Closing summary
Thanks for following along today, live blog readers. As we close up for the day, here’s a summary of today’s developments in US politics – including the fallout from Alejandro Mayorkas’ impeachment and cryptic warnings about a looming national security threat:
Democrats reacted to the Tuesday vote to impeach Department of Homeland Security secretary Alejandro Mayorkas – the first time in nearly 150 years that a cabinet secretary has been impeached. “History will not look kindly on House Republicans for their blatant act of unconstitutional partisanship,” said Joe Biden, of the impeachment.
The impeachment effort will almost certainly die in the senate, which would require a supermajority vote to impeach following a trial that begins in two weeks. Democratic senate majority leader Chuck Schumer has called the impeachment a “sham”.
House intelligence committee chair Mike Turner warned in a cryptic statement of a national security threat, calling on Biden to “declassify all information related to this threat”. During a press briefing, the national security adviser, Jake Sullivan, declined to directly address the nature of the alleged threat and said he had “scheduled a briefing for House members of the Gang of Eight” on Thursday.
The Washington Post reported that the security threat had been identified using surveillance permitted under section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (Fisa), a controversial provision that allows the government to surveil non-citizens abroad – but has also led to the surveillance of Americans’ phone calls, texts and emails. House Republicans are pushing to enact a version of Fisa that does not include a warrant requirement for the FBI – a reform critics of the legislation have long advocated.
A Republican activist charged for his involvement in the fake elector scheme in Michigan testified today that he didn’t knowingly try to unlawfully subvert the results of the 2020 election. He was charged with creating a false public record.
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Democratic House minority leader Hakeem Jeffries said in a statement on the topic of the alleged national security threat that the “most urgent national security threat facing the American people right now is the possibility that Congress abandons Ukraine and allows Vladimir Putin’s Russia to win”.
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The Guardian’s Dan Sabbagh reports on Nato’s secretary general responding to Donald Trump’s disparaging comments about Nato countries:
Jens Stoltenberg, Nato’s secretary general, has accused Donald Trump of undermining the basis of the transatlantic alliance as he announced that 18 Nato members were expected to beat the target of spending more than 2% of GDP on defence.
It was the second rebuke by the Nato chief to the Republican frontrunner in less than a week, reinforced by a declaration that Germany was among the countries planning to spend over the threshold for the first time in a generation.
“We should not undermine the credibility of Nato’s deterrence,” Stoltenberg said on Wednesday as he responded to comments made by Trump at a campaign rally at the weekend. “Deterrence is in the mind of our adversaries,” he added.
On Saturday, Trump caused outrage in Europe when he said he would “not protect” any Nato member that had failed to meet the 2% target – and added that he would even encourage Russia to continue attacking them.
A day later, Stoltenberg said Trump’s rhetoric “puts American and European soldiers at increased risk”, while on Wednesday, before a meeting of defence ministers, the normally diplomatic secretary general returned to the theme, arguing: “We should leave no room for miscalculation or misunderstanding in Moscow.”
The Washington Post reports that the alleged security threat that House intelligence committee chairman Mike Turner warned about in a cryptic statement today was likely identified using surveillance permitted under section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (Fisa), a controversial provision that allows the government to spy on non-citizens living abroad – and has also led to the surveillance of Americans’ phone calls, texts and emails.
House Republicans are pushing for a new version of the bill that does not include a warrant requirement for the FBI – a key reform critics of the legislation have pushed for.
House speaker Mike Johnson has said there is “no need for public alarm” regarding the unconfirmed national security threat.
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In a statement, the chair of the Senate select committee on intelligence, Mark Warner, and the vice-chair of the committee, Marco Rubio, said the committee “has the intelligence” that House intelligence committee chair Mike Turner referred to in a Wednesday statement warning of a national security threat.
According to the statement, the committee “has been rigorously tracking this issue from the start”. The statement warned against “potentially disclosing sources and methods that may be key to preserving a range of options for US action”.
