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Why Rep. Al Green left his hospital bed to tank the Mayorkas impeachment
Democratic Rep. Al Green of Texas was in a hospital bed recovering from intestinal surgery on Tuesday as the Republican-led House was about to vote on impeaching Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas.
So, it came as a surprise to his colleagues when he showed up at the last minute on the House floor Tuesday night in what appeared to be his hospital garb.
In a conversation with CBS News, Green said that once he learned the impeachment vote was happening, he spoke with his doctors to obtain clearance to go to the Capitol, with medical staff accompanying him. Ultimately, the vote was 214 in favor of impeachment and 216 against, an outcome that was made possible by Green’s vote. Three Republicans had voted “no” before Green’s arrival at the Capitol, and the tally stood at 215-214. Green cast the tying vote, which defeated the impeachment resolution.
Rep. Blake Moore of Utah then switched his vote in order to give GOP leaders the opportunity to bring up the vote again when there are enough Republicans present to pass the measure. The three Republicans who opposed impeaching Mayorkas do not think his conduct rises to the level of an impeachable offense. Those three Republican defectors were Rep. Tom McClintock of California, Rep. Ken Buck of Colorado and Rep. Mike Gallagher of Wisconsin.
“Well, I’ll be very honest with you,” Green said. “If it had not been the vote that made the difference, and if the vote had gone the other way, I would feel good about myself because I would have done all that I could.”
Speaker Mike Johnson called the failed vote a “setback” but told CBS News he expects the articles will pass when Republicans hold another vote “in the next round.” Rep. Ken Buck of Colorado, one of the Republicans who voted against impeaching Mayorkas, indicated the House could vote again, once House Majority Leader Steve Scalise, a Louisiana Republican, returns to work. Scalise has been working remotely as he undergoes cancer treatment.
“We have a razor-thin margin here and every vote counts,” Johnson said. “Sometimes, when you’re counting votes, and people show up when they aren’t expected to be in the building, it changes the equation. But listen, we have a duty and a responsibility to take care of this issue.”
Green, who returned to his hospital bed after the vote, said he was “not pressured” by any Democrats on Capitol Hill to come in for the vote. Green said he notified House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, and Jeffries never “convinced” him to head to the Capitol.
Asked why he thought it was important to return to vote, Green said, “because Secretary Mayorkas is a good man.”
“I know of his good deeds beyond what you read in the newspapers. I know that he’s doing the best job that he can with the laws that Congress has,” Green said.
Green said Mayorkas is “limited” because the laws that would benefit his department have not been passed. A bipartisan agreement on border security, which senators hammered out for weeks, fell apart on Capitol Hill this week over Republican opposition.
Green said he’ll be in the hospital for a few more days as he recovers, but he’s confident he’ll be OK.
There were no injuries after a Southwest flight carrying passengers was struck by gunfire on the tarmac of Dallas Love Field Friday night, authorities said.
Southwest Airlines Flight 2494 was preparing for departure to Indianapolis when “a bullet apparently struck the right side of the aircraft under the flight deck,” a Southwest spokesperson told CBS News in a statement.
The airline said no one was hurt. A spokesperson for Dallas Love Field said in an email that the aircraft returned to its gate after sustaining damage from a “security incident” and the passengers deplaned. The runway was also temporarily closed, but has since reopened.
Dallas police confirmed the incident, saying that officers responded to reports of gunfire at 9:48 p.m. local time, arriving to find that the aircraft had been struck.
No further details were provided on the circumstances of the incident or what was the potential source of the gunfire. It’s unclear how many people were aboard the jet at the time, or how much damage the aircraft sustained.
In its own statement provided to CBS News, the Federal Aviation Administration said that the plane “was reportedly struck by gunfire near the cockpit.”
Dallas police are leading the investigation into the incident.
Earlier this week, gunfire amid ongoing gang violence struck three planes that were either landing or departing Haiti’s capital of Port-au-Prince. The shootings prompted the FAA to issue a 30-day ban on U.S. airlines flying to Haiti.
Social media star Jake Paul defeated boxing legend Mike Tyson in a highly anticipated fight with an age difference of over three decades between the two contenders. The Friday night win for the YouTuber-turned-pro-boxer was streamed on Netflix from the home of the Dallas Cowboys in Texas.
Paul defeated Tyson by an unanimous decision after the two fighters went eight full rounds.
Fight night for the 58-year-old Tyson and 27-year-old Paul came following doubts over whether it would happen at all. The fight was originally scheduled for July, but was postponed after the former heavyweight champion experienced an ulcer flare-up on a plane in May.
A different kind of flare-up happened during the official weigh-in Thursday with Tyson slapping Paul in the face. Tyson later told the New York Post that Paul had stepped on his toe when the two were toe to toe onstage.
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What is Jake Paul’s fight record?
With the win, Paul’s record improved to 11-1.
Was Jake Paul predicted to win?
Oddsmakers had Paul as the slight favorite to win. Former heavyweight champ Anthony Joshua also went with Paul.
How much prize money does Jake Paul win?
Paul was expected to earn about $40 million from the fight, according to DraftKings Network and other online sources.
Promoters didn’t reveal the payouts ahead of the bout. Paul is a co-founder of Most Valuable Promotions, which produced the fight.
Does Mike Tyson still get paid?
Tyson was expected to take home around $20 million for the fight, according to DraftKings and other online reports.
Tyson entered professional boxing in 1985 and became the youngest heavyweight champion in history a year later. After serving time for a rape conviction in the 1990s, Tyson won the World Boxing Council and World Boxing Association titles.
He retired from boxing in 2005 and was inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame in 2011. He last fought in a 2020 exhibition match against former four-division world champ Roy Jones Jr.
“He like put on another 20 pounds from when I fought him, so he’s more bigger and he’s more dangerous because more size, more power, so it’s going to be a tough one for Jake to climb,” Jones told CBS News ahead of the fight.
Anne Marie Lee and
contributed to this report.
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