Rand Paul and Markwayne Mullin's fiery exchange at confirmation hearing

practice of this committee to swear in witnesses. Will the nominee please stand and raise your right hand. Do you swear that the testimony will give before this committee will be the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth so help you God. Senator Mullin you are recognized for your opening statement. I think

before I can start my opening statement, I have to address the remarks that the chairman made, calling me a liar. Sir, I think there's everybody in this room knows that I'm very blunt and direct to the point, and if I have something to say, I'll say it directly to your face.

If you recall back in my house days, we actually did have this conversation because of remarks that I've made. You were in a room. I simply addressed that I said I could understand because of the behavior you were having that I could understand why your neighbor by the neighbor did what he did. As far as my

terms is a snake in the grass, sir. I work around this room to try to fix problems. I've worked with many people in this room. Seems like you fight Republicans more than you work with us. I did address those remarks. I did explain your gimmicks by the amendment you put forth. And as far as me saying that I invoke violence, I don't. I don't think anybody should be hit by surprise. I don't like that. But if I do have something to say, everybody in this room knows I'll come straight

to you. I'll say it publicly and I'll say it privately but I'll never say it behind your back. So for you to say I'm a liar sir, that's not accurate. And I got proof to say that because you have spent millions of dollars in my campaigns against me because we just don't get along. However sir, that doesn't keep me at all from doing my job. I can have different opinions with everybody in this room, but as Secretary of Homeland,

I'll be protecting everybody, including Kentucky, as much as I will my own back yard in Oklahoma. It's bigger than the partisan bickering that we have. It's bigger than the political differences we have. The truth is, I have a job to do, and I don't like to fail at anything at all.

So I can set it aside if you're willing to set it aside. Let me earn your respect. Let me earn the job. I won't fail you. I won't back down from a challenge and I'll also admit when I'm wrong. I'm not perfect.

I don't claim to be perfect. I make mistakes just like anybody else, but mistakes, if you own them, you can learn from them and you can move ahead and I'll make that commitment to you. Ranking member Peters, Chairman Paul, I do thank you for this opportunity. It is

a humbling experience. A kid from Westville, Oklahoma that grew up with a dad that worked hard. He set the work example for all of us and all my families and my siblings. We all work hard and I'm proud of the family we have. But to say that a kid with a bad speech impediment would one day sit up here in front of you and be nominated to be the secretary of Homeland. It was humbly enough to be selected by Oklahoma to be their U. S. Representative when I didn't know how

to tie a tie and 10 years later to be able to be called the United States Senator and serve with all you guys. And I respect every one of you guys. I do regardless if I have an opinion about you or not you were elected by your state and I respect that. I may disagree with you but I respect it because we all make decisions based on two things that we are raised which never changes and our life experiences

with constantly change. For me to be able to have the love of my life behind me, somebody I literally fell in love with in third grade, I knew I was gonna marry her in eighth grade, she didn't know that yet. We had to work through that process. But at 18 years old and I was 19 she agreed

to marry me. I didn't have anything. I was on a wrestling scholarship living in a dorm. She was cheering at Northeastern State University. I think she fell in love with my truck. My truck was pretty cool. But the truth is we didn't know what we didn't know what we didn't know, but we did know we loved each other. And I haven't been perfect, I apologize to her quite often

and send her flowers all the time. But I still am humbled by the fact that we've got to enjoy this walk together. We've had God on our side and her right beside me. And to our six children who's been on this adventure with me, what an adventure it's been. We have a saying in our family, you're never going to

change anything you're willing to tolerate. That's how we live our life, and that's how we move forward. And regardless of regardless of what's in front of us, we always take it on as a family. I'm not scared of a challenge. I am scared of failure and so I will work hard each day. I'll work hard to make the 280,000 employees at DHS with the 22 agencies that's underneath me

proud. I'll show them somebody that no one will outwork. I'll work beside them every single day to not just secure a homeland, to bring peace of mind and confidence to the agency. My goal in six months is that we're not in the lead story every single day. My goal is for people to understand we're out there, we're protecting them, and we're working with them. My goal is to make every one of you guys proud. My goal for those that don't support me,