Senate Intelligence Committee leaders with a joint statement on the national security threat.
— Andrew Solender (@AndrewSolender) February 14, 2024
"We must be cautious about potentially disclosing sources and methods that may be key to preserving a range of options for U.S. action.” pic.twitter.com/xRJGMdS2jB
CNN has reported the alleged threat is related to Russian military capabilities.
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Nikki Haley blasted Donald Trump for his comments on her husband, who is currently deployed overseas. The Guardian’s Martin Pengelly puts Haley’s remarks in context:
Donald Trump is “unhinged” and “diminished”, said Nikki Haley, the former president’s last rival for the Republican presidential nomination, on Wednesday.
“To mock my husband, Michael and I can handle that,” the former South Carolina governor and UN ambassador told NBC News’s Today, referring to comments by Trump about Michael Haley, a national guard officer deployed in Djibouti.
“But you mock one member of the military, you mock all members of the military … Before, when he did it, it was during the 2016 election, and everybody thought, ‘Oh, did he have a slip? What did that mean?’ The problem now is he is not the same person he was in 2016. He is unhinged. He is more diminished than he was.”
In the 2016 campaign, Trump mocked John McCain, an Arizona senator and former nominee for president who was a prisoner of war in Vietnam. Having avoided the draft for that war, Trump was expected to pay a heavy political price but did not, going on to attract controversy in office for allegedly deriding those who serve.
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Mike Johnson declares 'no need for public alarm', reports say
House speaker Mike Johnson has reportedly declared “no need for public alarm” regarding House intelligence committee chair Mike Turner’s national security warning. “Steady hands are at the wheel, we’re working on it, there’s no need for alarm,” Johnson told media on Wednesday afternoon.
His comments come after Turner issued a statement that Congress had been made aware of a “serious national security threat” and called on Joe Biden to “declassify all information” related to it.
During a press briefing, the national security adviser, Jake Sullivan, said he planned to meet with members of the House intelligence committee on Thursday.
“We scheduled a briefing for the for House members of the Gang of Eight tomorrow,” said Sullivan. “I am a bit surprised that Congressman Turner came out publicly today in advance of a meeting on the books for me to go sit with him alongside our intelligence and defense professionals tomorrow.”
Turner’s concerns are reportedly related to Russian military capabilities.
Speaker Johnson says he wants to “assure the American people there is no need for public alarm” after House Intelligence chair released a cryptic & vague statement about an ongoing national security threat. “We just want to assure everyone steady hands are at the wheel”
— Marianna Sotomayor (@MariannaReports) February 14, 2024
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A Michigan Republican accused of participating in a fake elector plot after the 2020 presidential election testified on Wednesday that he did not know how the electoral process worked and never intended to make a false public record, the Associated Press reports.
“We were told this was an appropriate process,” James Renner, 77, said during a preliminary hearing for a half-dozen other electors who face forgery and other charges.
People who falsely posed as electors in a six-state scheme to overturn the 2020 presidential election have been criminally charged in Georgia and Nevada. In Wisconsin, false electors agreed to a settlement in a civil case in December.
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“You have a majority of Americans who believe that we need to protect our democracy,” said White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre in response to a question about recent polling showing about 18% of Americans believe in the conspiracy theory that Taylor Swift is part of a plot by Democrats to deliver the 2024 presidential election to Joe Biden. That poll also found people who believe the Taylor Swift theory are also more likely to doubt the validity of the 2020 presidential election.
The United States expects Israel to meet its commitment to allow a shipment of flour to be moved into Gaza, White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan told reporters on Wednesday, Reuters reports.
Sullivan was responding to a question about an Axios report on Tuesday that said the Israeli government was blocking a US-funded flour shipment to Gaza.
Jake Sullivan has finished taking questions from the media and has left the west wing now. White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre will now take the briefing onto more domestic matters in US political news.
Meanwhile, Axios wrote:
Israeli ultranationalist Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich is blocking a U.S.-funded flour shipment to Gaza because its recipient is the UN Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA), two Israeli and U.S. officials told Axios.
