I. Jewish leaders to Mayorkas: DHS needs liaison focused on domestic terror
Jewish leaders to Mayorkas: DHS needs liaison focused on domestic terror
Secretary of Homeland Security nominee Alejandro Mayorkas
Secretary of Homeland Security nominee Alejandro Mayorkas on Nov. 24, 2020 in Wilmington, Delaware By Mark Makela/Getty Images
jewish-leaders-to-mayorkas-dhs-needs-liaison-focused-on-domestic-terror
By Jacob Kornbluh January 10, 2021
American Jewish leaders, shaken by last week’s insurrection at the U.S. Capitol and its antisemitic underpinnings, told the Secretary-designate of the Department of Homeland Security, Alejandro Mayorkas, that he should create a new liaison to the Jewish community focused on domestic terrorism.
In a Friday call that was scheduled before Wednesday’s unprecedented assault on the Capitol, Mayorkas, who is Jewish, signaled that combating domestic terrorism would be a priority amid an surge of white supremacy and neo-Nazi activity, participants said in interviews on Sunday. It was part of a series of calls with Jewish leaders planned by the Biden transition team.
Several of the 20-some leaders on the call suggested the new role in Mayorkas’s department because the State Department’s special envoy on antisemitism, established by the Global Anti-Semitism Review Act of 2004, largely focuses on global antisemitism.
“There’s been a monumental shift versus the last time these conversations were held, in the Obama administration,” said Halie Soifer, CEO of the Jewish Democratic Council of America,. “At that time, the biggest concern and threats to the Jewish community were abroad and the interests of the organized Jewish community largely focused on Israel and the Middle East.
“In the immediate aftermath of Trump’s insurrection,” she added, “it was clear that the DHS is going to be one of the key — if not the key — addresses for the Jewish community to ensure the safety and security of our institutions.”
A guide to the extremists and hate groups that invaded the Capitol
The Biden transition’s official readout of the 90-minute virtual meeting said that Mayorkas emphasized the ways in which his agency “can work closely with Jewish leaders” to ensure America “is secure from threats both foreign and domestic.”
William Daroff, CEO of the Conference of Presidents of Major Jewish American Organizations, described the discussion as “open” and said it focused on Jewish communal security, immigration, the increase in antisemitism, and strengthening what he called the “vital” the collaboration between the community and the department.
Several participants said that Mayorkas, who is 60 and known as Ali, also “kibbitzed” with the leaders, many of whom he established relationships with during his years as deputy secretary at the department in the Obama administration.
Biden nominates Alejandro Mayorkas, Latino Jew who has said Jews face heightened threat, as Homeland Security secretary
Daroff said that Mayorkas also “discussed his personal connection to the Jewish story of America — as a refugee from Cuba and his parents as refugees from Europe.” He mentioned his past membership at the Washington Hebrew Congregation, where his daughters had Bat Mitzvahs, and his current membership at Adas Israel Congregation.
Mayorkas “views himself as a proud member of the Jewish community,” noted Nathan Diament, the Orthodox Union’s executive director for public policy. “And he was clearly engaged and interested in what we were talking about.”
One participant in the call who spoke on the condition of anonymity because it was off-the-record, said it is “comforting” to see Jews will have a close ally in such a senior position — and that the meeting was significant because it indicated that “Jewish leaders are going to be incorporated in the decisions moving forward.” Joel Rubin, executive director of the American Jewish Congress, called the timing “quite remarkable,” only days after the Capitol attack, and said that gave it a “much deeper meaning than just a typical outreach meeting to the community.”
Related
Alejandro Mayorkas’ historic nomination is a wake up call: Stop erasing Sepharadim.
The Biden team’s outreach to this broad range of Jewish leaders comes after years in which organizations representing Reform and Conservative Jews or liberal causes were ignored by President Trump and his cabinet. Groups on the call included the Jewish Federations of North America; the Religious Action Center of Reform Judaism; the Orthodox Union; the National Council of Jewish Women; Americans for Peace Now; the Jews of Color Initiative; and the Jewish Social Justice Roundtable.
