Mullin faces MAGA backlash at Homeland Security
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Just 4½ months after replacing Kristi Noem as Homeland Security secretary, Markwayne Mullin is feeling the heat from President Trump's MAGA enforcers.
- Mullin provoked border czar Tom Homan with an ICE nominee who has limited immigration experience, had to walk back changes in immigration policy, and angered the MAGA base with talk of immigration reform.
Some MAGA activists see Mullin, a former U.S. senator from Oklahoma, as too soft on immigration and are already agitating for his ouster.
- Mike Howell, a former DHS attorney who now leads the Mass Deportation Coalition, said Mullin "certainly hasn't given any hope to the true believers ... that the [deportation] numbers will go up."
Zoom in: The latest tension comes from Homan, who ran ICE during Trump's first term. Sources tell us Homan opposes Mullin's nomination of Lance Schroyer to lead ICE, the main federal agency overseeing Trump's immigration crackdown in the U.S. interior.
- Schroyer is a former Oklahoma state highway trooper and a member of Mullin's security detail. He doesn't have federal immigration law experience except for participating in a 287(g) agreement, a partnership that allows state and local officers to assist ICE with certain enforcement duties.
- Mullin told Fox News he conducted a two-month job search before picking Schroyer, who must be confirmed by the Senate. "I interviewed countless individuals, because we wanted ... someone that could also be confirmed," Mullin said. "And here you have Lance that was literally right in front of me the whole time."
Steve Bannon, a top MAGA podcaster, is among those who've joined the chorus of MAGA figures objecting to Schroyer's nomination.
- "ICE is an enormously complicated job," Bannon said. "And now with the heightened visibility on interior enforcement, it may be in the top three or four hardest jobs in government."
- "You can't pick a cop from Oklahoma and think he's going to walk in and be able to do that, right? You're asking too much of somebody."
The big picture: Mullin has given Trump supporters other reasons to second-guess his decision-making at DHS.
- During a speech two weekends ago at the National Governors Association meeting in Oklahoma, Mullin suggested he backed immigration reform. MAGA's keyboard warriors saw that as Mullin supporting disguised amnesty for unauthorized immigrants, which they oppose.
- After fatal officer-involved shootings in Texas and Maine this summer, Mullin supported a pause on ICE agents stopping vehicles to make arrests. Trump quickly overturned the pause, with Homan's support.
With Temporary Protected Status (TPS) ending for Haitians, Mullin told CNN in June that they could apply for another legal status to stay in the U.S.
- Haiti is on Trump's travel ban list and its nationals are being blocked from the normal application processes. MAGA activists erupted online at Mullin's suggestion.
- Mullin has at times confused acronyms for agencies in his behemoth department. In multiple public instances, he's referred to "CPB" instead of CBP (U.S. Customs and Border Protection).
What they're saying: Mullin declined an interview request. A Homeland Security spokesperson said: "The Department of Homeland Security stands firmly behind President Trump's nominee, Lance Schroyer, and we look forward to him bringing nearly 30 years of law enforcement experience to lead the men and women of ICE."
- White House spokeswoman Lauren Bis said: "The president has confidence in his Cabinet to carry out the agenda the American people voted for."
What we're watching: Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.), chair of the Senate Homeland Security Committee, has declined to say when he'll schedule a confirmation hearing for Schroyer, who was nominated last month.
- Schroyer met with senators from both parties on the committee in the weeks before the August recess, several senators told Axios.
What we're hearing: Mullin is finding support for his ICE nominee from some former Senate colleagues.
- Sen. Rick Scott (R-Fla.) said he thought Schroyer's meetings on the Hill were going well: "Unless you've worked inside, you've got a big learning curve. But [Schroyer] seemed like a smart guy."
- Most Republicans on the committee are supportive of Schroyer. Sens. Bernie Moreno (Ohio), Ron Johnson (Wis.), James Lankford (Okla.) and Josh Hawley (Mo.) told Axios they weren't deterred by his lack of experience in federal immigration enforcement.
- Moreno said: "Look, what was my experience for being here in the Senate? ... I think you hire people because they have a great personality, because they're smart, because they're quick learners."
