Support among House Democrats for impeaching Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem is skyrocketing, nearly doubling in the last week to 100 co-sponsors.
Why it matters: That's an unprecedented level of support for an impeachment effort during President Trump's second term, with lawmakers who have bristled at the topic in the past now warming to the idea.
- Rep. Jared Huffman (D-Calif.), who has harshly criticized impeachment efforts in the past, nevertheless signed on to the Noem articles.
- The California Democrat told Axios he is under "no illusions about whether it has a chance of passing in this Congress," but that "the circumstances are so extreme that a message needs to be sent."
- The Noem effort represents a mainstreaming of impeachment and offers an early signal of who Democrats may target first if they retake the House in November.
Driving the news: The articles of impeachment, introduced by Rep. Robin Kelly (D-Ill.), reached 100 co-sponsors on Tuesday, Kelly's office announced in a press release.
- Support for the measure is nearing half the House Democratic caucus, which has 213 members.
- "Democrats from California to New York, Minnesota to Texas support my impeachment resolution because our communities have seen ICE's Gestapo-like tactics firsthand," Kelly said.
- A Kelly spokesperson told Axios they expect that number to grow further and that "more offices are continuing to look at the text."
State of play: The 10-page impeachment resolution, spurred by the shooting of Renee Good in Minneapolis earlier this month, accuses Noem of obstructing Congress, violating the public trust and self-dealing.
- DHS has slammed the effort as "silly" and said Kelly and the other Democrats supporting the articles should focus on crime in their districts.
- While Democrats can unilaterally force a vote on impeaching Noem, the measure faces an uphill battle in the Republican-controlled House.
- It would meet even steeper odds in the Senate, which is also under GOP control and requires a two-thirds majority vote to remove impeached federal officers.
Between the lines: Impeachment had been a taboo topic for even the most hardcore anti-Trump House Democrats going into last year.
- But fervent demands by the grassroots base to take a more combative stance towards the administration have eroded that reluctance.
- Past attempts to impeach Trump and his Cabinet officials this term were one-off efforts by rogue members that greatly frustrated both Democratic leadership and the rank-and-file. This time, the anger is confined to a smaller bloc of centrists.
What to watch: Kelly is urging Republicans to get on board with her efforts — even as no GOP lawmaker has come close to expressing support for Noem's impeachment.
- "As Secretary Noem continues to lie, obstruct Congress, and violate people's civil rights, the support for her impeachment only grows," she said.
- "I urge my colleagues on the other side of the aisle to be on the right side of the law and our Constitution."