U.S. officials said this is a violation of a commitment Benjamin Netanyahu personally made to President Biden several weeks ago and another reason the U.S. leader is frustrated with the Israeli prime minister.
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CNN reports the national security threat that Congressman Mike Turner called on Joe Biden to declassify is related to a “highly concerning and destabilizing” Russian military capability.
During a press briefing, the national security adviser, Jake Sullivan, declined to comment on the specifics of the threat.
“We scheduled a briefing for the for House members of the Gang of Eight tomorrow,” said Sullivan. “I am a bit surprised that Congressman Turner came out publicly today in advance of a meeting on the books for me to go sit with him alongside our intelligence and defense professionals tomorrow.”
Updated
National security adviser Jake Sullivan was asked at the White House press briefing about efforts to secure a “temporary pause” in the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza, and how that might work.
There are international talks under way in Egypt about a ceasefire in Gaza and a deal with Hamas to return hostages it took during its attack on southern Israel on 7 October 2023, which provoked a crushing Israeli military response in Gaza. Our colleague Bethan McKernan reports that mediators are struggling to make progress in the face of a threatened Israeli offensive on Rafah, the Palestinian territory’s last place of relative safety.
Sullivan described that a plan could “start with the temporary pause … The idea is that we have multiple phases as part of the hostage deal and we move from phase 1 to the next and we can extend the pause [in fighting] as more hostages come out.”
He added: “What we would like to see is that Hamas is ultimately defeated, that peace and security come to Gaza, and then we work towards a longer term, two-state solution, with Gaza’s security guaranteed.”
Our colleague Léonie Chao-Fong wrote this explainer piece over the weekend about the latest US push for a solution in the Middle East that would result in Israel and Palestine coexisting in peace. You can read it here.
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House intelligence committee chair warns of 'serious national security threat'
In a statement, Republican congressman Mike Turner, who chairs the House intelligence committee, warned that Congress had been alerted to a “serious national security threat” and called on Biden to “declassify all information related to this threat”. During a press briefing, the national security adviser, Jake Sullivan, declined to directly address the nature of the alleged threat and said that he had plans to meet with congressional intelligence lawmakers tomorrow.
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White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said during a press briefing that Tom Suozzi, the New York Democrat who won a special election for George Santos’ vacated seat in congress, had pulled off his win in part because of his support for legislation cracking down on immigration.
“The people of New York’s third district issued a strong repudiation of Republicans who put politics ahead of national security,” said Jean-Pierre, referring to a bill that Republicans killed last week which would have implemented immigration restrictions in exchange for the release of foreign aid.
Her comments match a shift in tone by Democrats, who have moved to the right on immigration politics during Joe Biden’s first term in office.
Jake Sullivan, talking in the west wing at the weekday White House press briefing, said that while Nato allies are doing a lot to support Ukraine in its fight against Russia, “there is no substitute for the US coming forward with this funding”.
Sullivan, the national security adviser, said that Ukrainians are “a brave, courageous people defending their homeland” and, when asked how long Ukraine can hang on against the Russian invasion, he added: “They will keep fighting but they will fight from a less strong position” if they don’t get more funding from the US to help get their territory back.
He said the difficulties intensified with “each passing day, each passing week” that US aid does not arrive.
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National security adviser Jake Sullivan is urging the US House to take up and pass the $95bn national security bill – moved through the Senate early yesterday – that would supply more support for Ukraine, Israel and other US allies such as Taiwan, as well as further aid.
The need for more US aid for Ukraine is particularly acute in its grinding resistance to the almost two-year-old invasion and bombardment of its territory and people by Russia.
Russia’s president, Vladimir Putin, wants talks on his terms to end the conflict.
Sullivan said: “We know from history that when you do not stand up to dictators they keep going. So President Biden is determined to get this [funding legislation] done, to get this aid out the door so that we are helping friends and partners.”
