Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security Alejandro Mayorkas testified before the Senate Appropriations Committee on Wednesday.
The beleaguered Biden cabinet member faced criticism for his job performance.
Republicans skewered Mayorkas over his refusal to enforce immigration law and halt the tidal wave of illegals infiltrating the U.S. southern border.
.@SenRonJohnson drills Mayorkas on our open borders and the failure of this administration. pic.twitter.com/uY8IpSALsS
— MRCTV (@mrctv) May 4, 2022
Sen. Rand Paul questioned Mayorkas on the creation of a new “Disinformation Governance Board” within DHS.
Sen @RandPaul just EVISCERATED Secretary Mayorkas on the Department of Homeland Security’s “Ministry of Truth.”
“I think you’ve got no idea what disinformation is…Do you know who the greatest propagator of disinformation in the history of the world is? The U.S. government.” pic.twitter.com/ZTnjUsTQne
— Townhall.com (@townhallcom) May 4, 2022
Mayorkas rejected claims that the bizarre “Disinformation” board would be used to thought-police the American public, instead emphasizing that the entity would focus on disinformation from Iran, Russia and human smuggling cartels.
Should the Disinformation Governance Board be abolished?
Yes: 100% (10 Votes)
No: 0% (0 Votes)
Paul rejected the notion that DHS or the federal government should be in the policing of “disinformation,” pointing to previous instances of U.S. government-backed false information.
“We can’t even agree what disinformation is. You can’t even agree that it was disinformation that the Russians fed … to the Steele dossier.”
“If you can’t agree to that, how are we ever going to come to an agreement on what is disinformation, so you can police it on social media?”
Paul pointed to the federal government as the largest purveyor of disinformation in American history.
“I think you’ve got no idea what disinformation is, and I don’t think the government’s capable of it … Are you familiar with George W. Bush and the weapons of mass destruction?”
Claims of the Disinformation Governance Board’s independence have been complicated by the appointment of a partisan leftist to lead the agency.
Nina Jankowicz dismissed coverage of Hunter Biden’s laptop as disinformation in the run-up of the 2020 election.
The disinformation scholar also admitted to receiving funding from Facebook.
House Republicans have called for the impeachment of Mayorkas, citing the illegal immigration crisis he’s overseen at the border.
Although articles of impeachment are unlikely to pass a Democratic House majority, it’s possible that the GOP could send an impeachment of Mayorkas to the Senate if they win in November.
