Trump holds swearing-in for Markwayne Mullin as next DHS secretary

President Donald Trump held a swearing-in ceremony for former Oklahoma Sen. Markwayne Mullin as the next secretary of Homeland Security on Tuesday, promising the new leader would make the country “really strong, the way it should be.”

“I have no doubt that as he takes the helm of DHS, Markwayne will fight for Homeland Security, the United States, and secure the country,” Trump said in remarks in the Oval Office before Attorney General Pam Bondi conducted the swearing-in.

Trump said Mullin has long been a “close and vital partner” in fighting migrant crime and securing the border, including by working with Border Czar Tom Homan. He painted the swearing-in as the next step for a broader turnaround of border policy following the Biden administration, which he criticized for allowing millions of migrants into the country, including “​​gang members, drug dealers, people from mental institutions, insane asylums.”

“What they allowed to happen to our country can never be allowed to happen again, and it won’t,” Trump said. 

The president had nothing but praise for Mullin, who he credited with being a professional MMA fighter and having a “very successful career in business” after he dropped out of school to take over the family business when his father became sick. 

The swearing-in ceremony comes only 19 days after Trump announced on Truth Social that Mullin would replace Kristi Noem as secretary, reportedly after mounting frustrations over Noem’s leadership, including a $200 million ad campaign that featured her prominently. Trump said Noem will now serve as a special envoy for a security initiative focused on the Western Hemisphere. 

Noem on Tuesday touted her leadership of the department, writing on X that “in one year, the patriots at DHS delivered the MOST secure border in American history” and noted that “3 million illegal aliens have left the U.S.” 

The Senate voted 54-45 to confirm Mullin on Monday night, with two Democratic senators – Sen. John Fetterman and Sen. Martin Heinrich – breaking ranks to join Republicans in voting for Mullin. 

Fetterman said his support for Mullin was “rooted in a strong committed, constructive working relationship” with him on national security. 

“In January, I called on the president to fire Noem – and he did,” Fetterman wrote on X. “I truly approached the confirmation of my colleague and friend, Senator Mullin, with an open-mind. We need a leader at DHS.”

Speaking in the Oval Office after his swearing-in, Mullin praised DHS workers who have been working for weeks without pay as the agency has been shut down for nearly 40 days.

“If you need anything to know their dedication to show up and still protect the homeland that you and I enjoy, and the freedoms that we’re experiencing, they’re working with for free because of politics,” Mullin said, adding that he plans to work and fight alongside his employees. “No one is going to outwork me.” 

Speaking to the broader public, Mullin cast his vision for a nonpolitical DHS, promising to work for all Americans. 

“I don’t care what color your state is. I don’t care if you’re red or you’re blue,” he said. “At the end of the day, my job is to be secretary of the homeland and to protect everybody the same.”

Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt on Tuesday announced his selection of energy executive Alan Armstrong to take Mullin’s U.S. Senate seat.