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The White House press briefing is just beginning. Press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre has wished the gathered media a happy Valentine’s Day and said that Joe Biden called New York Democrat Tom Suozzi to congratulate him last night after he flipped the congressional seat vacated by the disgraced and expelled Republican George Santos in the special election.
She’s now handed the foreign policy section of the briefing over to the national security adviser, Jake Sullivan, who is there today instead of national security spokesperson John Kirby.
Sullivan will take questions, after praising the US Senate for having passed the $95bn national security bill early yesterday that will supply more support for Ukraine, Israel and other US allies such as Taiwan, as well as further aid. So far, the legislation’s prospects in the Republican-controlled House are dim.
Sullivan, however, predicts that if the bill can be brought to a full vote on the floor of the House that it will pass with bipartisan support.
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Here's what's happening so far
House Speaker Mike Johnson defended the House’s decision to impeach the homeland security secretary, Alejandro Mayorkas. “Desperate times call for desperate measures. We had to do that,” he said during a weekly press conference of Republican leadership.
An impeachment trial for Mayorkas will happen in two weeks when the Senate returns from a recess. Removal from office, which requires the votes of two-thirds of senators, is extremely unlikely. The Senate isn’t expected to spend very long on the trial, CNN reports.
Chuck Schumer, the Democratic Senate majority leader, has called the impeachment a “sham”. Joe Biden said: “History will not look kindly on House Republicans for their blatant act of unconstitutional partisanship that has targeted an honorable public servant in order to play petty political games.”
Johnson also downplayed concern for Republicans after Democrats flipped a congressional seat in New York in a special election on Tuesday. “That is in no way a bellwether of what is going to happen this fall,” he said. Meanwhile, there has been some finger-pointing among Republicans on Capitol Hill over who is to blame for losing the seat, Punchbowl News reports.
House Republican leadership was more than happy to use their weekly press conference to highlight special counsel Robert Hur’s report on Biden’s handling of classified documents. “The American people know that if someone is mentally unfit to stand trial, they are unfit to serve as commander-in-chief,” said Elise Stefanik, a New York Republican. Biden has pushed back hard on any suggestion that he does not have the mental capacity to be president. The White House has blasted Hur’s decision to include an assessment of Biden’s memory as outrageous and irrelevant to the investigation.
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Ted Lieu, the vice-chair of the House Democratic caucus, said on Wednesday that Asian American voters had played a key role in Tom Suozzi’s victory in a special election on Tuesday. Lieu is the highest ever ranking Asian American in House Democratic leadership.
Ted Lieu says Asian Americans boosted Suozzi, attributes part of that dynamic to Donald Trump.
— Max Cohen (@maxpcohen) February 14, 2024
“Donald Trump mocks Asian Americans, he makes fun of people with funny sounding last names like Elaine Chao… Republicans remain silent and the Asian American community notices.”
House Democrat throws shade at Johnson, saying he's 'on the job training'
Pete Aguilar, the chairman of the House Democratic caucus, threw some shade at the House speaker, Mike Johnson, on Wednesday, suggesting the speaker was inexperienced and learning on the job.
Dem Pete Aguilar scoffs at Speaker Johnson call to do appropriations before foreign aid - says the House can do multiple things at once
— Jonathan Tamari (@JonathanTamari) February 14, 2024
“Democrats also believe in on the job training and that’s clearly where Speaker Johnson is right now” pic.twitter.com/7KTzNXJdPg
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A valentine from Donald J Trump
In an email to supporters, Donald Trump shared his valentine to his wife, Melania. It’s a bit … unusual.
“Even after every single INDICTMENT, ARREST, and WITCH HUNT, you never left my side. You’ve always supported me through everything,” reads the note, which has the subject line “I love you, Melania!”
“I wouldn’t be the man I am today without your guidance, kindness, and warmth,” he adds. “You will always mean the world to me, Melania!”
The message is signed “From your husband with love, Donald J. Trump.”
