Behind-the-scenes strain has reportedly emerged between one of President Donald Trump’s Cabinet secretaries and the West Wing, according to sources who spoke exclusively with NBC News.
Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin sits at the center of the reported discord.
Journalists Julia Ainsley and Gabe Gutierrez published the account Thursday, drawing on conversations with a senior administration official and a senior DHS official who requested anonymity.
Just four months into leading the department, Mullin has reportedly triggered friction with the White House on separate occasions, according to the sources.
A vehicle stop controversy marked the earliest flashpoint.
After fatal shootings involving Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents occurred in Texas and Maine, Mullin ordered ICE to pause its vehicle stop procedures nationwide.
That order did not survive long. Trump personally reversed Mullin’s pause, restoring the original policy after learning the decision bypassed standard White House review.
An administration source described the unwritten rule governing Cabinet-level decisions. “Every Cabinet secretary knows that they have to come to the White House for major policy decisions,” the official said.
The same source suggested the president tracks Cabinet activity closely. “The president sees, hears, reads everything,” the official said.
A televised stumble compounded the tension weeks later. Appearing on CNN, Mullin misspoke while discussing a Supreme Court ruling tied to legal protections for immigrants from Haiti and Syria.
Mullin indicated that hundreds of thousands of people from those two countries would be eligible to apply for legal status. The ruling did not actually extend that opportunity, according to the report.
Officials within the administration reportedly found the on-air error frustrating, though the report stopped short of detailing any formal fallout from the moment.
Mullin’s judgment faced additional scrutiny over a personnel matter. He has backed Lance Schroyer, a longtime associate, for the role of ICE director.
Schroyer’s background includes service as an incident commander with the Oklahoma Highway Patrol. Questions have reportedly circulated about whether that experience adequately prepares him to run an agency the size and scope of ICE.
Tom Homan, Trump’s border czar, numbers among the skeptics surrounding Schroyer’s nomination, the report indicated. The administration official put it bluntly.
“Homan and others aren’t particularly thrilled with him,” the official said.
Facing the report’s claims, the White House pushed back against any suggestion of a rift. Spokeswoman Abigail Jackson issued a formal statement asserting that Trump and Mullin remain in lockstep on immigration policy.
“Secretary Mullin is working hard to implement the President’s immigration enforcement agenda,” Jackson said.
Jackson pointed to enforcement outcomes as evidence of the partnership’s success. “Thanks to President Trump and Secretary Mullin, the border is totally secure, dangerous illegal immigrants are being deported, and Americans are safer,” she said.
She reaffirmed the secretary’s ongoing role going forward. “Secretary Mullin will continue to enforce federal immigration law as effectively as possible,” she said.
Mullin took the DHS post earlier this year, inheriting oversight of one of the federal government’s most closely watched agencies. ICE’s enforcement actions have drawn heavy public attention amid the administration’s broader immigration crackdown.
The Texas and Maine shootings that prompted Mullin’s initial pause had already stirred controversy before his intervention drew White House attention. Trump’s rapid reversal signaled the administration’s intent to keep enforcement operations running without interruption or delay.
Neither Mullin nor the Department of Homeland Security has issued an independent response addressing the specific claims raised in the NBC News report. Jackson’s statement remains the only on-record reaction from within the administration.
Schroyer’s path to confirmation as ICE director remains unresolved. Reported resistance from Homan and other officials introduces uncertainty into a nomination process that had not previously drawn public controversy.
No timeline for resolving the ICE director nomination appeared in the original report.