This marked the first time that Jews of color, which the initiative estimates as making up 12% to 15% of American Jews, were included explicitly with a seat at the table.
One of the participants said the group was “very aligned on immigration and on responding to white supremacy, which doesn’t always happen with diverse groups of people.” The open discussion, this person said, “sends a signal of cooperation when it’s needed, and that the Jewish community will be integrated, not just in the very obvious parts of the administration, but also around domestic issues.”
The Biden transition has scheduled a COVID-19-related call with members of the Jewish Social Justice Roundtable on Monday, featuring the campaign’s Jewish outreach director, Aaron Keyak, and Rebecca Katz, a transition team adviser on the coronavirus pandemic.
The National Council of Jewish Women is hosting a separate outreach call with Jewish advocacy groups on Tuesday, featuring Keyak and Kalisha Dessources Figures, a former policy adviser to President Obama’s White House Council on Women and Girls, with a focus on diversity, equity and inclusion issues.
II. Biden nominates Alejandro Mayorkas, a Latino Jew, as Homeland Security secretary
Biden nominates Alejandro Mayorkas, a Latino Jew, as Homeland Security secretary
Mayorkas, 60, the deputy secretary of Homeland Security under President Barack Obama, was born in Cuba to a Cuban Jewish father and Romanian Jewish mother.
By Ron Kampeas November 23, 2020, 4:27 pm 0
Alejandro Mayorkas, then deputy secretary of Homeland Security, addresses the Orthodox Union at a conference in Washington, Sept. 21, 2016. (Orthodox Union via JTA)
WASHINGTON (JTA) — President-elect Joe Biden announced the nomination of Alejandro Mayorkas, a Latino Jew who has emphasized the heightened threat facing American Jews, as his Homeland Security secretary on Monday.
Mayorkas, 60, the deputy secretary of Homeland Security under President Barack Obama, was born in Cuba to a Cuban Jewish father and Romanian Jewish mother. His mother survived the Holocaust.
III. Alejandro Mayorkas, a Cuban-born Jew, confirmed as Homeland Security secretary
Alejandro Mayorkas, the Cuban-Jewish attorney who may head Biden’s DHS
By Ron Kampeas, JTA | February 3, 2021
The U.S. Senate confirmed Alejandro Mayorkas, a Cuban-born son of a Holocaust survivor, as Homeland Security secretary on Tuesday.
National Jewish groups had sought the confirmation of Mayorkas, who had served under President Barack Obama as deputy Homeland Security secretary and was known to the groups.
The nomination had been subject to partisan tussling and the 56-43 vote was closer than for other Cabinet picks of President Joe Biden.
Jewish groups had pressed for a fast confirmation, citing the pressing need to counter right-wing extremism, particularly in the wake of the deadly Jan. 6 insurrection at the U.S. Capitol by pro-Trump marauders who sought to prevent Biden from assuming the presidency.
Republicans opposed Mayorkas’ pledge to reverse some of former President Donald Trump’s restrictive immigration policies, although the nominee’s views stated during his confirmation hearings comported with those of Biden. Sen. Josh Hawley, R-Missouri, placed a hold on the Mayorkas nomination.
Mayorkas is one of a number of Jewish Cabinet secretaries, including Antony Blinken in the State Department, Janet Yellen in Treasury and Avril Haines as director of national intelligence.
IV. Alejandro Mayorkas, the Cuban-Jewish attorney who may head Biden’s DHS
Mayorkas’ ties with Israel extend beyond his family. In 2016, he spearheaded a deal to automate the sharing of cyber-data between Israel and the US.
By IDAN ZONSHINE
Published: NOVEMBER 12, 2020 11:54
Alejandro Mayorkas, US Deputy Secretary of Homeland Security gestures as he speaks during the annual Cyberweek conference at Tel Aviv University, Israel June 20, 2016.
(photo credit: REUTERS)
Alejandro Mayorkas, former deputy secretary of the Department of Homeland Security during the Obama administration, has been floated as a major contender to become both the first Latino and the first immigrant to lead the DHS, if confirmed by the Republican Senate.
