Mullin Presents Himself As A Different Kind Of Dhs Secretary During Tense Confirmation Hearing

Sen. Markwayne Mullin, President Donald Trump’s pick to replace Kristi Noem as Homeland Security secretary, stressed Wednesday to his colleagues on the Senate Homeland Security Committee that he’ll be a different type of leader of the embattled department.

Amid a flurry of pointed questions and critiques of his views and past statements from both sides of the aisle, the Oklahoma Republican stressed at his confirmation hearing that he planned to make changes at the department, including requiring immigration officers to have court-ordered warrants to enter homes.

Mullin was careful not to directly criticize Noem, but said he would work “every single day to not just secure our homeland, but bring peace of mind and confidence to the agency.” He added: “My goal at six months is that we’re not in the lead story every single day. My goal is for people to understand we’re out there. We’re protecting them.”

Noem had become a lightning rod figure for the Trump administration in recent months, accused of prioritizing optics and inflammatory messaging as she implemented a sweeping crackdown on unauthorized immigration. Trump reassigned her to a job focused on the Western Hemisphere earlier this month, after she claimed the president approved an expensive advertising campaign critics said served to boost her profile.

Mullin is widely expected to be confirmed, but going into the hearing, both Republicans and Democrats were looking for assurances that he would provide a steadier type of leadership to DHS. Public confidence in the department is at record lows in the wake of a sweeping immigration crackdown which voters have said in polls has gone too far. The department has also been under a shutdown for more than four weeks amid an impasse between Senate Democrats and the White House over potential changes to how the agency enforces immigration laws.

Many Democrats, and at least a few in Mullin’s own party, were not convinced he was the right person to rescue the agency. In a combative exchange with Mullin, Senate Homeland Security Chair Rand Paul upbraided him for earlier comments calling the Kentucky Republican a “snake” and saying he understood why one of Paul’s neighbors attacked him in 2017.

“Explain to the American public why they should trust a man with anger issues to” lead the Department of Homeland Security, Paul said.

Nevertheless, Republican leadership voiced confidence that Mullin was a lock for the job. Asked about the tensions between Paul and Mullin, Senate Majority Leader John Thune insisted Mullin is still the right man to lead DHS.

Given the widespread support of the GOP, it was notable the extent of changes Mullins pledged to institute. It was a clear effort to turn the page from Noem, who received bipartisan criticism for hobbling a critical department with her management style.

Markedly, Mullin said he’d cooperate with an ongoing inspector general probe that Noem is accused of obstructing.

He also indicated he will reverse a controversial administration decision allowing ICE agents to enter homes with an administrative warrant, which is not signed by a judge, leaving that only for extremely exigent circumstances. The White House did not respond to a request for comment about whether Mullin’s statements are aligned with their negotiating position; the issue has been a major sticking point for Senate Democrats in funding talks with the Trump administration.

And Mullin said he’d end a much-criticized policy Noem implemented where the disbursement of grants above $100,000 required personal approval from the secretary, calling that “micromanagement.”

Mullin repeatedly emphasized he would “empower” agency heads that report to him, indicating he’ll defer to the operational judgment of leaders at ICE and Customs and Border Enforcement — a contrast to Noem, who elevated lieutenants at Border Patrol who favored flashy tactics.

One issue from Mullin’s past did have Paul threatening to cancel a scheduled vote on Thursday on Mullin’s nomination: his refusal to give details of what he has previously described as “special missions” he conducted around the world.

Sen. Gary Peters (D-Mich.), the top Democrat on the Senate Homeland Security Committee, voiced his frustrations with Mullin’s lack of “candor” in discussing these trips and urged Mullin to provide the committee details in a classified setting about that work.

Paul backed Peters up, saying the FBI investigation’s findings contradicted those claims and that there were no documents in his file about any classified activities.

Mullin declined to get into details, saying “it was a special program inside the House” and “only four people read into it." He said it was for “fact-finding” purposes and pledged he’d talk to senators on the committee about it in a secure facility.

In the hearing, Sen. Bernie Moreno (R-Ohio) dismissed the idea that Mullin’s nomination could be derailed.

“I’m going to ruin everything for the audience. You will be confirmed. You have the job, and you're going to make this country safer and better,” said Moreno, who called Mullin a friend.

Besides Paul, Republicans generally offered Mullin light questions about his record, allowing him to articulate his views on efforts to combat threats from drones, reforming disaster relief and the future of the department.

Mullin promised there will be better communication between Congress and DHS under his leadership of the agency, responding to bipartisan frustration about the sluggish pace of responses to congressional inquiries.

“It's going to take a couple months to stand it up, but we're going to have a [legislative affairs] shop that you're going to know who the person is. We're going to work with you,” Mullin said.

He continued: ”Most importantly, I think everybody on this dais has my personal cell phone. That cell phone isn't going to change. And if you call me, you're going to get a response. If you text me, we're going to get a response.”

It wasn’t enough for most Democrats.

Sen. Elissa Slotkin (D-Mich.), who pressed Mullin on whether he’d deploy ICE officers to polling locations, said “I don't feel confident at this point that he's going to do anything differently than Kristi Noem. And given what Stephen Miller and the others at the White House, how they view the world and his willingness to do what they say, I'm not sure I can say that.”

But Mullin can count on the support of one Democrat — John Fetterman of Pennsylvania — who reiterated his support for Mullin in the hearing.

Plenty of Mullin’s colleagues on both sides of the aisle lavished praise on a man they said they respect as a colleague and friend. That included Sen. Ruben Gallego (D-Ariz.), who did not say whether he would support Mullin’s nomination, but insisted Mullin was qualified for the job and that he is an “upstanding” person and colleague.

Giselle Ruhiyyih Ewing, Leo Shane III, Myah Ward and Jordain Carney contributed to this report.