New Mexico House Speaker says he won't impeach governor for National Guard pullback
The Democratic speaker of the New Mexico House of Representatives says there is no way he would initiate impeachment proceedings against the state's governor for withdrawing troops from the border with Mexico. An online petition seeks to impeach Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham for treason in withdrawing about 100 New Mexico National Guard troops and has garnered more than 30,000 signatures.
On Tuesday, House Speaker Brian Egolf of Santa Fe said "no way, forget about it" regarding prospects for impeachment proceedings. He holds the authority to initiate House investigations.
Lujan Grisham has challenged President Trump's description of a security crisis on the border, while leaving about a dozen national guardsmen at the border to address humanitarian needs in a remote corridor for border-crossing immigration. The change.org petition, initiated by John Daniel of Ruidoso, New Mexico, says that Lujan Grisham has "overruled" Mr. Trump's authorization to deploy National Guard troops to the southern border and in doing so, claims that the governor "has deliberately and recklessly aided our enemies in illegal entry to the state, committing illegal activities and endangering the safety of its citizens."
The governor told CBS affiliate KRQE News 13 last week that she removed the National Guard troops because there isn't a security crisis at the state's border.
"They could not make an effective case that having the national guard presence there has assisted them in any meaningful way with dealing with nefarious activity along the border which is what they do," the governor said.
Nora Sackett, the governor's spokesperson, told the AP that the "silly" petition was a "sham effort" by President Trump supporters mostly outside the state.
Impeachment in New Mexico requires a majority vote of all House members. A subsequent Senate trial requires a two-thirds majority to convict.