Markwayne Mullin, President Donald Trump’s nominee to run the Department of Homeland Security, would step into a department facing simultaneous pressure on immigration enforcement, disaster-response planning and a standoff with Congress over how DHS should operate and be funded, according to an Associated Press report. Mullin’s confirmation hearing is scheduled for Wednesday, as DHS prepares for an anticipated leadership change after outgoing Secretary Kristi Noem.
The transition, AP said, comes at a moment when immigration enforcement is at a crossroads. Disaster-hit states and lawmakers have been angered by delayed federal assistance, while frustrated travelers have confronted long airport security lines tied to a monthlong funding battle in Congress, the report said.
AP reported that Mullin would take over from Noem, whose time leading the department ended amid skepticism and political fallout despite Trump’s initial backing. The report described Noem’s management style as socially driven and said it contributed to her downfall.
In Congress, Mullin is likely to inherit not just a personnel change but also a mandate shaped by Trump’s immigration agenda. AP reported that a central challenge would be overseeing the administration’s centerpiece policy of mass deportations, an approach that has been linked to a surge in immigrant arrests and has raised concerns about detention and enforcement tactics, including criticism that enforcement officers were too aggressive during a year of high-profile operations.
The report also tied criticism of enforcement to the shooting deaths of two protesters in Minneapolis by federal officers, which it said prompted calls for reform at immigration enforcement agencies. It said the public mood around Trump’s immigration approach has soured during the president’s second term, with “most Americans” saying Trump has “gone too far,” a climate that could influence how the agencies implement the deportation push.
Mullin, a former mixed martial arts fighter, has developed a reputation in the Senate for being combative and is expected to align with the White House’s priorities if confirmed, AP reported. The report said he has not publicly laid out his vision for running DHS since being nominated and has declined to answer questions, while noting that he has been engaged in supporting ICE officers and in messaging connected to the administration’s enforcement approach.
One of the first immediate tests for Mullin could be the department’s funding fight with congressional Democrats. AP said Democrats have demanded reforms at ICE as a condition for additional DHS money and that the standoff has lasted about a month, producing a funding lapse that has left thousands of DHS staffers working without pay, including airport security screeners. Some airports have reportedly started to see long security lines as staffers face stresses such as calling out sick, taking on side jobs to make ends meet, struggling with fuel costs, or leaving their jobs.
AP reported that Democrats’ requested changes include a ban on masks worn by deportation officers, an end to roving patrols aimed at finding immigrants, and a requirement that officers obtain warrants signed by a judge before entering someone’s house. Republicans, the report said, have held the line against those demands, with Republicans expecting that replacing Noem with Mullin could be enough of a leadership shake-up to appease Democratic arguments for funding.
Even so, AP reported, Democrats have insisted the changes are broader than the identity of the person leading DHS. Democratic Sen. Brian Schatz of Hawaii said, after a recent focus on the nomination, that he does not see it as a matter of leadership alone, saying, “I like Markwayne personally, but I don’t think it’s a question of who is at the helm, it’s a question of law.” The AP report added that Schatz’s position reflects the continued negotiation over enforcement practices and legal constraints.
Republican Sen. John Thune of South Dakota said Republicans view the leadership shift as responsive to Democratic demands. AP reported Thune said, “This is what the Democrats have been clamoring for. They wanted a new change and shake-up in the leadership, and it’s now happening,” while other lawmakers continued to push for the reforms Democrats want before approving more money.
The AP report also described lawmakers pressing for management and oversight changes within DHS. Sen. John Kennedy, R-La., told Mullin he needs a full audit, saying, “We’ve got serious management problems at DHS, and we need somebody steering the ship,” and that he told Mullin the department needs a complete audit, according to AP. A former acting ICE director, John Sandweg, said Mullin will face internal pressures over how enforcement should proceed—whether to ramp up deportations through large arrest sweeps or to keep enforcement more targeted at people who have committed crimes.
Beyond immigration, AP said Mullin would inherit the Federal Emergency Management Agency, which it described as mired in upheaval and uncertainty related to the administration’s attempts to shift disaster responsibility to states and Trump’s threats to abolish the agency. The report said DHS under Noem pursued policies that critics said stalled funding and delayed disaster recovery dollars, and that the agency faced lawsuits over the scope of authority DHS secretaries can exert over FEMA—while FEMA still lacks a permanent administrator.
AP reported that Noem directed a policy requiring her approval for expenditures over $100,000, which critics said delayed billions in disaster recovery dollars. State emergency managers are hopeful for a quick repeal of that approach and for the release of grant funding for preparedness and resilience, according to Karen Langdon, a spokesperson for the National Emergency Management Association.
The report said there are more than $2.2 billion in recovery and mitigation projects awaiting DHS approval as of Friday, citing official figures seen by AP. It also described the Trump-appointed FEMA Review Council, chaired by Noem, as months behind in releasing a highly anticipated recommendation report after outgoing leadership clashed with other council members about how far to take reforms.
Mullin’s views on disaster response, AP said, are less clear, but the report noted that he has expressed skepticism of a federal disaster response in the past. It cited his comment to Fox Business shortly after Hurricane Helene in 2024: “It’s not FEMA that’s going to respond,” and that “it’s the local people that are going to respond, and we’re going to be fighting with FEMA to get reimbursed if they ever do reimburse.”
Lawmakers and states, AP reported, generally support reforms that would streamline disaster aid and reduce bureaucratic burden, but they also want dependable leadership and time to prepare for changes. Sarah Labowitz, a senior fellow at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, said, “What we want to see going forward is predictability,” and added that there is “a lot of work to be done to reearn trust.”