Democratic New Jersey Representative Rob Menendez tore into his Republican colleagues for bending “the knee to the orange Jesus” during a drawn-out hearing on the GOP's impeachment charges against Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas.
House Republicans on the Homeland Security Committee approved two articles of impeachment against Mayorkas early on Wednesday for failing to enforce U.S. immigration policies at the southern U.S. border and allegedly breaching public trust.
However, some constitutional experts indicated there was not enough evidence to support the accusations as "high crimes and misdemeanors."
The GOP's latest stunt is the result of mounting pressure from its base to hold Democratic President Joe Biden's administration accountable for his border policies and an attempt to glorify former Republican President Donald Trump's aggressive border tactics.
Near the final quarter of the 15-hour session, Menendez had enough and blasted GOP members of the House Homeland Security Committee for holding zero full committee hearings on relevant issues such as emergency preparedness, cyber threat, infrastructure protection, and transportation security among others.
Menendez, who is the son of Democratic Senator Bob Menendez, said:
"With the global dynamic that we have, we have not lived up to our oversight obligation here on this committee because you all are obsessed with the border."
“Because you bend the knee to the ‘Orange Jesus’ as you refer to him across the aisle.”
"That's what this is about. And we have failed, failed our jurisdiction on this committee."
You can view a clip here.
The phrase "Orange Jesus" referred to a disparaging description of Trump.
It was mentioned in former Republican Wyoming Representative Liz Cheney's 2023 book, Oath and Honor: A Memoir, detailing her time in Congress.
People could relate to Menendez's frustration, and they lauded him for letting his Republican colleagues have it.
Menendez continued lambasting his Republican colleagues, calling their latest efforts a "sham impeachment hearing."
"So I'm tired of being lectured," he said, adding:
"You know, I try to listen here. I try to be a team player. I really do."
"I try not to engage in the partisanship, but I've had it. I've listened to a lot of accusations here today."
Before yielding back to the Chair, Menendez maintained that the American people were listening and were exhausted of the partisanship displayed by the GOP majority wasting everyone's time and not getting anything done.
A date has not yet been set on the next step to impeaching Mayorkas, who would be the first Cabinet Official in nearly 150 years to be impeached.
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