Manchin dismisses Mayorkas impeachment

An impeachment trial for DHS Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas in the Senate? Not happening, says Joe Manchin.

The moderate West Virginia senator, no fan of President Joe Biden’s handling of the border, dismissed the House’s plans to impeach Mayorkas in a Thursday interview. The House is slated to vote on impeachment next week, but that could be the end of the story in Congress.

“It’s crap. Pure crap. No trial at all, it’s ridiculous. The trial will be in November. No. You start that craziness and play games and that stuff?” Manchin said. Cabinet officials “work for the president. You got a problem, go to the polls.”

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer declined to say how the Senate might handle Mayorkas’ impeachment this week, but there appears to be no appetite to hold a trial, particularly among Senate Democrats.

The Senate can dismiss a trial with a simple majority of votes — and some Republicans don’t want to have one either.

Sen. Jon Tester (D-Mont.), who is up for reelection, said he’ll look at it but “it’s hard for me to see what ground they are going to impeach him on.”

“Are they going to impeach him because people are coming across the border? Then pass the goddamn” border bill, Tester said.