While Mayorkas, 60, was born in Cuba, his family moved to the US when he was only a year old. His father was a Cuban native with Sephardic roots and his mother was a Romanian Jew who fled the holocaust to Cuba (as many other family members fled to Israel), during a time when US policies “were not the most welcoming,” to refugees, he told The Jerusalem Post in a 2016 interview.
In the same interview, Mayorkas described his role in negotiating Washington’s normalization agreement with Cuba, saying “we agreed to cooperate to ensure the security of ports, cargo; the security of people, of travel – a very foundational agreement and the first reached between the two countries.”
V. From: Alejandro Mayorkas: 5 Fast Facts You Need to Know
He Served as the Deputy Secretary of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security in the Obama-Biden Administration From 2013 to 2016
Mayorkas served as the Deputy Secretary of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security in the Obama-Biden Administration from 2013 to 2016, the Biden-Transition team website states. From 2009 to 2013, he served as the Director of U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services.
“During his tenure at DHS, he led the development and implementation of DACA, negotiated cybersecurity and homeland security agreements with foreign governments, led the Department’s response to Ebola and Zika, helped build and administer the Blue Campaign to combat human trafficking, and developed an emergency relief program for orphaned youth following the tragic January 2010 earthquake in Haiti,” the transition team announced.
He also created the Fraud Detection and National Security Directorate to “better ensure the integrity of the legal immigration system,” the website continues.
VI. Articles of Impeachment Filed Against DHS Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas
By Lincoln Brown 3:32 PM on January 10, 2023
Articles of Impeachment Filed Against DHS Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas
Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas recently called for expediting citizenship for illegal immigrants. DHS also told U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) managers they couldn’t publish weekly updates about immigration incursions and apprehensions on social media without agency permission. And Mayorkas is also now known for propping up the lie that border patrol agents whipped Haitian immigrants when he knew it wasn’t true.
Between those things and the crush of illegal immigrants at the border, combined with the increase in human and drug trafficking, crime, and the pressure on border towns to manage the new arrivals, Republican Congressman Pat Fallon of Texas has had enough.
For our VIPs: Looks Like We’re Going to Have an Impeachment Inquiry
Now that the GOP is in charge of the House, Fallon has filed for Mayorkas’ impeachment. The Hill notes that Fallon filed the paperwork on the third of this month and officially filed the articles of impeachment Monday. Fellow Texan Michael McCaul has urged caution and suggested that the GOP build a stronger case before impeaching Mayorkas. But he did concur that Mayorkas had been “derelict in his responsibilities.” For his part, Fallon told Fox News:
Since day one, Secretary Mayorkas’ policies have undermined law enforcement activities at our southern border. From perjuring himself before Congress about maintaining operational control of the border to the infamous ‘whip-gate’ slander against our border patrol agents, Secretary Mayorkas has proven time and time again that he is unfit to lead the Department of Homeland Security. His willful actions have eroded our immigration system, undermined border patrol morale, and jeopardized American national security. He has violated the law and it is time for him to go.
Reportedly, the articles charge Mayorkas with failing to execute the “Secure the Fence Act of 2006,” and state that the secretary gave false and misleading testimony to Congress and that he falsely slandered border agents during the alleged whipping incident. Back in November, Kevin McCarthy called on Mayorkas to resign over the way he has handled the border crisis and warned that impeachment was imminent. Mayorkas has refused to resign and has said he is ready for whatever the House Republicans have in mind.
Mayorkas has little reason to worry. Even with an investigation and a vote by the House, it is up to the Senate to actually hold a trial and render a judgment and impose any penalties. And while the GOP holds a thin majority in the House, that is of course not the case in the Senate. It is highly doubtful that Mayorkas will face a conviction. Like the other efforts the members of the GOP have put forth in the House since taking over, this one has all of the right intentions, and in fact, has merit. But it has very little if any chance of success. And if enough Republicans feel the same way as McCaul — that there is not enough evidence to successfully make the case — the effort may not get the traction it needs. That, however, is also unlikely since the resentment toward Mayorkas has been growing not only among conservatives but among the residents of border towns, cities impacted by the importation of fentanyl, and the rank and file of the CBP.
