Story thread · 2 reports / 2 sources

When Mullin's friends in Congress call, DHS answers

axios.com · 2h · first reportShare

Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin is building a reputation as a Cabinet official willing to do favors for his former colleagues in Congress — even at the risk of drawing a backlash from the White House and MAGA. Why it matters: Some of Mullin's most high-profile moves — such as pausing ICE agents' traffic stops and delaying border security construction along the Texas border — have come after personal appeals from friends on Capitol Hill. Zoom in: The approach by Mullin — who served 13 years in Washington as a House member and senator from Oklahoma — contrasts with that of his predecessor at DHS, Kristi Noem, who was criticized frequently for not communicating with Congress. "Once you leave the Senate, you're eager to please your old friends ... and that's why there's a lot of what seems to be constituent services work happening out of DHS," said Mike Howell, a former DHS attorney during President Trump's first term and leader of the Mass Deportation Coalition. But Mullin's