{"id":6043,"date":"2026-04-09T18:56:38","date_gmt":"2026-04-09T18:56:38","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/conservative-politics.com\/index.php\/2026\/04\/09\/secy-mullin-overhauling-dhs-operations-slashing-red-tape-and-racing-to-secure-funding-one-america-news-network\/"},"modified":"2026-04-09T18:56:38","modified_gmt":"2026-04-09T18:56:38","slug":"secy-mullin-overhauling-dhs-operations-slashing-red-tape-and-racing-to-secure-funding-one-america-news-network","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/conservative-politics.com\/index.php\/2026\/04\/09\/secy-mullin-overhauling-dhs-operations-slashing-red-tape-and-racing-to-secure-funding-one-america-news-network\/","title":{"rendered":"Secy. Mullin overhauling DHS operations, slashing red tape and racing to secure funding \u2013 One America News Network"},"content":{"rendered":"
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U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security Markwayne Mullin arrives for a Fraud Task Force meeting in the Indian Treaty Room at the White House on March 27, 2026, in Washington, D.C. (Photo by Heather Diehl\/Getty Images)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

OAN Staff\u00a0Katherine Mosack<\/a>
11:40 AM \u2013 Thursday, April 9, 2026<\/p>\n

Newly sworn-in Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Markwayne Mullin has moved quickly to assert his leadership, rolling out major changes within weeks of taking office, including plans to secure funding for the department during the ongoing partial government shutdown.<\/p>\n

Since his swearing-in<\/a> late last month, the Washington Examiner<\/em> reported on Thursday that Mullin got to work right away to combat Democrat lawmakers\u2019 \u201cpolitical theatre.\u201d<\/p>\n

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\u201cFor 49 days, the Democrats have held our DHS employees hostage with their political theatre,\u201d the secretary posted in an X post giving a two-week update last Friday. \u201cIt has to stop.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

Thursday marks the 55th<\/sup> day of the lengthy partial shutdown, as Congress still remains gridlocked on a plan to fund the department.<\/p>\n

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\u201cI\u2019m spending the majority of my time working with members in the House and the Senate and the White House \u2014 and by the way, the president is fully engaged \u2014 trying to get our great employees at DHS paid,\u201d Mullin stated in a video last week. \u201cFor some reason, the Democrats \u2014 and I\u2019m not trying to be ugly, I\u2019m just being factual. They will not fund our Customs and Border Patrol (CBP) agents or our ICE (Immigration and Customs Enforcement) agents.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

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For 49 days, the Democrats have held our DHS employees hostage with their political theatre. It has to stop.<\/p>\n

Grateful for the leadership of @POTUS<\/a> and the great men and women of @DHSgov<\/a> working every day to keep Americans safe.<\/p>\n

We\u2019re continuing to fight for you. pic.twitter.com\/MhXG9GZ8iU<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 Secretary Markwayne Mullin (@SecMullinDHS) April 3, 2026<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n<\/figure>\n

To ease the burden on TSA officers \u2014 who had missed two full paychecks during the ongoing funding lapse \u2014 Secretary Mullin has since proposed scaling back certain screening protocols at major international hubs. Mullin framed the move as a pragmatic necessity for an exhausted workforce, while specifically targeting airports in \u201csanctuary cities.\u201d <\/p>\n

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He argued that because these Democrat-led jurisdictions maintain policies that limit federal immigration cooperation, the department is justified in adjusting security standards to prioritize resources elsewhere.<\/p>\n

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\u201cIt\u2019s an option,\u201d Mullin told reporters in North Carolina. \u201cIf cities are going to sit there and say that they\u2019re not going to enforce immigration policies, then I\u2019ll repeat myself and say it doesn\u2019t make any sense for us to process international travelers through that city.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

Nonetheless, on April 3rd<\/sup>, President Donald Trump issued an executive order titled \u201cLiberating the Department of Homeland Security From the Democrat-Caused Shutdown.\u201d<\/a><\/em> The order directed the Treasury to immediately release funds to pay all DHS employees, including TSA officers who had missed the two full pay periods.<\/p>\n

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In late January, Congress passed a two-week stopgap bill to keep the DHS funded while negotiating a more permanent plan, as Democrats insisted on major reforms for federal immigration agencies, including much harsher restrictions and stronger oversight of the agency. Legislators failed to reach an agreement, however, by the February 14th<\/sup> deadline, leading to a funding lapse for agencies like TSA, the U.S. Coast Guard, the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) \u2014 among others.<\/p>\n

Meanwhile, as part of his transition into the role, Mullin has also been reviewing DHS spending and contracts to \u201celiminate waste and ensure alignment with core priorities,\u201d sources say. According to the Associated Press,<\/em> Mullin has paused new ICE plans to purchase additional warehouses for conversion into large-scale detention facilities, while scrutinizing contracts initiated under former DHS Secretary Kristi Noem. <\/p>\n

However, this temporary pause has since drawn criticism from some quarters, with detractors arguing that Trump\u2019s One Big Beautiful Bill (OBBB) provided substantial prior funding for ICE operations and detention expansion \u2014 enough to support rigorous enforcement without rushing potentially costly or locally disruptive projects. <\/p>\n

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Nonetheless, Mullin\u2019s team has signaled the review aims to deliver smarter, more effective results for border security and deportations, working with communities rather than imposing top-down<\/p>\n

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\u201cICE can afford to overpay $50 million for a warehouse because Congress saw fit to hand it essentially a blank check to expand detention centers \u2014 $45 BILLION to be spent through the end of FY 2029,\u201d Aaron Reichlin-Reichlin-Melnick, a senior fellow at the American Immigration Council, wrote in an X post on Tuesday. \u201cThat extra money likely bought off any qualms from the owners as well.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

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