The irony here is that the impeachment process is part of the system the founders created to keep one party or branch from gaining too much power. But it will aid the side that does just that and has no regard for the Constitution that is protecting it.
VII. Alejandro Mayorkas
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Alejandro Mayorkas
Secretary Mayorkas Official Photo.jpg
Official portrait, 2021
7th United States Secretary of Homeland Security
Incumbent
Assumed office
February 2, 2021
President Joe Biden
Deputy John Tien
Preceded by Kirstjen Nielsen
6th United States Deputy Secretary of Homeland Security
In office
December 23, 2013 – October 28, 2016
President Barack Obama
Secretary Jeh Johnson
Preceded by Jane Holl Lute
Succeeded by Elaine Duke
Director of United States Citizenship and Immigration Services
In office
August 12, 2009 – December 23, 2013
President Barack Obama
Preceded by Emilio T. Gonzalez
Succeeded by León Rodríguez
United States Attorney for the Central District of California
In office
December 21, 1998 – April 20, 2001
President Bill Clinton
George W. Bush
Preceded by Nora Margaret Manella
Succeeded by Debra Wong Yang
Personal details
Born November 24, 1959 (age 63)
Havana, Cuba
Political party Democratic[1]
Spouse Tanya Mayorkas
Children 2
Residences
District of Columbia, U.S.
Los Angeles, California, U.S.
Education University of California, Berkeley (BA)
Loyola Marymount University (JD)
Alejandro Nicholas Mayorkas (born November 24, 1959) is a Cuban-American government official and attorney who has been serving as the seventh United States Secretary of Homeland Security since February 2, 2021. During the Obama administration, he also served in the Department of Homeland Security, first as director of United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (2009–2013), and then as deputy secretary of DHS (2013–2016).
Mayorkas was born in Havana, Cuba. Shortly after the Cuban Revolution, his family fled to Florida and later settled in California. He graduated from UC Berkeley in history with honors, subsequently earning his J.D. from Loyola Marymount University. After law school, Mayorkas worked as an Assistant United States Attorney and was appointed the United States attorney for the Central District of California in Los Angeles during the administration of President Bill Clinton and George W. Bush, where he oversaw the prosecution of high-profile criminal cases.[2]
Mayorkas was a member of the presidential transition team for Barack Obama before he assumed office in January 2009, where he led the team responsible for the U.S. Department of Justice’s Criminal Division.[3] Mayorkas was appointed by President Obama as the director of U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS).[4] On May 20, 2009, the nomination was received by the Senate; on August 7, 2009, the nomination was confirmed by the Senate by voice vote.[5] As USCIS director, Mayorkas led United States citizenship through management efficiencies and fiscal responsibility, and safeguarded the integrity of the immigration system.[6] He implemented the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) process in sixty days.[7] He led U.S. government efforts to rescue orphaned children following the January 2010 earthquake in Haiti and led the advancement of a crime victims unit that, for the first time, resulted in the ability of the agency to administer the statutory maximum number of visas to victims of crime.[6]
In 2016, Mayorkas became a partner at the law firm of Wilmer Cutler Pickering Hale and Dorr, in their Washington, D.C., office.[8] On November 23, 2020, President-elect Joe Biden announced he would nominate Mayorkas as secretary of homeland security in his Cabinet. Mayorkas’s nomination received the endorsement of the Fraternal Order of Police[9] and former secretaries Tom Ridge, Michael Chertoff (who served under George W. Bush), Janet Napolitano and Jeh Johnson (under whom Mayorkas served), who said Biden “could not have found a more qualified person”.[10] On February 2, 2021, Mayorkas was confirmed by the Senate on a 56–43 vote, with significant Senate Republican opposition.[11] He was sworn in by Vice President Kamala Harris on February 2, 2021.[12] Mayorkas is the first refugee and first person born in Latin America to lead the department.[13]
Contents
1 Early life and education
2 Assistant United States Attorney
3 United States Attorney
4 Private law practice
