Democrats Unveil 3 Articles Of Impeachment Against Kristi Noem

WASHINGTON — With the support of nearly 70 colleagues, Rep. Robin Kelly (D-Ill.) on Wednesday introduced over the weekend, days after an ICE agent fatally shot an American citizen in Minneapolis, and constituents delivered “standing, perpetual applause for impeaching Kristi Noem.”

“The people want us to do something,” she said. “That’s our job.”

In order to impeach Noem, House Democrats would need to secure a simple majority, or 218 votes, in favor of impeaching her. This process typically begins with an investigation in the House Judiciary Committee, of which Kelly is not a member.

If the House actually impeached Noem, Senate Republican leaders would then have to agree to hold a trial, and that chamber would need a two-thirds supermajority, or 67 votes, to convict and remove Noem from office.

House and Senate Democrats have been demanding reforms at DHS in the aftermath of the Minneapolis shooting, which is just the latest incident involving violence being perpetuated by ICE agents in cities nationwide.

The Congressional Progressive Caucus, which includes nearly 100 House Democrats, announced Tuesday that its members will oppose any new funding for DHS until “meaningful” reforms are made, though they didn’t give specifics. Sen. Chris Murphy (D-Conn.) is working on a bill that outlines specific reforms at ICE, like banning ICE agents from wearing masks and requiring Border Patrol agents to be at the border. Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto (D-Nev.) unveiled legislation Wednesday that would redirect roughly $75 billion in federal funding from ICE and send it to local law enforcement programs.

Some Democrats, like Congressional Hispanic Caucus Chair Adriano Espaillat (D-N.Y.), have called for completely overhauling ICE. Recent polling shows more Americans support abolishing ICE than they did before Trump retook the White House, a major shift in public opinion over the past six months.

Asked if Democrats are considering a push to abolish ICE entirely, Kelly didn’t say no.

“All options are on the table,” she said.

For all their vows to rein in Noem and ICE, House Democrats don’t seem to be on the same page about how to do it.

At a press event later Wednesday, Rep. Bennie Thompson (D-Miss.), the top Democrat on the Judiciary Committee, announced that Democrats on this panel will begin their own work of holding Noem “accountable.”

He previewed a much more drawn-out process of looking into Noem’s actions, describing Democratic committee members visiting communities all over the country and talking to people about their experiences with DHS agents, collecting data and testimony.

“ICE, as well as FEMA, and some other areas will be looked at,” said Thompson, with committee members standing alongside him. “Nothing is off the table. But accountability is the key of what we’re talking about.”

Asked about Kelly’s impeachment push, the Mississippi Democrat said some lawmakers “have already reached a decision” on action they want to take against Noem. “But from the standpoint of the committee as a whole, we’re looking at accountability,” he said.

Rep. Shri Thanedar (D-Mich.), one of the judiciary panel Democrats at Thompson’s press event, took things in yet another direction by announcing his plans to try to abolish ICE.

“ICE is beyond reform. ICE is totally out of control,” Thanedar said. “This week, I intend to introduce a bill to abolish ICE. We need to make ICE go away.”

When the event ended, a reporter shouted a question to Thompson as he was walking away about whether he supported Thanedar’s call for abolishing ICE.

He kept walking.

Correction: An earlier version of this story misstated the number of votes needed in the Senate for an impeachment conviction. It is 67.