Donald Trump sends his Valentine’s Day message to Melania in the form of a fundraising email pic.twitter.com/4Vspg0PXzl
— Emily Goodin (@Emilylgoodin) February 14, 2024
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Johnson is downplaying a Democratic win last night in a Long Island district formerly represented by Republican George Santos.
“That is in no way a bellwether of what is going to happen this fall,” he said.
He noted that Tom Suozzi, the candidate who won, had formerly represented the district in Congress and was widely known already. He also said that many of the positions Suozzi took on issues like immigration resembled Republican ones.
“The result last night is not something that Democrats should celebrate too much,” he added.
There has been some finger-pointing on Capitol Hill on Wednesday over the result, according to Punchbowl News’ Jake Sherman.
A healthy round of finger pointing this morning among Republicans here on Capitol Hill this morning about NY3.
— Jake Sherman (@JakeSherman) February 14, 2024
So far I've heard:
- People say the Nassau County GOP machine is useless after supporting Pilip and Santos.
- People blame the leadership
- People blame Pilip herself…
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Mike Johnson justifies Mayorkas impeachment, saying 'desperate times call for desperate measures'
House Speaker Mike Johnson defended the Republican vote on Tuesday to impeach Alejandro Mayorkas.
“Desperate times call for desperate measures. We had to do that,” he said during a weekly press conference of Republican leadership. It was a quote that can be read with remarkably different meaning depending on if you’re a Democrat or Republican.
“He has abdicated his responsibility, he’s breached the public trust, and he’s disregarded the laws Congress has passed,” Johnson added.
The speaker went on to suggest there were still significant differences between senate and house Republicans on passing a border bill. A bipartisan bill that paired securing the border with foreign aid failed last week after conservative Republicans blocked it, which was humiliating for the GOP.
“The Republican-led House will not be jammed into passing a foreign aid bill that was opposed by most Republican senators and does nothing to secure our own border,” he said.
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After the special counsel Robert Hur’s report, Mike Johnson says Biden is not fit to hold office.
“The DOJ is indicting one president with politically motivated charges and they are now carrying the water for another amid very similar allegations,” he said. “A man too incapable of being held accountable for handling classified information is certainly unfit for the Oval Office.”
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Mark Green, the chairman of the House homeland security committee, urged the Senate to take action and remove Mayorkas from office.
“The constitutional case against Secretary Mayorkas is sound,” he said. “It’s now time for the Senate to do its duty, to step up, hold a trial and convict Secretary Mayorkas.”
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Republicans are beginning their weekly press conference by criticizing Joe Biden after a bombshell report from special counsel Robert Hur last week that raised issues about his memory.
“There cannot be one set of rules if your last name is Biden and another set of rules for the rest of America,” said Representative Elise Stefanik.
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House Speaker Mike Johnson to speak at the Capitol
Mike Johnson is about to speak at a regular press conference of House leadership shortly. He’s expected to address the impeachment of Alejandro Mayorkas, among other topics.
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My colleague Adam Gabbatt has a great breakdown of Tom Suozzi’s victory in a closely watched congressional race on Long Island and whether it means trouble for Republicans in November:
One Republican political consultant noted that Suozzi’s sizeable margin of victory – after polling showed a slim lead – could certainly mean trouble for Republicans.
“It’s clear that attempts to tie him to the migrant crisis were woefully unsuccessful,” consultant William FB O’Reilly told City & State. “Republicans put all their eggs in that basket, but voters weren’t buying it.
“The big walkaway question is how potent a national issue migration will be in 2024,” he added. “If it didn’t play in migrant-flooded New York, how’s it going to play in Podunk?”
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Mark Green, the chairman of the House homeland security committee, has written an op-ed in the Wall Street Journal explaining the decision to impeach Mayorkas. Portions of the op-ed appear designed to rebut criticism that Republicans are impeaching Mayorkas over mere policy disagreements.