5 Obama administration, 2009–2016
5.1 Director of U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services
5.2 Deputy Secretary of Homeland Security
6 Return to private practice, 2017–2020
7 Biden administration, 2021–present
7.1 Secretary of Homeland Security
7.1.1 Tenure
8 Personal life
9 References
10 Sources
11 External links
Early life and education
Alejandro Nicholas Mayorkas[14] was born in Havana, Cuba, on November 24, 1959.[4] When he was one year old, his parents fled with him and his sister to the United States in 1960 as refugees, following the Cuban Revolution. He lived in Miami, Florida, before his family moved to Los Angeles, California, where he was raised for the remainder of his youth.[15] Mayorkas grew up in Beverly Hills and attended Beverly Hills High School.[16]
His father, Charles R. “Nicky” Mayorkas, was born in Cuba. He was a Cuban Jew of Sephardi (from the former Ottoman Empire, present-day Turkey and Greece) and Ashkenazi (from Poland) background. He owned and operated a steel wool factory on the outskirts of Havana.[15][17][18][19] Nicky Mayorkas studied economics at Dartmouth College.[19]
His mother, Anita (Gabor),[20] was a Romanian Jew whose family escaped the Holocaust and fled to Cuba in the 1940s[21][22][23] before leaving to the United States after the Cuban Revolution.[21]
Mayorkas earned his Bachelor of Arts degree with distinction from the University of California, Berkeley, in 1981.[24] He received his Juris Doctor from Loyola Law School in 1985.[2]
Assistant United States Attorney
After three years as a litigation associate in private practice, Mayorkas became an Assistant United States Attorney in the Central District of California in 1989.[6] He prosecuted a wide array of federal crimes, developing a specialization in the prosecution of white-collar crime, including tax evasion and money laundering.[25] His prosecutions included the successful prosecution of Operation PolarCap, then the largest money laundering case in the nation; the conviction at trial of Heidi Fleiss on charges of federal conspiracy, tax fraud, and money laundering charges; the successful prosecutions of two largest telemarketing fraud operations that preyed on the elderly; and the successful prosecution of a health care fraud and insurance fraud conspiracy.[2]
Mayorkas served as the coordinator of the Southern California Telemarketing Fraud Task Force, overseeing the coordination of federal, state, and local law enforcement and regulatory agencies to most aggressively combat telemarketing fraud throughout the Central District of California.[2]
From 1996 to 1998, Mayorkas served as Chief of the Office’s General Crimes Section, overseeing the training and trial work of all new Assistant United States Attorneys in the Criminal Division. He received numerous awards from federal law enforcement agencies, including from FBI Director Louis Freeh for the successful prosecution of Operation PolarCap.[2]
United States Attorney
In 1998, Mayorkas was recommended by Senator Dianne Feinstein and appointed by President Bill Clinton as the United States Attorney for the Central District of California, becoming the country’s youngest United States Attorney.[26][2] He was appointed on December 21, 1998.[27]
Mayorkas oversaw the prosecution of high-profile criminal cases, including the prosecution of the Mexican Mafia in death penalty proceedings, the prosecution of Buford O. Furrow Jr. for the murder of a federal postal worker and the hate-motivated shooting of children in a community center, the prosecution of Litton Industries for the payment of bribes abroad, and the takedown of the violent 18th Street gang using RICO statutes.[2]
In late 2000, Mayorkas was one of many California officials who participated in efforts to obtain executive clemency for narcotics trafficker Carlos Vignali Jr., the son of a wealthy Los Angeles businessman. On his last day in office in January 2001, Clinton commuted Vignali’s 15-year prison sentence, a controversial decision.[28][29]
Private law practice
In September 2001, Mayorkas joined O’Melveny & Myers as a litigation partner.[30] In 2008, The National Law Journal named Mayorkas one of the “50 Most Influential Minority Lawyers in America”.[31]
Upon the election of Barack Obama in November 2008, Mayorkas was selected by the president-elect for a role in the presidential transition leading up to the inauguration. He led the transition team responsible for the U.S. Department of Justice’s Criminal Division.[3]
