Mullin under microscope by Senate colleagues over temperament, stolen valor and ICE in tense DHS confirmation hearing
By Morgan Rimmer, CNN
(CNN) — A typically friendly setting for one of their own turned tense on Capitol Hill Wednesday with senators grilling Markwayne Mullin for roughly three hours as he vies to become President Donald Trump’s next Department of Homeland Security chief.
Republican Homeland Security Committee Chairman Rand Paul cast doubt on whether the Oklahoma Republican had the temperament to lead the department of more than 260,000 employees, reprising a long-simmering feud in which Mullin called him a “snake.”
Sen. Gary Peters, the top Democrat on the panel, pressed the senator on allegations of stolen valor and then put him on his heels, pressing for an apology over a previous comment that Alex Pretti was a “deranged individual.”
It all amounted to a particularly heightened confirmation hearing for Mullin at a critical moment for Trump’s Department of Homeland Security, which is shut down as lawmakers withhold funding to debate reforms that could shape its future. The administration – and lawmakers alike – hope the next head of the department, which oversees critical agencies including Immigration and Customs Enforcement, the Transportation Security Administration and the Coast Guard, will re-right a workforce under public scrutiny and political turmoil.
Throughout, Mullin sought to underscore the differences between how he would lead the department and the tenure of outgoing Secretary Kristi Noem, vowing to admit his mistakes and keep a lower profile. But whether he did enough to convince lawmakers to back him remains to be seen; the committee is expected to vote on whether to advance Mullin’s nomination Thursday.
Notably, Paul told reporters after the hearing that he will oppose Mullin.
“The fact that he can’t bring himself to say that, you know, really, we shouldn’t settle political questions with violence, I think that would be a terrible example for ICE and for our border patrol agents,” Paul said.
“We’re in the midst, I think, of a crisis where there needs to be more direction from the top, and a guy who brawls, a guy who can’t even say he’s sorry about, you know, wishing violence on me and really applauding the attack that happened on me, can’t come to say that? I don’t know how he could, from my point of view, be a leader of ICE or border patrol.”
An accusation of ‘anger issues’
Notably, Paul’s opposition to Mullin’s nomination could jeopardize his confirmation, unless Democratic Sen. John Fetterman, who has said he will vote to confirm Mullin on the Senate floor, joins all other Republicans on the panel to advance his nomination out of the committee.
At the crux of Paul’s blistering opening remarks is Mullin’s frustrations that his colleague is often a thorn in Trump’s side and has repeatedly voted against GOP priorities, causing delays and roadblocks on the Senate floor.
Mullin recently told a group of voters in Oklahoma he “understood” why Paul’s neighbor had attacked him back in 2017 and called him a “snake.”
Paul on Wednesday railed on Mullin’s comments, arguing that his refusal to apologize or confront him directly put Mullin’s character and ability to lead DHS in doubt.
“I was shocked that you would justify and celebrate this violent assault that caused me so much pain and my family so much pain. 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 of Kentucky told Mullin.
Mullin, he said, would have the opportunity to “look [him] in the eye” and repeat those words during the hearing. Then, accusing the senator of having “ anger issues,” he pointed to an episode during a 2023 hearing in which Mullin appeared prepared to physically fight a witness.
Repeatedly, Paul pressed Mullin to apologize for his comments, but Mullin refused.
Instead, Mullin argued the pair should “set it aside,” and move forward with considering his nomination. He repeatedly expressed he was humbled – once a small town kid with a speech impediment – he was being considered for such a high federal office.
“Everybody in this room knows that I’m very blunt and direct to the point, and if I have something to say, I’ll say it directly to your face,” Mullin said, arguing Paul spends more time trying to “fight Republicans more than you work with us.”
“I can set it aside, if you’re willing to set it aside. Let me earn your respect. Let me earn the job. I won’t fail you. I won’t back down from a challenge,” he added.
Saying “roll the tape,” Paul hit back with a clip of the 2023 hearing paired with Mullin’s comments afterward that he didn’t regret his behavior.
Mullin told the committee in response that the witness – President of the International Brotherhood of Teamsters Sean O’Brien – has become a “close friend,” and was attending the hearing as his guest.
After the back-and-forth, Fetterman encouraged both men to move on, and pointed to Mullin and O’Brien as an example.
“I know there’s a lot of hard personal feelings here, and absolutely I would, I — It’s terrible, what’s happened and political violence, I mean, it’s, it’s rampant so now. But also, also President O’Brien’s here, not for round two. He’s here because he fully supports your … so it’s about, it’s about letting it go and moving on.”
