House Republicans vote to defund Mayorkas salary in Homeland Security appropriations bill

The House of Representatives voted on Wednesday to block Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas's salary, as part of a larger appropriations bill for the Department of Homeland Security (DHS).

The amendment to withhold the salary was introduced by Rep. Andy Biggs from Arizona, and passed in a 193 to 173 vote, per Fox News. Only one Republican voted against the amendment.

The amendment prohibits the DHS from using funds in the bill to pay Mayorkas, but a different amendment that would have brought Mayorkas's salary to zero failed. 

"Taxpayers should not be paying an unelected bureaucrat who was impeached by the House," Biggs posted to X prior to the vote. "That's why I sponsored an amendment to this year's Homeland Security Appropriations Act to prohibit funding to be used for the salary of DHS Secretary Mayorkas."

The move comes after House Republicans voted to impeach Mayorkas over his handling of the immigration crisis on the United States's southern border in February. But the Senate refused to hold a trial that would remove Mayorkas from power. 

The funding bill, which would fund the department through fiscal year 2025, also provided $600 million to complete the border wall that began under former President Donald Trump, and blocked the department from paying for abortion and transgender health care for migrants detained at the border.

It also included a $3 billion increase in funding from fiscal year 2024.

The appropriations bill still needs a final vote in the House on Friday, but is unlikely to be passed by the Democratic Senate. If it does pass the Senate, President Joe Biden has already threatened to veto the measure. 

Misty Severi is an evening news reporter for Just the News. You can follow her on X for more coverage.