Politics

Donald Trump and Markwayne Mullin Insist That Politics Should Prevail Over Principle

The president and his new DHS secretary are enraged by jurists and legislators who refuse to toe the party line.

Jacob Sullum | 3.25.2026 12:01 AM

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Some Supreme Court justices are so eager to demonstrate their independence, President Donald Trump complained last week, that they "openly disrespect the Presidents who nominate them." A few days later, Sen. Markwayne Mullin (R–Okla.), who was confirmed this week as secretary of homeland security, explained why he had called Sen. Rand Paul (R–Ky.) "a freaking snake": It "seems like you fight Republicans more than you work with us," Mullin told Paul.

Trump and Mullin take it for granted that public officials should be prepared to sacrifice their principles on the altar of party loyalty. But those officials, whether they serve on the Supreme Court or in the U.S. Senate, have higher duties that may require them to take stands that invite misguided rebukes like these.

The specific targets of Trump's ire were Justices Neil Gorsuch and Amy Coney Barrett, who last month had the temerity to reject his claim of........

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