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Floor Speech

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Mr. SCOTT of Florida. Madam President, I want to make one thing clear to my Democrat colleagues: Your attempt to brush Secretary Mayorkas's impeachment trial under the rug is disgusting and unacceptable. It is truly unprecedented, violates Senate rules, and is possibly unconstitutional.

The House of Representatives adopted two Articles of Impeachment against Secretary Mayorkas. Let me quote for you:

Throughout his tenure as Secretary of Homeland Security, Alejandro N. Mayorkas has repeatedly violated laws enacted by Congress regarding immigration and border security. In large part because of his unlawful conduct, millions of aliens have illegally entered the United States on an annual basis with many unlawfully remaining in the United States.

Alejandro N. Mayorkas has knowingly made false statements, and knowingly obstructed lawful oversight of the Department of Homeland Security, principally to obfuscate the result of his willful and systemic refusal to comply with the law.

Now, it is the constitutional duty of the U.S. Senate to conduct an impeachment trial to determine if Secretary Mayorkas should be removed from office based on those Articles of Impeachment.

I want to stress this again: Never in the history of the U.S. Senate has such a procedural move been attempted to completely avoid an impeachment trial.

Senate Democrats' efforts to avoid fulfilling their constitutional duty to conduct this trial are just the latest attack by the left against our democratic process and institution. Senate Democrats want to eliminate the filibuster. They want to radically change the U.S. Supreme Court. Now they want to trash the impeachment process. This is a disturbing series of direct attacks on our democratic institutions.

My colleagues and I have called on Senate leadership to conduct a trial. I have also personally called on Vice President Kamala Harris, urging her to fulfill her constitutional duty to serve as the presiding officer of Secretary Mayorkas's trial. Her appointment as President Biden's border czar only makes her role in the Mayorkas impeachment trial more critical.

President Biden and his administration have created a crisis at our southern border. Secretary Mayorkas--a complete puppet for this lawless administration--has the audacity to come falsely testify before Senate and House committees that the border is secure. Not just once but multiple times Mayorkas has lied under oath in committee that our border is secure. He is lying to the American public. He is not taking the action needed to defend the homeland by securing the border or upholding the law. That is his job, and he is simply not doing it.

Our Nation is reeling from the consequences of Mayorkas's failures. Our Nation is a more dangerous place because of Secretary Mayorkas's failures. He is allowing criminals, drugs, terrorists, and others into our communities. These are real consequences, and each victim has a name. Real Americans here to live their dream are being killed. Real American families are being torn apart by vicious crimes and deadly drugs because we have a wide-open border. Biden and Mayorkas refuse to enforce Federal law to secure the border, and innocent Americans like Laken Riley are paying the ultimate price for his failures.

Ten million people--ten million people--have illegally crossed, and 6 million have been let into our country. There have been sexual assaults and murders committed by illegal aliens all across the country--even Florida, where a young man was recently killed. The man charged for his death is an illegal alien.

I don't get it. I do not understand why my Democrat colleagues don't care. They don't care about 70,000 people dying of fentanyl overdose. They don't care about vicious crimes. They don't care about terrorists being let go in our country. Senate Democrats are saying they simply do not care.

They are using every power they have to ignore this crisis, while innocent Americans die, and keep Congress from holding Mayorkas accountable. The proof is not just in this disgraceful effort to dismiss the impeachment trial. Let's remember what Democrats voted against. Democrats voted against a bill to stop illegal aliens from getting on a commercial flight with no verifiable ID. Think about that. You have to have an ID; they don't. Democrats voted against deporting illegal aliens who hurt police, the people who are here to take care of us. Democrats voted against the Laken Riley Act, which simply requires--it is a simple act--simply requires ICE to take illegal aliens who commit crimes into custody before tragedy strikes.

Does Biden hope that millions of immigrants will vote for him? Many in his party want to allow illegal immigrants to vote. They even voted to allow the census to keep counting illegal aliens. It is because they want sanctuary cities and States to have more electoral votes and representation in Congress--not from Americans but from illegal aliens. That is the future the Democrats want.

Biden has intentionally dismantled every ounce of border security Trump put in place and completely undermined our immigration system, and Mayorkas has done absolutely nothing to stop it.

Mayorkas has clearly been derelict in his duties. He has neglected to protect the homeland--his job. He has allowed criminals to come into our country, into each and all of our communities, drugs to flow into our country. When I talk to Floridians, they are terrified. They are concerned about their family's safety because of who and what are coming across the southern border and into each and all of our communities.

Mayorkas may simply be a puppet for the administration, but he is fully responsible for his negligence and failure to do his job. Mayorkas needs to either resign or needs to have the full and thorough trial that we are constitutionally obligated to conduct, as the American people, through their representatives, voted for.

We must have an administration and DHS Secretary who is willing to secure the border, not ignore failure that is killing our citizens.

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