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Fireworks at Sen. Markwayne Mullin’s confirmation hearing: An intensely personal back-and-forth between Donald Trump’s pick for DHS secretary and Sen. Rand Paul threatened to derail the proceedings. But Mullin also vowed to do a few things differently than his would-be predecessor, Kristi Noem:
- He said he would “absolutely” end Noem’s practice of personally approving expenses of $100,000 or more, which lawmakers and agency employees say has created unnecessary delays in disaster-aid and hazard-mitigation funding, among other things.
- He promised to sell off his massive stock portfolio, which contains a number of large government contractors.
- He said he would immediately seek to install a leader at FEMA. The agency has not had a Senate-confirmed administrator since Trump took office.
- He also signaled a shift in approach toward so-called sanctuary cities: “I would like to go in there and talk to the mayors,” he said.
- Lastly, he said he’d require judicial warrants for federal immigration agents to enter private residences and businesses, a key sticking point in current funding discussions for DHS.
Mullin also sounded a lot like Noem in a few instances. He declined to say Joe Biden won the 2020 election, or back away from incendiary comments he made about the death of Renee Good in Minnesota, an incident he previously said was “absolutely” justified.
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The hearing ended on a puzzling note: Lawmakers left the room and went to a secure area so Mullin could answer questions about his international travel.