From USA TODAY.

During the DHS secretary confirmation hearing, Sen. Rand Paul, R-Kentucky, excoriated Markwayne Mullin for saying he understood why his neighbor attacked him. Paul also played a video of Mullin threatening to fight Sean O’Brien, the president of the International Brotherhood of Teamsters, during a November 2023 hearing. Mullin said he and O’Brien, who attended the hearing, have since become friends.

“I’m not apologizing,” Mullin said of his comments about the neighbor attacking Paul. “It’s about character assassination for you,” Mullin added about the “political theater” of the hearing.

Paul said it would be dangerous to have Mullin lead a department where immigration officers are under investigation after fatally shooting two U.S. citizens in Minneapolis.

“That is a very, very dangerous sentiment,” Paul said.
Mullin suggested he could "set it aside" and vowed to work for all Americans as the head of the Department of Homeland Security.

What to expect from Markwayne Mullin: https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2026/03/17/markwayne-mullin-expectations-dhs-kristi-noem-replacement/89101322007/

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