Trump rebukes DHS chief Markwayne Mullin amid reported White House tensions
WASHINGTON, DC: President Donald Trump publicly rebuked Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin after he reportedly paused ICE traffic stops without first securing White House approval, according to a new report.
The reported move triggered fresh friction inside the administration. It also exposed growing tensions over how Trump's immigration agenda is being carried out just four months into Mullin's tenure.
Trump reverses Markwayne Mullin's ICE decision
According to an NBC report published Thursday, July 23, Mullin ordered an immediate pause on ICE traffic stops after two men were fatally shot in separate incidents in Maine and Texas earlier this month.
The decision followed the deaths of Joan Sebastian Guerrero, a 28-year-old Colombian man living in Maine, and Lorenzo Salgado Araujo, a 52-year-old father of three in Houston, the report stated.
An administration official told the outlet Mullin did not seek Trump's approval before making the policy change, prompting the president to publicly reverse the move on Truth Social.
"CRIME IS WAY DOWN IN AMERICA, in many cases with numbers that haven't been seen in decades," Trump wrote.
He went on to blame former President Joe Biden's border policies, adding, "The Open Border Policy of Sleepy Joe Biden allowed 25,000,000 people to pour into our Country, unchecked and unvetted. Many were Criminals, and we have to get them out."
Trump then defended the enforcement tactic directly, writing, "We must be strong, tough, and smart, and we CANNOT give up one of ICE's most important and effective Crime Fighting tools, THE TRAFFIC STOP! Once we do, we are playing right into the criminal's hands."
An administration source described Mullin's handling of the matter as a rookie error, telling NBC, "Every cabinet secretary knows that they have to come to the White House for major policy decisions. The president sees, hears, reads everything."
Report cites more friction inside DHS
The outlet also reported that Mullin frustrated senior administration officials after he "misspoke" during a CNN interview about a Supreme Court ruling involving protected status for immigrants from Haiti and Syria.
During the interview, Mullin incorrectly suggested hundreds of thousands of immigrants from those countries could apply for legal status when they could not.
The report also said Mullin's selection of Lance Schroyer to lead ICE has drawn criticism inside the administration.
Trump's border czar Tom Homan and others "aren't particularly thrilled with him," according to NBC's source, who said they questioned whether Schroyer has enough experience for the job.
White House defends Markwayne Mullin's leadership
White House spokesperson Abigail Jackson pushed back on suggestions that Mullin's standing had been weakened.
"Secretary Mullin is working hard to implement the president's immigration enforcement agenda," Jackson said.
She added, "Thanks to President Trump and Secretary Mullin, the border is totally secure, dangerous illegal immigrants are being deported, and Americans are safer. Secretary Mullin will continue to enforce federal immigration law as effectively as possible."
Republican lawmakers had initially praised Mullin after he replaced Kristi Noem, whose tenure ended after Trump reportedly became frustrated with the "constant chaos" and negative publicity surrounding her leadership of the Department of Homeland Security.
