DHS hires outside law firm for help with potential Mayorkas impeachment
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has hired a law firm to aid in responding to the potential GOP House-led impeachment of Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, the department said Friday.
The contract, signed with New-York based firm Debevoise & Plimpton, comes a week after a second article of impeachment was filed by Rep. Andy Biggs (R-Ariz.) and represents a change in approach for an agency that had previously not assigned any staff to the topic.
“The Department of Homeland Security has retained outside counsel to help ensure the Department’s vital mission is not interrupted by the unprecedented, unjustified, and partisan impeachment efforts by some Members of Congress, who have already taken steps to initiate proceedings,” a DHS spokesperson said in a statement.
“DHS will continue prioritizing its work to protect our country from terrorism, respond to natural disasters, and secure our borders while responding appropriately to the over 70 Congressional committees and subcommittees that have oversight of DHS.”
The contract, first reported by Politico, will tap the firm to help respond to any eventual House inquiry.
Republicans have yet to take any action on the resolutions, but House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) and other Republican leaders have pledged what could be lengthy investigations ahead of an eventual impeachment.
DHS doesn’t have any staff on hand with expertise in such a matter, an agency official told The Hill, and said the scale of legal assistance needed will depend on how the GOP decides to proceed with its probe. Still, the department declined to outline other financial details of the retainer.
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