quick dismissal of the charges against him.

Sen. Mitt Romney (R-UT), who is retiring from the Senate in January, is one of a handful of Republican centrists who could vote with Democrats to dismiss the impeachment articles once senators are sworn in for what could be an abbreviated trial on Wednesday.

He previously said Mayorkas, who is charged with willfully ignoring federal immigration law, has not committed the “high crimes and misdemeanors” that would warrant impeachment.

But he, like other Senate Republicans, told reporters on Tuesday that he does not want to see the impeachment articles, which passed the House in February, dismissed without some semblance of process.

Democrats are widely expected to offer a motion to table them soon after the Senate convenes for the trial.

“I want to have a debate and discussion of the articles of impeachment, whether that’s in trial or in committee or whether there’s a time limit, but I don’t think that there should be a tabling without any process whatsoever,” he said.

Romney’s comments, made shortly before House managers walk the articles of impeachment over to the Senate, have injected fresh uncertainty into the Mayorkas trial. Leadership is already attempting to negotiate a series of motions Republicans can offer to register their protest.

Democrats have denounced the impeachment as politically motivated, and they believe Mayorkas is being censured for what amounts to a policy disagreement. But Republicans have largely said skipping a trial altogether would be a damaging break in precedent.

Romney is not alone in his call for order. Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-AK), another centrist who has signaled interest in scrapping a trial, similarly called for a process, though she did not say whether that includes debate on the impeachment articles.

“I think it’s going to be better for everybody if there’s a process,” she told the Washington Examiner.

Senate Republicans have proposed different venues for a Mayorkas trial. Sen. Mike Lee (R-UT), who is obstructing floor business over the expected dismissal, wants the homeland secretary to be tried before the full Senate, while Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) has proposed a select committee.

Democratic leadership is expected to make minor concessions, including a handful of points of order that allow Republicans to raise possible violations of Senate rules. But they appear to be poised to move forward without a trial.

CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER

Sen. John Thune (R-SD), the No. 2 Republican in the Senate, told reporters the impeachment would be the subject of the GOP conference lunch on Tuesday.

“We have people who are in different places on how to handle and process the articles,” Thune said. “Clearly, we all want a trial, which the Democrats aren’t going to give us. The question is, you know, what does the process look like?”