Obama administration, 2009–2016
Director of U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services
In 2009, Mayorkas was appointed by President Obama as the director of U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS).[4] On May 20, 2009, the nomination was received by the Senate; on August 7, 2009, the nomination was confirmed by the Senate by voice vote.[5] As USCIS director, Mayorkas led United States citizenship through management efficiencies and fiscal responsibility, and safeguarding the integrity of the immigration system.[6] He implemented the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) process in sixty days.[7] He led U.S. government efforts to rescue orphaned children following the January 2010 earthquake in Haiti and led the advancement of a crime victims unit that, for the first time, resulted in the ability of the agency to administer the statutory maximum number of visas to victims of crime.[6]
For his work as director of USCIS, Mayorkas received awards from the Illinois Coalition for Immigrant and Refugee Rights, the Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights of Los Angeles, and the Mexican American Legal Defense and Education Fund.[32]
In 2015, a Department of Homeland Security inspector general (DHS IG) report criticized Mayorkas’ oversight of the EB-5 investor visa program, which offered lawful permanent resident status (green cards) to foreign investors who invested $500,000 into businesses that created jobs in the U.S.[33] The program’s popularity greatly increased under Mayorkas’s tenure.[33] The DHS IG report, which was the culmination of an investigation beginning in 2013,[34] focused on allegations that politically connected businesses were given special treatment under the program, focusing specifically on the Sahara casino and hotel in Las Vegas, backed by then-Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, and an electric car company led by Terry McAuliffe and involving Anthony Rodham.[33] The report concluded that “The juxtaposition of Mr. Mayorkas’ communication with external stakeholders on specific matters outside the normal procedures, coupled with favorable action that deviated from the regulatory scheme designed to ensure fairness and evenhandedness in adjudicating benefits, created an appearance of favoritism and special access.”[33] The “fast-tracking” of approvals for individuals involved in the casino program was controversial because it was made over the objections of USCIS analysts “who were suspicious about the source of the funds”.[35]
Deputy Secretary of Homeland Security
Nominated by President Obama in June 2013, Mayorkas was confirmed as the deputy secretary on December 20, 2014, following a party-line Senate vote.[36][14]
The DHS inspector general’s investigation into Mayorkas’s intervention as USCIS director to expedite reviews for applicants for foreign investor visas in three cases caused controversy and delayed his confirmation proceedings.[37][38] The inspector general’s report found that Mayorkas’s acts did not violate the law, but did create an appearance of favoritism.[37] In House Homeland Security Committee testimony in May 2015, Mayorkas expressed regret that his intervention created an impression of favoritism, but said his involvement was motivated by a desire to ensure that the applications were handled in accordance with the law: “I did not let errors go unchecked, but instead helped ensure that those cases were decided correctly, nothing more and nothing less.”[38]
As deputy secretary, Mayorkas’s led DHS’s response to the 2013–14 Ebola virus epidemic and 2015–16 Zika virus epidemic.[37][26] His work also focused on cybersecurity.[38] He led the DHS’s negotiations with Israel and China on cybersecurity.[39] A landmark agreement reached in 2015 with the Chinese government reduced, for a brief period, Chinese cyberattacks against American companies[40] aimed at the theft of intellectual property.[41] After the normalization of U.S.-Cuba relations, Mayorkas led the Obama administration’s delegation to Cuba,[39] and negotiated with the Cuban government on port and cargo security and U.S.-Cuba travel.[22]