regret not supporting me. But we have to get DHS funded. We have to. My friends, we have to set the partisan side down and we have to realize that we're putting our homeland and the peace of mind at risk for the American people. Sometimes it's political theater, sometimes it's true differences, but what we do know is that we're playing with fire. We have 280,000 DHS employees right now that are on day 30 without pay and they're still showing up every single day to do their job. That is a dedicated group of people and we

should all be proud of them. We should all be proud of. We should all be working together. We should all be trying to fund them. So I pray seriously. I pray that we can get past this, that once this hearing is over and once we go through this process, I get it. I get some of it's got to be political theater. I understand it. I've had to really pray about my attitude,

but I will say once it's over, I hope we can work together and get them funded. So when I walk in, if I'm fortunate enough to be confirmed, if I walk in as secretary that these guys are ready to go to work day one. So God bless you. Thank you so much for this opportunity and I look forward to your questions.

It's the standard practice of this committee for the chairman to ask nominees the following question. Do you agree without reservation to comply with any request or summons to appear or testify before any duly constituted Committee of Congress if you're confirmed? I do. We'll now proceed to seven minutes of questioning. The record should show and I think will show a lack of contrition, no apology and no regrets for your support. You completely understand the violence

that was perpetrated on me. You're unrepentant. The only thing you quibble about is whether I met you somehow when you were in the house. I don't think we ever met when you were in the house. And this idea that the only thing you're upset about

is not that you were for violence. What you're upset about is that I called you a liar because you said it to my face. It's really more about this machismo that you have. When in Oklahoma the media asked you about the refugee welfare programs, the programs you voted to continue funding, it was this whole idea that you were

going to transfer because you were uncomfortable, your anger, low impulse control. Causes you to then go after and decide that you're going to go after me as well. And so you say you completely understood that I was assaulted from behind, had six ribs broken,

and part of my lung removed. And that was just fine. That's something that you, I guess, approve of as far as resolution of political problems. When I talked to you privately on the phone, there was no apology.

You just said, well, we can let our political difference go by. And you said a few minutes ago, we can just set it aside. Well, political differences we can. But when you say that you agree with a felon, a Trump-hating felon who attacked me, somehow you

think I'm just going to set that aside? Oh, it's no big deal. You know, I lay in pain for two months, had six ribs broken, three of them separated, grinding upon bone on bone for months, had part of my lung removed, and you think that's great and to be extolled? I mean, the sheer lack of any kind of self-awareness that you're going to be leading thousands of men and women who will be have the use of force and there's been great

questions in our country about how that will be used and you think a violent attack is just fine. So I guess my first question is do you think that justifying that kind of violence sets a good example for the men and women of ICE and Border Patrol?

Mr. Chairman, first of all I didn't know the extent of your damage. When the phone call was made, I made it to you and I tried to talk to you. You didn't engage at all. In fact, you said get your paperwork in. It's got to be three

days in between. You offered no apology. Sir? And you offer no apology today and no regrets. I don't... Haven't heard the word apologize, haven't heard the word regret, haven't heard I misspoke and it was heated and I made a mistake.

Actually...

I haven't heard any of those words.

Sir, actually it wasn't heated and I'm not apologizing for pointing out your character.

Good, good. So you're jolly well fine and you want the American public and the people up here to vote that may or may not vote for you to know that you supported the felonious violent attack on me from

behind. I did not say I supported it. I said I understood it. There's a difference. By calling you... And so that means you really didn't approve of it, just completely understand it. What do you think most people would interpret,

completely understand to be support for or a condemnation of the violence.

Sir, as I said, we can we can have our differences. It's not going to keep me from doing my job as Secretary of Homeland Security. I'm going to secure Kentucky and take care of Kentucky as much as I am open to it.

If this were a one-off, it would be one thing. If you just disliked me so much that you approved of violence against me, people are going to just write it off, or maybe they hate each other. But really there's a pattern of this. Let's go ahead and roll the tape.

You know where to find me, any place, any time, cowboy. Sir, this is a time, this is a place. If you want to run your mouth, we can be two consenting adults, we can finish it here.

