Can Markwayne Mullin succeed as Homeland Security secretary?

How Markwayne Mullin Became Trump’s Homeland Security Pick

The Oklahoma senator whom President Trump chose to run the Department of Homeland Security has risen in Washington by styling himself as a MAGA warrior and Trump loyalist.

Mullin confirmation hearing to lead DHS formally scheduled

Sen. Markwayne Mullin’s (R-Okla.) confirmation hearing to become the next Department of Homeland Security (DHS) secretary is scheduled for next Wednesday.  President Trump appointed the lawmaker to take over the role at the end of March after firing DHS Secretary Kristi Noem last week. Mullin is set to appear before the Senate Committee on Homeland…

The contracting mess Noem's leaving behind at DHS

<p>Homeland Security Secretary <a href="https://www.axios.com/2026/03/06/kristi-noem-dhs-trump-inside-firing" target="_blank">Kristi Noem</a> is on track to leave dozens of pending contracts on her desk when she leaves office in three weeks, the legacy of a system she imposed to cut "waste, fraud and abuse," but that has stalled DHS programs.</p><p><strong>Why it matters: </strong>The backlog of contracts has left vendors waiting for payments and delayed projects such as <a href="https://www.axios.com/politics-policy/donald-trump" target="_blank">President Trump</a>'s push for <a href="https://www.axios.com/2026/03/10/white-house-house-republicans-mass-deportations" target="_blank">mass deportations</a> and the border wall, along with disaster relief under FEMA, Axios has learned.</p><ul><li>"There's a mountain of backed-up contracts and invoices on her desk that the new guy will just have to deal with," a source familiar with the situation at DHS told Axios.</li><li>The backlog exi...

Hacked data shines light on homeland security’s AI surveillance ambitions

<p>Records show DHS tech incubator spending large sums on partnerships that would expand surveillance capabilities</p><p>Hacked data from the Department of Homeland Security’s technology incubator shows it funding a variety of companies that would expand its surveillance capabilities with artificial intelligence, the Guardian can reveal.</p><p>The projects at the Office of Industry Partnership (OIP) include automated surveillance in airports; adapters allowing agents to use phones for biometric scanning; and an AI platform that ingests all 911 call data nationally and builds “geospatial heat maps” to “predict incident trends”, which appears to be a form of predictive policing.</p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026/mar/15/hacked-data-homeland-security">Continue reading...</a>

How Taxpayers Are Still Getting Screwed on Kristi Noem’s Big Beautiful Jet

Kristi Noem is out as Homeland Security Secretary, but a luxury 737 she has traveled on remains in government hands. That plane, reportedly dubbed the “Big, Beautiful Jet” by DHS staffers, has been quietly leased to the department by a company linked to William Walters, a former State Department official who donated thousands of dollars […]

Noem’s ouster could pave way to reopen shuttered Homeland Security Department - The Hill