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WHO IS MARKWAYNE MULLIN? By Lisa Desjardins, @LisaDNews Correspondent
Who is President Donald Trump's new Cabinet nominee?
Sen. Markwayne Mullin of Oklahoma has a name with twang and rhythm that has drawn increasing attention in the past few years. He'll face lawmakers Wednesday in a confirmation hearing for Homeland Security secretary. If approved, he'll replace outgoing DHS head Kristi Noem, who was heavily criticized for how her agency carried out Trump's immigration crackdown.
We'll profile Mullin on the News Hour tonight, but here are 10 things to know now.
He is a plumber. Mullin is a businessman. He expanded his family's plumbing business before selling it in 2021. The sale was lucrative. The New York Times reported that the day of the sale, Mullin moved between $25 million to $50 million into a cash management account.
He's also a stock trader. The Times also reported that Mullin's wealth has grown as a congressman, with investments that "made him one of the most prolific stock buyers in Congress."
A strong Trump supporter. Mullin is a full-throated Trump advocate. The nonpartisan VoteHub rated that Mullin voted 100 percent with Trump last year.
But Trump wasn't always his top choice. Mullin preferred Marco Rubio at first, initially endorsing the Florida Republican in the 2016 presidential election.
He's a citizen of the Cherokee Nation. Mullins is from Stilwell, Oklahoma, which NOTUS reporter Reese Gorman described as "one of the poorest cities" in the state. Mullin is also a member of the Cherokee Nation and currently the only Native American in the U.S. Senate.
A combative personality. The senator is known for walking the senate halls while bouncing a rubber ball. The former mixed martial arts fighter nearly got into a fist fight in a 2023 Senate hearing (though later built a relationship and got an endorsement from his would-be opponent).
Watch the clip in the player above.
Funding for Oklahoma. Mullin has focused on bringing federal funding and grants to his state, including millions for its military bases.
False statements. Mullin has made some controversial statements in support of false conspiracy theories. He boosted Trump's falsehood that the 2020 election was "stolen" by saying "it's going to be hard to convince me it wasn't." And he referred to Alex Pretti, the U.S. citizen was killed by U.S. Customs and Border Protection agents in Minnesota, as a "deranged individual" who wanted to do "max damage," though bystander video of the incident indicated Pretti did not threaten officers.
Views on immigration. Mullin supports Trump's push for mass deportation. He co-sponsored the Laken Riley Act to make undocumented immigrants with theft violations eligible for immediate removal. He has also co-sponsored a bill to remove birthright citizenship. At the same time, he recently indicated he is open to legal status for so-called Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals recipients who were brought to the United States as children and for people who have been in the country more than 10 years.
All of these things are important facets of the man. But what you can't get from bullet points is how he operates and what he knows. Speaking with both Republicans and Democrats about Mullin, he is liked and seen as someone — despite his near brawl in a Senate hearing — with whom they can respectfully disagree.
While Mullin serves on the Senate Armed Services Committee, he is NOT seen as someone who is an expert in Homeland Security. But that is not how Trump chooses his Cabinet picks. In Mullin, Trump has chosen a MAGA ally who has kept relationships intact on the Hill.
In Wednesday's hearing, we'll see whether and how any of Mullin's colleagues on the Hill ask the tough questions about the massive agency he hopes to run.
More on politics from our coverage:
Watch: Outgoing counterterrorism official claims that Iran posed no imminent threat. House Speaker Mike Johnson refutes that allegation.
One Big Question: What's at stake as primaries for the midterm elections are underway? NPR's Tamara Keith and Amy Walter of the Cook Political Report with Amy Walter discuss.
A Closer Look: Pregnant migrant girls are being held at a single group shelter in South Texas that lacks adequate care.
Perspectives: Iranians share messages describing daily life under the shadow of war.
HOW '90S BLACK SITCOMS INFLUENCED CULTURE BEFORE POLITICS CAUGHT UP
One thing I've learned covering politics over the years is this: Policy can open doors and expand opportunity, but culture often does the deeper work first — helping people see one another differently and making change possible.
That idea helped inspire my first book, "Black Out Loud" (out March 24). I explore the remarkable wave of Black sitcoms that flourished in the 1990s and the long tradition of Black comedy as a vehicle for social change. Shows like "Martin," "Living Single," "The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air" and "A Different World" were wildly popular at the time.
Looking back, it's clear they were doing something greater than delivering laughs. They were expanding the country's imagination.
Week after week, millions of viewers were invited into Black households, friendships, workplaces and college campuses. These shows depicted a range of experiences — young professionals navigating adulthood, families balancing humor and hardship, students wrestling with identity and ambition.
Watch the clip in the player above.
The characters were messy, funny, aspirational and unmistakably human. Maxine Shaw battling it out in the courtroom on "Living Single." Dwayne Wayne stumbling through adulthood after Hillman College on "A Different World." Martin Payne clowning his way through life as a Detroit radio host.
For many Americans, especially those who had limited exposure to Black life outside of headlines or stereotypes, these sitcoms offered something powerful: familiarity.
Over time, familiarity can soften assumptions. It can broaden empathy. It can make experiences that once felt distant feel relatable.
Politics rarely works that way. It tends to move in bursts — elections, court decisions, legislation. Culture, by contrast, seeps into daily life. It shows up in living rooms, around dinner tables, in the rhythms of ordinary conversation.
Today, as debates about identity, representation and belonging continue, it's worth remembering that culture often does the groundwork long before politics catches up.
Sometimes the most meaningful shifts in a society begin not with a policy debate or a vote, but with a joke that helps people see each other a little differently.
You can find "Black Out Loud" at your favorite independent bookstore or at BlackOutLoudBook.com.
In short, the bill is an expansion of past legislative attempts by Republicans to assert more control over elections. Among the details embedded in the bill: a provision that requires voters to provide proof of U.S. citizenship when registering to vote. This specific change to the voting process would disenfranchise millions of people, according to voting rights groups and Democrats, who oppose the measure.
The SAVE America Act is aimed at what happens before you cast your ballot in a federal election. After polls close, there's a process election officials follow to report, canvass and certify results.
Election materials are safely retained and preserved for at least 22 months, per federal law. From there, there's one final step in a ballot's life cycle.
Our question: What can election officials do with the physical ballots after the 22-month mark?
Send your answers to NewsHourPolitics@newshour.org or tweet using #PoliticsTrivia. The first correct answers will earn a shoutout next week.
Last week, we asked: Which federal agency put up the plaque honoring law enforcement agencies' response to the Capitol attack?
The answer: Architect of the Capitol. The agency, which is responsible for the upkeep and operation of the U.S. Capitol building and other nearby landmarks, has faced intense criticism before. Former President Joe Biden fired Architect of the Capitol Brett Blanton in 2023 over a series of alleged abuses revealed in an inspector general report. The Trump appointee also faced bipartisan outrage over staying away from the Capitol building during the Jan. 6 attack.
Congratulations to our winners: Sharon Kotok and Silvia Schreiber!
Thank you all for reading and watching. We'll drop into your inbox next week.
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