[Congressional Record Volume 172, Number 54 (Monday, March 23, 2026)]
[Senate]
[Pages S1541-S1542]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]



                     Nomination of Markwayne Mullin

  Mr. LANKFORD. Mr. President, in just a few moments, this body will 
vote for the next Secretary of Homeland Security. It happens to be a 
friend of mine. His name is Markwayne Mullin.
  Markwayne Mullin is the pride of Westville, OK, which--ironically 
enough--is the easternmost town in our State. On a normal day, there 
are more people inside the U.S. Capitol than there are in all of 
Westville, OK. But it is a bunch of really nice folks that work really 
hard, and Markwayne Mullin has risen from being a country boy in a cow-
calf operation with his dad, running a very small plumbing company, to 
now being nominated, and tonight being confirmed as our next Secretary 
of Homeland Security.
  He graduated from Stilwell High School, but the most important thing 
wasn't his graduation from Stilwell High School. It is the girl that he 
met in the third grade.
  In the third grade, he fell in love with Christie, and they waited 
all the way until she was 18 and he was 19 before they got married. And 
now, decades later and six children later, that proud family will now 
be the lead family to be able to serve to keep every family safe in the 
country.
  Responsibility at Homeland Security is dramatic. There are a quarter 
million Federal employees that work for the Department of Homeland 
Security. It is a massive operation, and it is incredibly important to 
our country.
  And I think he will be a terrific leader for it. He not only loves 
our country, but he is passionate about security.
  He served in the House of Representatives for a decade and has now 
served in this body for 3 years. He has spent a lot of time on the 
issues of national security. He has done a lot of research in that 
area.
  He has worked to be able to pass the bills that actually fund 
Homeland Security, and now he will be the one to actually implement 
those same bills.
  So he is keenly aware of the law and the issues that he will actually 
be carrying out.
  Interestingly enough, Markwayne Mullin is a member of the Cherokee 
Nation. He is actually the second Senator ever to serve in this body 
that is a member of the Cherokee Nation, but there has not been a 
Cherokee that has actually been in the Senate for more than two 
decades.
  The Cherokee Nation leadership sent in a letter with their 
overwhelming support for him and for what he has done and his awareness 
of the Tribal issues, as well as just national issues and family 
issues.
  He has been my friend, and we have worked side by side on a lot of 
issues.
  I will never forget, multiple years ago, with my wife and Markwayne 
and his wife Christie--the four of us--sitting down for a dinner in a 
quiet place in a booth in the middle of a restaurant, just to talk, 
because Markwayne was thinking about saying, ``I am done with all of 
this chaos that is in Congress,'' and he was actually praying through 
what to do next.
  And it was over that dinner that the four of us just talked and 
visited, prayed together, and he determined: I am going to stay at it 
because there is more work to be done.
  And I am glad he did.
  In the days ahead, the Nation will be glad that he did because I 
think he will make a fantastic Secretary of Homeland Security.
  As we approach this moment, I can't help but also note a challenge 
that he is going to walk into on day one, because when he walks in 
tomorrow morning into a new office, into a new role, and being sworn 
in, there will not be funding for the people around him. The staff that 
will be there, working alongside him, won't have been paid for more 
than a month.
  And this is not an anomaly for them. As of this week, half of the 
fiscal year, Homeland Security employees have not been paid--half of 
the fiscal year. They faced 43 days without any paycheck, and they are 
at 37 days now. Half of the year, they have not been paid. As of this 
week, it will be six paychecks that they have either lost entirely or 
partially.
  This body has the responsibility to solve this problem. And as 
Markwayne steps in to be able to lead so capably in Homeland Security, 
it is the responsibility of this body to be able to make sure that 
Homeland Security actually has the funding that it needs to be able to 
protect the Nation.
  So my expectation is twofold tonight: One is that we will confirm my 
friend Markwayne Mullin, and he will be the next Secretary. And the 
other one is that soon we will finish this argument, and we will 
resolve our differences. And so the fine folks that work at Homeland 
Security, in all areas, whether it be Coast Guard, Secret Service, 
whether it be FEMA, whether it be TSA--yes, even ICE and Customs and 
Border Protection--wherever they may be, that their families can also 
reap the benefit of their service by actually getting a paycheck--what 
a novel idea.
  Let's finish the task tonight.
  I yield the floor.

[[Page S1542]]

  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Oklahoma.
  Mr. LANKFORD. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate 
proceed to the confirmation vote for Senator Markwayne Mullin to be the 
Secretary of Homeland Security right now.