Fetterman maintained he’ll have an “open mind,” and praised Mullin’s “consistent kindness and professionalism.”
Allegations of stolen valor
Mullin, who has no history of US military service, was also questioned about accusations that previous, vague statements he has made about serving overseas and smelling war amounted to stolen valor.
The Republican senator chalked the allegations up to a “misunderstanding,” saying he was asked to train with a “very small contingency and go to a certain area” around 2016. As part of that trip, he said he participated in Survival, Evasion, Resistance, and Escape training, which he simultaneously described as “kind of fun” and “absolutely awful.”
Aspects of that training and trip were classified, he said.
“So where did you smell war, sir?” Peters, a Michigan Democrat, asked.
Mullin responded that his answer would be classified.
The line of questioning was brought up at different times during Mullin’s appearance, with Peters later telling him: “You’ve not been forthcoming with me or this committee. The story always seems to evolve, to kind of change. And as you know, candor, honesty, transparency are absolutely critical, particularly at this time, to try to build trust as the Secretary of Homeland Security.”
After Paul threatened to cancel the committee’s Wednesday vote unless Mullin provided them with clarity on the classified work he claimed to have done, Mullin agreed to meet with lawmakers in a secure setting after the hearing.
A change from Noem
Mullin emphasized the differences between how he plans to lead the department and how Noem has done the job.
He told senators that he’s “not perfect,” and will “own” his mistakes and learn from them, in contrast with Noem’s reluctance to acknowledge her missteps. “My goal in six months is that we’re not in the lead story every single day,” he said.
He told Democratic Sen. Maggie Hassan of New Hampshire, “Everybody has different leadership styles. My management style is empowering people,” and he pledged to New Jersey Sen. Andy Kim that he will be responsive to members of Congress, after frequent complaints from members that, under Noem, the department had not answered lawmakers’ questions in a timely manner.
“I think all of us that’s been either in the House or in the Senate, always complain about the outreach of agencies. I will make a commitment to you that I’m going to have the best,” he said.
“We’re going to work with you. But most importantly, I think everybody on this dais has my personal cell phone. That cell phone isn’t going to change. And if you, if you call me, you’re going to get a response. If you text me, we’re going to get a response,” he added.
Democrats challenged Mullin on his past comments about Pretti’s fatal encounter with federal immigration officers in Minnesota earlier this year, and the senator apologized for calling Pretti a “deranged individual” in the immediate aftermath of the shooting.
“I shouldn’t have said that,” he acknowledged.
“The investigation is ongoing, and there is, like I said, there’s sometimes going to make mistake and I own it,” he told the panel. “That one, I went out there too fast. I was responding immediately without the facts. That’s my fault.”
He also said that there should be some changes as to how ICE is deployed around the country, telling senators, “I would love to see ICE become more a transport than on the front line,” and pledged to require ICE officers to obtain judicial warrants before entering private property, with limited exceptions.
Democrats have demanded that the use of judicial warrants, rather than the less-restrictive administrative warrants ICE has been using, be codified in legislation amid negotiations over funding DHS.
Overall, his comments about immigration officers working more closely with local law enforcement agencies suggest a return to traditional operations conducted by ICE, instead of broad immigration sweeps as seen under Noem.
A focus on Mullin’s relationships
Mullin’s Republican colleagues offered opportunities for the senator to discuss his close relationships with former House members, including Democratic Rep. Josh Gottheimer, who sat behind Mullin at the hearing, and his friendship with Trump.
Describing the president as a “friend,” Mullin said he speaks with Trump “from a friend level, more than I do a policy level.”
He grew emotional as he spoke about the president checking in on Mullin’s son after his traumatic brain injury in 2020, when his son lost much of his memory and muscle control.
“I am going to try to get through it without crying,” Mullin said, responding to a question from Wisconsin Republican Sen. Ron Johnson about where his loyalty to Trump originated.
“We almost lost him. For 26 hours he had an extremely low pulse, there was a time that they thought they lose his pulse altogether,” Mullin recalled.
Trump, he said, changed the trajectory of his son’s life, offering to send his “personal plane” to take him to a top neurorehabilitation center and frequently followed up with them.
“We’ve been friends ever since,” he said.
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CNN’s Michael Williams, Priscilla Alvarez, Lauren Fox and Morgan Leason contributed to this report.
