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In a bid to reassure a skeptical Senate panel, Markwayne Mullin, the nominee for the position of homeland security secretary, presented himself as a stabilizing force for a department that has been mired in controversy under Kristi Noem’s leadership. During a hearing on Wednesday, Mullin emphasized his alignment with President Donald Trump’s firm stance on immigration and addressed concerns about his suitability for the high-profile role.
Facing the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, the Oklahoma Republican was questioned about his plans for overseeing a department at the heart of the Trump administration’s aggressive deportation efforts. This comes amid a funding impasse, with Democrats demanding stricter oversight of immigration officers following the tragic deaths of at least three American citizens in incidents involving federal agents.
Throughout the hearing, Mullin adopted a conciliatory tone concerning some of the administration’s more divisive policies, retracting a previous statement in which he labeled a Minneapolis man, who was fatally shot by federal officers, as “deranged.” However, his spirited exchange with the committee chair and unwavering loyalty to Trump’s directives left some senators questioning his approach to reforming an agency central to the deportation agenda.
“I can have different opinions with everybody in this room, but as secretary of homeland I’ll be protecting everybody,” Mullin assured the committee. “My goal in six months is that we’re not in the lead story every single day.”
During the proceedings, Mullin displayed a range of emotions, from heartfelt moments to defiant rebuttals, as he recounted his family’s ties to Trump and reiterated his dedication to advancing the president’s policies.
The hearing was Mullin’s first opportunity since being nominated to present his plans in public for the government’s third-largest department. Noem was fired this month following mounting criticism of her leadership.
Mullin sheds light on his immigration views
Trump’s immigration agenda and how Mullin intends to implement it are key issues for Democrats. Trump’s policy of mass deportations is at a crossroads, and Mullin will be under pressure to achieve Trump’s goals when the public mood has soured over aggressive immigration enforcement operations.
On whether DHS should meet a 3,000 a day quota for the number of immigration arrests it makes, Mullin said none had been set for him.
He retracted comments he made about Alex Pretti, the Minneapolis man shot by federal immigration officers and whom Mullin had called “deranged.”
“I shouldn’t have said that and as secretary, I wouldn’t,” he said.
Mullin said officers would only use a warrant signed by a judge to forcibly enter homes to make arrests, except in limited circumstances. Federal officers have used administrative warrants to do so, raising concerns that constitutional protections are being skirted.
In his opening remarks and in answers to senators’ questions, Mullin called for the routine DHS funding to be restored.
“We have to get DHS funded,” Mullin told senators. “We have to realize that we’re putting our homeland and the peace of mind at risk for the American people.”
Committee chair says Mullin ‘applauds violence’
The first part of the hearing was marked by a fiery opening statement by Republican committee chair Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky.
Paul challenged Mullin’s fitness for the role, pointing to comments Mullin made after a funding fight, when he called Paul a “freaking snake” and said he understood why a neighbor had tackled Paul in a lawn care dispute. That incident happened several years ago, and Paul suffered multiple broken ribs and later underwent surgeries he linked to the attack.
“I just wonder if someone who applauds violence against their political opponents is the right person to lead an agency that has struggled to accept limits to the proper use of force?” Paul said.
Mullin refused to back down to Paul, in a display that Trump is likely to expect and appreciate.
“For you to say I’m a liar, sir, that’s not accurate,” Mullin said.
Separately, Michigan Sen. Gary Peters scrutinized past remarks he attributed to Mullin that suggested he’d been “involved in special security forces or combat operations overseas.”
Mullin said he was involved in an official trip but he couldn’t discuss details.
“It’s classified, sir,” Mullin replied, saying he had never revealed details about “the dates, location and mission.”
Peters said the FBI, which conducts background checks on executive nominees, said it has no record of his trip.
Ultimately, Mullin agreed to discuss the matter after the hearing in a private classified setting.
Mullin, the Trump ally
Mullin is a former mixed martial arts fighter who ran a plumbing business in Oklahoma before running for Congress. If confirmed, he is expected to be a faithful ally for Trump’s agenda.
“Whether it be protecting the homeland from bad actors, stopping dangerous drugs from flowing into American communities, or removing the worst-of-the-worst criminal illegal aliens, Senator Mullin will work tirelessly to implement the President’s agenda,” White House spokeswoman Abigail Jackson said in an emailed statement.
Peters said Democrats were asking for “straightforward” changes at DHS in line with rules and that police departments follow.
Peters underlined the challenges that Homeland Security is facing, from threats from Iran to criminal hackers, and said the department needed someone with a “steady hand.” But Peters said he had reservations about whether Mullin was ready for the job.
As the latest partial government shutdown drags on, there have been long security lines at a growing number of U.S airports as security screeners go into another month without pay. Republicans have charged that Democrats are risking the nation’s security by blocking funding to the department.
DHS endured turmoil under Noem
Under Noem, intense enforcement operations were launched in places including Los Angeles, Chicago and Minneapolis, where immigrants were rounded up in arrest sweeps and protesters clashed with federal officers.
Activists and politicians accused DHS officers of smashing car windows, roughing up bystanders who tried to record their activities and detaining immigrants in squalid conditions. The shooting deaths contributed to the growing criticism of Trump’s immigration agenda.
DHS has said that its officers are responding with force only when necessary and it has blamed activists and politicians, who they say are dialing up the rhetoric against federal officers.
Mullin also faced questions about the future of the Federal Emergency Management Agency, or FEMA, which is in the middle of tumultuous changes after Trump said he wanted to overhaul the agency, if not eliminate it.
Mullin said he would look to “restructure” FEMA and not abolish it.
Under Noem’s leadership, all contracts above $100,000 had to wait for her approval. That led to long delays for states desperate for reimbursements for money they had spent on things such as storm debris removal.
Asked about that policy, Mullin said he would revoke it.
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