Here are some key paragraphs:
Impeachment doesn’t require the commission of indictable crimes. The framers of the Constitution conceived of impeachment as a remedy for much more expansive failures. When officials responsible for executing the law willfully and unilaterally refuse to do so, and instead replace those laws with their own directives, they violate the Constitution by assuming power granted solely to the legislative branch. They undermine the rule of law itself – an offense worthy of impeachment and removal.
The framers gave the House the power of impeachment to preserve the integrity of our constitutional system. As Alexander Hamilton wrote in Federalist No. 65, impeachable offenses are those “which proceed … from the abuse or violation of some public trust.” James Madison added that “the House of Representatives can at any time impeach” an unworthy officeholder, “whether the president chooses or not.”
There is little doubt that the framers, who cast aside tyrannical rule in favor of representative government, would view Mr. Mayorkas’s refusal to comply with the law and breach of public trust as impeachable. He is the type of public official for which they crafted this power. The Senate must finish the House’s work and convict Secretary Mayorkas.
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Here’s the full statement from Chuck Schumer, the Democratic Senate majority leader, responding to the House’s impeachment vote:
This sham impeachment effort is another embarrassment for House Republicans. The one and only reason for this impeachment is for Speaker Johnson to further appease Donald Trump.
House Republicans failed to produce any evidence that Secretary Mayorkas has committed any crime.
House Republicans failed to show he has violated the Constitution.
House Republicans failed to present any evidence of anything resembling an impeachable offense.
This is a new low for House Republicans.
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Three Republicans joined all of the Democrats in voting against impeaching Mayorkas.
One of them was Ken Buck, a Colorado congressman who is retiring at the end of this Congress. He told CNN that he did not believe the accusations against Mayorkas amounted to high crimes and misdemeanors.
“You can try to put lipstick on this pig, it is still a big, and this is a terrible impeachment. It sets a terrible precedent,” he told the network. He added he was concerned impeachment could cause Republicans to lose credibility with Americans.
Representatives Mike Gallagher of Wisconsin and Tom McClintock of California were the other Republicans to vote against impeachment.
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Why did Republicans impeach Mayorkas?
The US constitution says that an official can only be impeached for “treason, bribery, or other high crimes and misdemeanors”. That is supposed to set an extraordinarily high bar for removing someone from office and may be why impeachment has been so rarely used in US history.
Republicans say Mayorkas has cleared that threshold because he “willfully and systematically” refused to enforce immigration law. They also claim he breached the public trust and accuse him of making false statements to Congress. (You can read the full articles of impeachment here.)
The accusations against Mayorkas don’t contain bombshell evidence of a serious crime, but rather appear to be a policy dispute over how to enforce immigration law. Mia Ehrenberg, a spokesperson for the Department of Homeland Security, said Republicans acted “without a shred of evidence or legitimate constitutional grounds”.
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Homeland security secretary Alejandro Mayorkas impeached
Good morning and happy Valentine’s Day to all who celebrate! Here’s what’s happening in US politics today:
House Republicans impeached Alejandro Mayorkas, the homeland security secretary, last night in a 214-213 vote over his handling of immigration at the U.S.-Mexico border. Mayorkas is the first cabinet secretary to be impeached in 150 years.
Democrats have a majority in the US Senate, where a trial will be held over whether to convict Mayorkas and remove him from office when it returns on 26 February. That’s extremely unlikely since two-thirds of senators would have to convict him and remove him from office. Chuck Schumer, a Democrat who serves as the Senate majority leader, has said the impeachment is a “sham.”
Joe Biden also harshly criticized Republicans for moving forward with impeachment. “History will not look kindly on House Republicans for their blatant act of unconstitutional partisanship that has targeted an honorable public servant in order to play petty political games.”
Tom Suozzi, a Democrat, defeated Republican Mazi Pilip and won a special election on Long Island Tuesday night to replace George Santos, the disgraced Republican. The win was seen as a kind of litmus test of the strength of the respective parties in their respective districts. The win is also significant because Democrats narrowed the already razor-thin GOP majority in the US House. Republicans will now have a three-seat majority in the House.
