Thune: Rand Paul, Mullin ‘have some personal history’ they must ‘work through’

Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.) says that Senate Homeland Security Committee Chair Rand Paul (R-Ky.) and Sen. Markwayne Mullin (R-Okla.), President Trump’s nominee to serve as secretary of Homeland Security, “have some personal history” that they have to “work through” after they got into a testy exchange at Mullin’s confirmation hearing Wednesday.

“These two have some personal history, which they are going to have to figure out how to work through,” Thune said during an interview with Fox News’ Martha MacCallum.

But Thune expressed optimism that the Senate will confirm Mullin as soon as next week.

“It’s an important job, secretary of the Department of Homeland Security. That position is vacant right now needs to be filled. Markwayne Mullin has a lot of support. Any of us who have worked with him are very confident he will do a terrific job over there so we want to move the process along,” he said.

Thune acknowledged that Paul and Mullin have “differences” that were “litigated at the hearing” but argued “at the end of the day it’s about ensuring that we have the right person in the job,” adding we think that “Markwayne Mullin is the right person for it.”

Paul on Thursday voted against Mullin’s confirmation, though it advanced out of committee thanks to Democratic Sen. John Fetterman’s (Pa.) support.

Paul previously said Mullin has “anger issues” and questioned whether he had the right temperament to lead the Department of Homeland Security.

Paul on Wednesday grilled Mullin about comments the Oklahoma senator made to constituents defending his vote for an appropriations package from which Paul wanted to strip money for refugee welfare programs.

Mullin told constituents at a breakfast in Tulsa last month that Paul was trying to derail the whole bill to help Kentucky’s hemp industry.

“Rand Paul’s a freaking snake. And I understand completely why his neighbor did what he did. And I told him that to his face,” Mullin said.

Paul accused Mullin of celebrating the violent he assault he suffered in 2017 at the hands of an irate neighbor because of a dispute over yard maintenance.

“Instead of explaining your vote to continue these welfare programs for refugees, you decide to transfer the blame. You told the media that I was a ‘freaking snake’ and that you completely understood why I had been assaulted. I was shocked it would justify and celebrate this violent assault that caused me so much pain and my family so much pain,” Paul said in his opening remarks at Wednesday’s hearing.

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