DHS nominee Mullin gets icy reception at Senate hearing

WASHINGTON (CN) — If prospective Homeland Security leader Markwayne Mullin was expecting a breezy confirmation hearing in a Republican-led Senate committee, he was quickly proven wrong Wednesday morning as the Oklahoma senator faced sharp criticism from the panel’s GOP chairman whom he had personally slighted.

Mullin, tapped by President Donald Trump earlier this month to take over the Department of Homeland Security, appeared before the Senate Homeland Security and Government Affairs Committee for a milestone hearing in which he hoped to secure the support of his colleagues to replace outgoing Secretary Kristi Noem.

But as he pledged to lawmakers to be a responsible steward of the country’s controversial immigration enforcement agencies, the nominee also had to contend with Kentucky Senator Rand Paul, the committee’s Republican chairman.

In a fiery opening statement, Paul demanded Mullin apologize or express some remorse for recent comments he made saying he “completely understood” why the Kentucky senator had been assaulted by a neighbor in 2017, an attack that left Paul with lifelong injuries.

“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 on the proper use of force,” Paul fumed.

The Republican lawmaker argued Mullin lacked the temperament to lead DHS, which has come under scrutiny as federal agents from Border Patrol and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement undertake a sweeping and sometimes brutal deportation campaign at the direction of the White House. Immigration officers on at least two occasions have shot and killed U.S. citizens — Noem and other administration officials initially accused them of being “domestic terrorists.”

In addition to his comments about Paul’s assault, the Kentucky senator pointed to other high-profile incidents involving Mullin, including his near duel with Teamsters president Sean O’Brien during a 2023 Senate hearing.

“Explain to the American public why they should trust a man with anger issues to set the proper example for ICE and Border Patrol agents,” said Paul. “Explain to the American public how a man who has no regrets about brawling in a Senate committee can set a proper example to the over 250,000 men and women who work in the Department of Homeland Security.”

Mullin, for his part, refused to apologize to Paul for his comments. And while he urged his colleagues and other lawmakers on the committee to look past their personal spat, the nominee did not mince words on his opinion of the Kentucky senator.

“I simply said that I can understand, because of the behavior you’re having, why your neighbor did what he did,” Mullin told Paul. “Seems like you fight Republicans more than you work with us.”

The Oklahoma senator, however, added that he had “a job to do” and said he’d be willing to “set it aside” if Paul agreed to move on. “Let me earn your respect,” he said. “Let me earn the job. I won’t fail you.”

Beyond his skirmish with Paul, Mullin on Wednesday appeared eager to stake out a slightly more moderate position than his predecessor. The nominee vowed to have “the best” congressional outreach of any federal agency if confirmed and seemed open to adjusting some of the department’s more controversial policies.

“My goal for six months from now is that we’re not the lead story every day,” he told the Senate committee. “My goal is for people to understand that we’re out there, we’re protecting them and we’re working for them.”

Responding to questioning from Connecticut Senator Richard Blumenthal, Mullin said under his DHS, federal agents would not forcibly enter homes and businesses without a signed judicial warrant, unless “we’re pursuing an individual” who enters a building.

That move would be a major departure from the agency’s approach to warrantless searches under the second Trump administration. The department has held since early last year that federal agents can forcibly enter homes with an administrative warrant — a search document that can be approved by an ICE officer — if the people inside have a final order of removal. Immigration advocates have long advised people not to open the door for federal agents if they cannot present a warrant signed by a judge.

Noem, testifying before the Senate earlier this month, said administrative warrants were the “proper legal tool” for immigration enforcement operations.

Mullin also demurred on questions about so-called “quotas” for immigration arrests and deportations cited by some White House officials. The nominee told lawmakers that “no quota has been set for me” on arrests or deportations but pointed out that the president was responsible for setting U.S. immigration policy.

The Oklahoma senator, however, did not follow Noem’s earlier example on claims about deportation quotas. The outgoing DHS secretary said during her hearing this month that there had been “no discussion or requirement” of quotas for federal agents — but an ICE agent recently told a federal court in Oregon that his team was told to target eight arrests per day during immigration enforcement operations in Portland.

White House adviser Stephen Miller has publicly said that the Trump administration aimed to make 3,000 arrests per day.

Lawmakers, meanwhile, asked Mullin to weigh in on the high-profile shootings of two U.S. citizens in Minnesota by federal immigration agents. In particular, the Oklahoma senator was asked about comments he made immediately after the death of Alex Pretti, a 37-year-old nurse who he claimed was a “deranged individual” who wanted to kill law enforcement.

Mullin walked back his statement, telling members of the committee that he “regrets” framing Pretti as a violent actor. “Those words probably should have been retracted,” he said. “I shouldn’t have said that.”

But the DHS nominee showed less contrition for the killing of Renee Good, 37, who was shot and killed by ICE agents in her car in a separate incident in Minneapolis.

“It’s very clear that the officer had to make a split-second decision in that case,” he told Blumenthal. “The car was running towards him and did strike him. At that point, the car becomes a lethal weapon.”

New Hampshire Senator Maggie Hassan put a finer point on Democrats’ questioning about fatal shootings by federal immigration agents. “Secretary Noem gave a green light to lawless behavior,” she said to Mullin. “Are you going to give a green light to lawless behavior?”

The Oklahoma senator put the ball back in Congress’ court.

“I will operate within the parameters of the laws you guys set for me,” he said. “I don’t get to choose the laws I enforce.”

Mullin’s nomination to replace Noem at the head of DHS will need to clear the Senate committee before he moves to a final confirmation vote in the full chamber. And despite sharp criticism from Paul, the rest of the panel’s Republican majority appear to have their minds made up.

“I know that is a good man,” said Ohio Senator Bernie Moreno, pointing at Mullin from the dais. “I will vote for you. Our Republican colleagues will vote for you. You will get confirmed, you will do a great job and you will make this country proud.”

Trump this month fired Noem just days after she faced sharp criticism from lawmakers at a pair of House and Senate hearings. The president was reportedly furious with the outgoing DHS secretary over her suggestion that he’d approved a roughly $220 million advertising campaign for the agency.

Noem’s last day as head of Homeland Security is March 31. Trump has said she will remain in the administration and head up a new regional military initiative known as Shield of the Americas.

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