Okay, that's fine. Perfect. You want to run your mouth, we can be two consenting adults, we can finish it here. Okay, that's fine. Perfect.

You want to do it now?

I'd love to do it right now.

Well stand your butt up then.

You stand your butt up. Oh, hold it.

Stop it.

Is that your solution or are you pulling?

No, no, sit down. Sit down. You're a United States Senator.

Action.

Okay. Can I respond? Mr. Chairman? Hold it, hold it. If he got up too, would you have gone at it right there in the area?

I would have probably jumped over the dais at that point. You have to be called out on. If not, this guy continues to get away with this stuff. And it's just, you know, it's silly, it's stupid, but every now and then you need to used to have canines. And duels, and they used to have duels. And duels, right. And there was a way that men used

to settle their differences. I ignored him four times prior to that, and people say, yes, you're supposed to ignore it. Well, you know, I'm not a very good Christian. I try to be a good Christian, and I know people say you're supposed

to turn the other cheek. to move from an almost fight. By the way, I'm not afraid of biting. I will bite. Biting? I'll bite, honey. Yeah, I'm in a fight. I'm gonna bite. I'll do anything. I mean, I'm not above it. And I don't care where I bite, by the way. It just is gonna be a bite. In hindsight, any regrets? No, I really

don't. So no regrets. In fact, even after your anger had cooled, you were still bragging that if he'd only been brave enough to stand up you'd have jumped over the dais and taught him a lesson because that's how men should settle their differences. Do you think fighting as a resolution for political difference is a good example for the men

and women of ICE and Border Patrol? As you can notice over my shoulder here is my good friend Sean O'Brien. Both of us have had conversations, both of us have shaken hands, and both of us agreed we could have done things different. Sean is someone that has become a close friend. We talk all the time. I've been on his podcast. We've talked through this. That's how you handle your differences. Not like

this, Chairman. I'm glad you guys are friends now and that you've reconciled, but really it doesn't get to the real point whether or not you think violence is the way we settle things. In the days after the fight you said, and I quote, sometimes people just need to be punched in the face. Is that still your opinion that political disputes can sometimes and often only be resolved by violence?

No, I don't always agree with that. I don't believe in political violence. I've made that very clear. But sometimes people do need... Since you're portraying it on me. Theoretically speaking, sir, I get it. It's about character assassination for you. That's the way this game is played. I understand it. And you are

making this about you, which is fine, but that doesn't keep me as Secretary of Homeland Security. It's character assassination when you were the one lauding the assault. Who do you think started that character assassination? I'm just repeating what you have done in character assassination. I'm repeating your support for the assault. So that's somehow something I started?

No, sir. What I'm saying is you're adding a lot to it.

In the days after the fight, you did many interviews in which you justified the violence as historically justified by precedents such as caning and dueling. Is it today your opinion that the caning of Charles Sumner was not only justified but argues still for resolving our political differences with

violence? What I would simply point out is some of the rules that still apply to this body. For instance, dueling with two consenting adults is still

there. I was pointing out what is still... It's been illegal for a hundred and seventy years. There's no precedent for legal dueling. Even then they fled the country. Do you realize that the man that beat Charles Sumner with a cane, he beat him till he was unconscious. You know why no senators intervened? Because his friend held a gun on the other senators and he kept beating him and beating him until he crushed his skull. That's what you're insinuating as the President of the

Senate and that's what you live by. That is a very, very dangerous sentiment. After a half a dozen victory lap interviews where you pointed out that the union guy was just lucky that fear kept him from standing up, Dana Bash asked you if you have any regrets about bringing violence to a Senate committee and you replied that you have no regrets. Today you said you have no regrets about being happy, being completely understanding why I was attacked from behind. You had no regrets about, you know, instigating a brawl in a Senate committee hearing. Are those still

your opinions? Mr. Chairman, you're gonna have your opinion, I'm gonna have mine. As the Secretary of Homeland Security, I'm going to bring peace of mind and the Secretary of Homeland Security, I'm going to bring peace of mind and security to this country and I'm going to stay laser focused on that.