Mayorkas was also involved in the Department’s counterterrorism and anti-cybercrime efforts, as well as its public-private partnerships,[42] and efforts to fight antisemitism.[22] Under Mayorkas’s tenure, DHS greatly expanded its Cyber Crimes Center in Fairfax, Virginia, to aid the department’s efforts to combat various cybercrimes, ranging from child exploitation to computer hacking and intellectual property theft.[43] Mayorkas was involved in efforts to address DHS’s presence on GAO’s “high risk list” for management challenges;[42] Mayorkas, as well as Homeland Security Secretary Jeh Johnson, acknowledged low morale among DHS employees (a longstanding problem that pre-dated the Obama administration) and took steps aimed at boosting morale.[44][45]
Return to private practice, 2017–2020
In October 2016, Mayorkas joined the law firm of Wilmer Cutler Pickering Hale and Dorr in the firm’s Washington office.[46]
Biden administration, 2021–present
Mayorkas sworn in as Secretary of Homeland Security on February 2, 2021
Secretary of Homeland Security
On November 23, 2020, President-elect Joe Biden announced his plan to nominate Mayorkas to be Secretary of Homeland Security.[47][48] Mayorkas has the support of the Fraternal Order of Police[9] and endorsements from former secretaries Tom Ridge and Michael Chertoff (who served under George W. Bush) and Janet Napolitano and Jeh Johnson (who served under Barack Obama), who said Biden “could not have found a more qualified person”.[10] Most Senate Republicans however opposed the nomination; Josh Hawley delayed a speedy confirmation, and Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell urged his caucus to vote against confirmation.[49][50]
Ultimately, Mayorkas was confirmed on a 56–43 vote.[51] Republican Senators Shelley Moore Capito, Rob Portman, Susan Collins, Mitt Romney, Lisa Murkowski, and Dan Sullivan voted with the Democrats to confirm Mayorkas.[51] Mayorkas was sworn in by Vice President Kamala Harris on February 2, 2021, after his confirmation that day.[12]
Mayorkas arrives at DHS headquarters following his swearing-in as Secretary of Homeland Security
Tenure
Early on in his tenure, arrests surged at the Mexico-United States border. In June 2021, the monthly number of intercepted migrants reached a decade high of 188,800.[52]
On October 19, 2021, Mayorkas tested positive for COVID-19 during a test performed as part of pre-travel protocol. He experienced mild symptoms, forcing him to cancel a trip to Bogotá, Colombia, and to reschedule a Senate hearing.[53]
Testifying to the Homeland Security Subcommittee of the House Committee on Appropriations on April 27, 2022, Mayorkas confirmed that the Biden Administration will implement a “Disinformation Working Group” in the DHS with the intention to “develop guidelines, standards, [and] guardrails” to shape the department’s longstanding effort to counter disinformation.[54][55] Three weeks later, after critics called the initiative “a violation of free speech” and its executive director Nina Jankowicz had resigned, the Disinformation Working Group was “paused”.[56]
In September 2021, a photo circulated of Border Patrol agents using their “long rein” to control horses, however the photo appeared to show them “whipping” Haitian migrants. Upon its release, the image generated outrage. Initially, Mayorkas defended the actions of agents, but later, at a White House press conference, condemned their actions and pledged to investigate them. In October 2022, the Heritage Foundation released emails that showed hours before the press conference Mayorkas received emails that disproved the whipping claim, including from the photographer himself. Republicans condemned Mayorkas upon the emails release. Senator Ted Cruz, Representatives Andy Biggs, Michael Cloud and Vicky Hartzler have threatened to impeach Mayorkas. Chief of the United States Border Patrol under President Obama and acting Commissioner of U.S. Customs and Border Protection under President Trump Mark A. Morgan also condemned Mayorkas’s actions.[57][58][59][better source needed]
Personal life
Mayorkas and his wife Tanya have two daughters, Giselle and Amelia.[60] He is a runner and plays tennis and squash.[37]
References
“Alejandro Mayorkas”. The Hill. Retrieved June 15, 2022.
Rosenzweig, David (October 9, 1998). “Feinstein Recommends Mayorkas for U.S. Attorney in L.A.” Los Angeles Times. ProQuest 421322576. Archived from the original on January 7, 2017. Retrieved January 6, 2017.
Barber, C. Ryan (November 23, 2020). “Wilmer Partner Alejandro Mayorkas Picked for Homeland Security Secretary”. National Law Journal. Archived from the original on November 26, 2020.
