On Wednesday, the Senate Committee on Homeland Security & Governmental Affairs held the confirmation hearing for Sen. Markwayne Mullin (R-OK), President Donald Trump's nominee for Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). If confirmed, Mullin will replace outgoing DHS Secretary Kristi Noem, whom the president appointed as a Special Envoy for The Shield of the Americas.
In terms of wording, Mullin's written opening statement diverged significantly from the statement he gave live before the Senate. However, this extemporaneous statement, which included a heartfelt tribute to his wife and family, rang powerfully throughout the gallery.
Mullin said:
"I do thank you for this opportunity. It is a humbling experience, a kid from Westfield, Oklahoma, that grew up with a dad that worked hard. He set the work example for all of us. And all my family, and my siblings, we all work hard, and I'm proud of the family we have. But to say that a kid with a bad speech impediment would one day sit up here in front of you, and be nominated as the Secretary of Homeland... It was humbling enough to be selected by Oklahoma to be their U.S. representative when I didn't even know how to tie a tie. And 10 years later, to be able to be called a United States senator and serve with all of you guys."
What was also not included in the written statement was an acknowledgement of respect to his Senate colleagues on both sides of the aisle.
"I do, regardless of if I have an opinion about you or not, you were elected by your state and I respect that. I may disagree with you, but I respect it. Because we all make decisions based on two things: the way we were raised, which never changes, and our life experiences, which constantly change."
While Mullin's written statement did include a concise tribute to his wife Christie, in his live testimony, when speaking of Christie, their relationship, and their six children, Mullin became choked up and was moved to tears.
"For me, to be able to able to have the love of my life behind me, somebody I literally fell in love with in the third grade. [Tears, chokes up...]
"I knew I was going to marry her in 8th grade, she didn't know that — we had to work through that process. But at 18 years old, and I was 19, she agreed to marry me. I didn't have anything. I was on a wrestling scholarship, living in a dorm, she was cheering at Northeastern State University. I think she fell in love with my truck, 'cause my truck's pretty cool. But the truth is, we didn't know what we didn't know, but we did know that we loved each other. And I haven't been perfect, I apologize to her quite often and send her flowers all the time. But I still am humbled that we've got to enjoy this walk together. We've had God on our side and her right beside me.
"And, to our six children who've been on this adventure with me — what an adventure it's been. We have a saying in our family: "You're never going to change anything you're willing to tolerate." That's how we live our life and that's how we move forward. And regardless of what's in front of us, we always take it on as a family. And I'm not scared of a challenge."
Mullin is making a point of delineation that goes beyond a show of his family's support for this potential cabinet assignment. Mullin clearly stated that his wife and family will not only be partners in his role to lead DHS, but their lives would not be an issue that clouds that leadership. Sadly, while DHS Secretary Kristi Noem may have done a good job in securing the border, her own personal issues ultimately became the focus rather than the actual work done, and that still needed to be done.
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Mullin then alluded to those very DHS issues. According to reports, Noem was not a unifying force for the department or its employees, putting focus on herself and taking all the credit for what went right, while laying blame on others for what had gone wrong. Mullin used this statement to make inroads with these employees, to set a fresh tone that he would work as hard, if not harder than them, and to possibly repair or rebuild bridges that had broken down.
"I am scared of failure. And so, I will work hard each day. I will work hard to make sure the 280,000 employees of DHS with the 22 agencies that's underneath me, proud. I will show them somebody that no one will outwork. I'll work beside 'em every single day, to not just secure our homeland, [but to] bring peace of mind and confidence to the agency. My goal in six months is that we're not in the lead story every single day.
"My goal is for people to understand that we're out there, we're protecting them, and we're working with them."
Mullin also spoke to his Senate colleagues on both sides of the aisle, saying, "My goal is to make every one of you guys proud. My goal for those that don't support me: regret not supporting me."
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Mullin ended his opening statement, urging lawmakers to stop the partisanship and "theater" that has held up DHS funding.
"But we have to get DHS funded. We have to. My friends, we have to set the partisan side down, and we have to realize that we're putting our homeland and the peace of mind at risk for the American people. Sometimes it's political theater, sometimes it's true differences, but what we do know is that we're playing with fire. We have 280,000 DHS employees right now, that are on Day 30 without pay, and they're still showing up every single day to do their job. That is a dedicated group of people. And we should all be proud of them, we should all be working together, and we should all be trying to fund them.
"So, I pray, seriously, I pray that we can get past this. That once this hearing is over and once we go through this ... process... I get it, like, some of us, it's gotta be political theater, I understand it. I've had to really pray about my attitude. But I will say, once it's over, I hope we can work together and get them funded. So, when I walk in, if I am fortunate enough to be confirmed, if I walk in as Secretary that these guys are ready to go to work Day 1. So, God bless you, thank you so much for this opportunity, and I look forward to your questions."
Mullin's full opening statement before the Senate committee is here.
WATCH:
WATCH: @SenMullin's full opening statement before the Senate Homeland Security Committee: pic.twitter.com/XwBU6Uc65M
— Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) March 18, 2026
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