OAN Staff Brooke Mallory
7:06 PM – Thursday, March 5, 2026
After being tapped to replace Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Kristi Noem, Oklahoma GOP Senator Markwayne Mullin admitted he was somewhat caught off guard by President Donald Trump’s Thursday phone call.
Mullin is scheduled to officially take over as the new Secretary of Homeland Security on March 31, 2026. President Donald Trump noted that the appointment is effective March 31st, though Mullin will still need to go through the formal Senate confirmation process.
“I am super excited about this opportunity. It came, not as a complete surprise, but it came at a little bit of a surprise for us,” Mullin told reporters on the Capitol steps.
Mullin described the call from the White House switchboard as coming “out of the blue.” The White House Switchboard provides 24/7 personalized call connection and information services for the Executive Office, handling thousands of calls daily.
“I’ve got to be honest with you, I wasn’t expecting the call today. But super excited,” he continued. “There’s a lot of work we can do to get the Department of Homeland Security working for the American people.”
Emphasizing the agency’s vast reach, he added: “The Department of Homeland Security has a very broad jurisdiction and I think there’s a lot of work we need to do and I’m excited.” He noted that he only learned of the appointment “a little bit before you guys did.”
Moving forward, Mullin noted that he intends to court votes from both sides of the political aisle.
“We’re going to try to earn everybody’s vote. I want people to understand, when I go into this position, yes, I’m a Republican, yes, I’m conservative, but the Department of Homeland Security is to keep everybody [safe], regardless of if you support me or you don’t support me, regardless of what your thoughts are,” he explained, reiterating that his primary focus is “to keep the homeland secure.”
To that end, Mullin also expressed a willingness to meet with Senate Democrat Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.), who has spearheaded the blockade against the department’s funding.
“If Mr. Schumer wants to sit down and talk to me, I’m going to sit down and talk with him,” Mullin continued. “If they have real concerns, I’m going to listen to them. I’m going to see if it’s practical” to implement changes.
When asked how his leadership might differ from Noem’s, Mullin took a diplomatic tone, calling the outgoing secretary a personal “friend.”
Both reportedly served together in the U.S. House of Representatives for six years, and during that time, they were part of the same conservative circles and frequently collaborated on rural and agricultural issues.
“She was tasked to do a very difficult job and I think she has performed the best she can do underneath the circumstances,” Mullin added. “There’s an opportunity to build off successes and there’s also opportunities to build off things that didn’t go as planned.”
Following her departure from the DHS, Noem has been appointed as the Special Envoy for “The Shield of the Americas.” This newly created role is part of a Western Hemisphere security initiative that President Trump is officially unveiling this weekend at a summit in Doral, Florida.
In her new capacity, Noem will collaborate with Secretary of State Marco Rubio and War Secretary Pete Hegseth to strengthen regional partnerships, combat drug cartels, and coordinate migration management across North and South America.
Noem has confidently embraced the new assignment, expressing that she looks forward to using her national security expertise to dismantle cartels and build on the partnerships she forged over the last year.
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