Hesson, Ted (November 24, 2020). “Biden picks Cuban-American lawyer Mayorkas as U.S. homeland security chief”. Reuters. Archived from the original on November 23, 2020. Retrieved November 25, 2020.
“PN488 – Alejandro N. Mayorkas – Department of Homeland Security”. August 7, 2009. Archived from the original on October 26, 2020.
Watanabe, Teresa (May 24, 2010). “Head of U.S. legal immigration system wins high marks from advocates for immigrants”. Los Angeles Times. ProQuest 312850120. Archived from the original on November 26, 2020. Retrieved November 25, 2020.
Preston, Julia (September 12, 2012). “Quick Start to Program Offering Immigrants a Reprieve”. The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the original on May 19, 2017. Retrieved November 25, 2020.
November 23, C. Ryan Barber |; PM, 2020 at 01:29. “Wilmer Partner Alejandro Mayorkas Picked for Homeland Security Secretary”. National Law Journal. Retrieved March 10, 2021.
Yoes, Patrick (January 7, 2021). “Law Enforcement Cheers Biden’s Homeland Chief”. The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved February 1, 2021.
Chertoff, Michael; Johnson, Jeh; Napolitano, Janet; Ridge, Tom (January 12, 2021). “Opinion: 4 former homeland security secretaries: We cannot afford one more day without a confirmed DHS leader”. The Washington Post. Retrieved February 1, 2021.
Beitsch, Rebecca (February 2, 2021). “Senate confirms Biden’s DHS pick after GOP delay”. The Hill. Archived from the original on February 2, 2021. Retrieved February 2, 2021.
“Harris swears in Mayorkas as homeland security secretary after Senate confirmation vote”. The Washington Post. February 2, 2021. Retrieved February 2, 2021.
Rodriguez, Sabrina (February 2, 2021). “Mayorkas confirmed as secretary of Homeland Security”. Politico. Retrieved February 2, 2021.
“Alejandro Nicholas Mayorkas – Department of Homeland Security, 113th Congress (2013-2014)”. United States Congress. December 20, 2013. Archived from the original on November 23, 2020.
Marshall, Serena (October 27, 2015). “55 Years Later, US Official Prepares for Emotional Return to Cuba”. ABC News. Archived from the original on January 10, 2020. Retrieved June 27, 2020.
Johnson 2000, pp. 70, 76.
Ethan Marcus (November 25, 2020). “Alejandro Mayorkas’ historic nomination is a wake up call: Stop erasing Sepharadim”. The Forward.
Molly O’Toole (November 23, 2020). “Biden picks Alejandro Mayorkas for Homeland Security secretary”. Los Angeles Times.
Maria Sacchetti and Nick Miroff (January 18, 2021). “The family of Alejandro Mayorkas, Biden’s pick to head DHS, fled the Nazis and then Cuba before arriving in the United States”. The Washington Post.
Sacchetti, Maria; Miroff, Nick (January 18, 2021). “The family of Alejandro Mayorkas, Biden’s pick to head DHS, fled the Nazis and then Cuba before arriving in the United States”. The Washington Post. Retrieved April 11, 2021.
Hesson, Ted (July 25, 2013). “Meet the Cuban Immigrant Who Could Run Homeland Security”. ABC News. Archived from the original on October 3, 2014. Retrieved May 18, 2014.
Zonshine, Idan (November 12, 2020). “Alejandro Mayorkas, the Cuban-Jewish attorney who may head Biden’s DHS”. The Jerusalem Post. Archived from the original on November 22, 2020.
Miroff, Nick; Sacchetti, Maria (November 23, 2020). “Biden picks Alejandro Mayorkas, a son of Jewish Cuban refugees, to lead the Department of Homeland Security”. The Washington Post. Archived from the original on November 24, 2020. Retrieved November 24, 2020.
newsamericas (November 24, 2020). “10 Things To Know About The Man Who Could Become The First Caribbean Born U.S. DHS Secretary”. Caribbean and Latin America Daily News. Retrieved March 10, 2021.
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VIII. Lawsuits Filed Against Mayorkas
A. Hani Idriss v. Alejandro Mayorkas