Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., is seeking to impeach President Joe Biden, a move the White House immediately slammed as a “political stunt” on Thursday.
Greene’s articles of impeachment against Biden target his handling of the southern border and immigration policies. The Republican lawmaker in a press conference accused Biden of having “deliberately compromised our national security by refusing to enforce immigration laws and secure our border.”
She accused Biden of depriving border law enforcement of “necessary resources and policies” to protect the country, allowing fentanyl to spread into the United States over the southern border, among other allegations.
“His policies, directives and statements surrounding the southern border have violated our laws and destroyed our country,” Greene told reporters. “Biden has blatantly violated his constitutional duty, and he is a direct threat to our national security.”
Greene this week has also introduced articles of impeachment against U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia Matthew Graves, FBI director Christopher Wray, Attorney General Merrick Garland and Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas.
If a federal official commits a crime “or otherwise acts improperly,” the House of Representatives can impeach the official, the Senate’s website explains. The official would then need to be convicted in a trial in the upper chamber to be removed from office.
Greene in a press conference on Thursday said she has discussed the push with Republican leadership. She said party leaders “didn’t tell me not to do it, they just asked me questions about the method, the legality and things pertaining to the Constitution.”
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‘Shameless sideshow political stunt’
The White House quickly criticized Greene’s push on Thursday, calling the impeachment articles “silly political attacks.”
“Is there a bigger example of a shameless sideshow political stunt than a trolling impeachment attack by one of the most extreme MAGA members in Congress over ‘national security’ while she actively demands to defund the FBI and even said she ‘would’ve been armed’ and ‘would have won’ the January 6 insurrection if only she’d been in charge of it?” Ian Sams, the White House’s spokesperson for oversight and investigations, said in a statement to USA TODAY.
Greene has repeatedly called for defunding the FBI, in addition to targeting the Department of Justice and other government agencies. Greene last year claimed she would have “won” the Jan. 6 Capitol insurrection had she been involved.
Sams added that Biden is “focused on what’s important to the American people,” and “not silly political attacks.”
Contributing: Candy Woodall and Joey Garrison, USA TODAY
