High Stakes, and a Low Bar, For Markwayne Mullin at DHS

During the 14 months of Kristi Noem’s tenure at the Department of Homeland Security, I regularly heard from staffers—career law-enforcement officers and political appointees alike—who were desperate for a return to institutional normalcy. Their concerns weren’t ideological. They felt, instead, that Noem was running the department and its law-enforcement agencies as an attention-grabbing spectacle, undermining their mission.

Consider Noem’s appearance at a Salvadoran megaprison. Or the creepy white-nationalist messaging of her public-affairs team. Or the daily social-media clips of Greg Bovino’s masked border agents. Never mind the dubious media contracts, the luxury jet, and the presence of Corey Lewandowski, a shadow secretary rumored to be in a romance with Noem that both deny. These employees seemed to long for the steady hand of a veteran bureaucrat. Now Donald Trump has finally ousted Noem, but in her place, he is sending them Republican Senator Markwayne Mullin of Oklahoma. Mullin is a former mixed-martial-arts fighter, a current fighter for Trump, and a guy who once tried to throw down against the president of the Teamsters union in the middle of a committee hearing, shouting, “Stand your butt up!” before Bernie Sanders had to rein him in. And whatever else he may be, he is not a veteran bureaucrat.

Mullin is scheduled to appear before a Senate committee Wednesday for a confirmation hearing, and his approval appears all but certain. Republicans need a simple majority, and Democratic Senator John Fetterman of Pennsylvania has indicated that he’ll vote for Mullin. “John already texted me,” Mullin told reporters on the U.S. Capitol steps after Trump nominated him. “You guys know John and I are friends.” Trump has said March 31 will be Noem’s last day.

She leaves DHS, and its more than 260,000 employees across 23 agencies and subagencies, in a state of crisis. The department has been caught in a funding shutdown since February 14, and nearly half the DHS workforce is going without a paycheck. The TSA, one of its agencies, is unable to compensate its agents, so they’ve been quitting and calling out sick, creating havoc at airports. Democrats are dug in on their demand for changes to the hard-line immigration-enforcement tactics that Noem—and the White House—have implemented. Republicans are blocking Democrats’ proposals to separately fund the DHS agencies that aren’t leading Trump’s mass-deportation campaign.

In some ways, Mullin doesn’t appear to offer much of a departure from the Noem era. He has been a staunch proponent of Trump’s ICE crackdown, the border wall, and the methods of the DHS agents and officers carrying out the president’s orders. After an ICE officer fatally shot Renee Good in Minneapolis, Mullin vigorously defended Noem’s characterization of Good’s actions as “domestic terrorism.”

But in other respects, Mullin is no Noem. One DHS veteran I asked about Mullin told me that department leaders were “very eager” for a fresh start, and were pleased with Trump’s pick. They often felt that Noem and Lewandowski disrespected their expertise and years of service, even though they were on board with Trump’s deportation goals. The veteran DHS official told me he hoped Mullin would show better judgment and be able to do something that Noem couldn’t: differentiate “among those advancing the mission versus those who are self-serving.”

Mullin, who was elected to the House for five terms before winning a Senate seat in 2022, has never run a government agency, let alone the country’s third-largest federal department, after Defense and Veterans Affairs. He will have to navigate the same unwieldy command structure that created problems for Noem. Tom Homan, the former ICE chief whom Trump has designated as the White House’s “border czar,” clashed bitterly with Noem and Lewandowski. Homan remains an influential figure at DHS, where staffers view him as a stabilizing force, especially after he tamped down the political firestorm in Minneapolis. Homan has reached out to Mullin to build a relationship, Politico reported this week.

Stephen Miller, Trump’s homeland-security adviser and the architect of his immigration crackdown, operates more like an actual czar, hosting daily 10 a.m. conference calls with officials at DHS and other Cabinet agencies to demand updates on the mass-deportation effort. Miller and Homan have not always appeared to be on the same page: Whereas Miller has pushed for maximizing the number of arrests and deportations, Homan’s statements have emphasized a more discerning approach focused on criminals. The latter leads to fewer overall deportations, but enjoys broader support in the polls. Since Homan’s takeover in Minneapolis, the number of detainees in ICE custody has been falling.

[Read: Why Trump changed his mind on Kristi Noem]

The job of DHS secretary, as it was modeled by former Pennsylvania Governor Tom Ridge, the first to serve in the role, was never meant to be flashy. The secretary has the responsibility of protecting the United States from external threats, and of projecting steady competence during times of crisis. That requires restraint. Trump’s picks to lead DHS during his first term were all figures who fit that mold. Noem was the outlier.

Tom Warrick, who served in senior DHS roles under leaders from both parties, told me Mullin will have to work to regain the trust of the American public—whether travelers who have grown worried about sharing their personal information on Global Entry applications or businesses concerned about sharing company information for cybersecurity protection, they will need reassurance.

“DHS, more than any other Cabinet department, needs the trust of the American people to succeed,” Warrick said. “They need to know the government won’t use that information inappropriately.”

Warrick said Mullin should move quickly to rescind the policy, promoted by Lewandowski, that required the department secretary’s signature on every contract worth more than $100,000. The requirement has slowed DHS operations and fueled mistrust, “especially with state and local governments who rely on DHS for grants, whether it’s for emergency management or other kinds of programs,” Warrick told me. Lewandowski has insisted that the contract reviews curbed waste and have not caused delays.

To Mullin’s credit, he did not actually come to blows with the Teamster boss, Sean O’Brien. The two settled their differences and bonded over their support for Trump. O’Brien has endorsed Mullin to lead DHS. “If anyone is willing to stand their butt up to protect America, it’s Markwayne Mullin,” O’Brien declared.

Despite Mullin’s image as a brawler, commentators have noted that he has not served in law enforcement or the military, and so lacks practical experience within the world of national security. Neither has he studied it academically; he is the only senator who lacks a four-year degree.

But Mullin has long leaned on his image as a plainspoken, Stetson-wearing Everyman to argue that he possesses something even more unusual in national politics: common sense. He grew up in rural eastern Oklahoma, wrestled in high school, and married his high-school sweetheart. They built a successful plumbing business that his family still runs. Mullin first became a popular figure not through politics but as a host of a radio show where callers could ask for home-repair advice. “A rancher. A businessman. Not a politician!” became his campaign slogan. Mullin remains a full owner or co-owner of at least 30 commercial, residential, or land properties, according to Forbes.  

Mullin is also an enrolled member of the Cherokee Nation, and the only American Indian serving in the U.S. Senate. Mullin would take command of a department whose immigration agents have alienated tribal members who say they’ve been racially profiled and unlawfully detained.

Mullin has long styled himself a political outsider, but his biggest qualification to run DHS is that he’s an insider, with a close relationship with the president. Then again, Noem and Lewandowski were once viewed that way too.