US House panel to hold Mayorkas impeachment hearing January 10

Republican House Speaker Mike Johnson approved the effort, his office said. Republicans have slammed Democratic President Joe Biden over border control as record numbers of migrants have been caught crossing the U.S.-Mexico border illegally, with criticism focused on Mayorkas, Biden's top border official.

A Republican-led U.S. House of Representatives committee next week will advance an effort to impeach Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas over allegations he has been derelict in his duty of managing the U.S.-Mexico border, the committee announced on Wednesday. The House Homeland Security Committee will hold a hearing on Jan. 10 related to the impeachment allegations with witnesses to be announced in the coming days, it said in a press release. Republican House Speaker Mike Johnson approved the effort, his office said.

Republicans have slammed Democratic President Joe Biden over border control as record numbers of migrants have been caught crossing the U.S.-Mexico border illegally, with criticism focused on Mayorkas, Biden's top border official. Republicans blame Biden for rolling back some restrictive border policies of Republican former President Donald Trump, his party's leading candidate to challenge Biden in the November presidential election.

If the Republican-controlled House impeaches Mayorkas, he is highly unlikely to be convicted in a trial in the Senate, which Democrats control by a slim margin. House Homeland Security Committee Chairman Mark Green, a Republican, said an inquiry by the committee found high levels of illegal immigration were linked to Mayorkas' policies.

"Our investigation made clear that this crisis finds its foundation in Secretary Mayorkas' decision-making and refusal to enforce the laws passed by Congress, and that his failure to fulfill his oath of office demands accountability," Green said in a statement. Biden officials point to record levels of migration and forced displacement in the Western Hemisphere and have called on Congress to provide more funding for border security.

Despite the contentious impeachment effort in the House, a bipartisan group of Senate lawmakers are working to hash out a deal that would pair border security with military funding for Ukraine and other foreign aid. Whether the group can reach a compromise that would pass both the Senate and House remains unclear. Johnson is visiting the border on Wednesday and will hold a press conference with other Republicans in Eagle Pass, Texas.

Mayorkas told MSNBC in an interview that he would fully cooperate with the investigation and the hearings while continuing to manage the border. White House spokesperson Karine Jean-Pierre said during a press briefing that Biden supports Mayorkas and called the allegations "a political stunt."

The House voted in December to authorize an impeachment inquiry into whether Biden improperly benefited from his son Hunter Biden's foreign business dealings even though they had yet to find evidence of wrongdoing by the president. The number of migrants attempting to cross the U.S.-Mexico border illegally spiked in December, straining resources of U.S. border authorities and receiving communities. The arrivals have receded in the past week, paving the way for the United States to reopen legal border crossings on Thursday.

U.S. and Mexican officials have agreed to strengthen efforts to curb the record migration, with Biden's cabinet scheduled to meet with Mexican leaders in Washington later in January.