DHS chief dodges questions on obeying court orders

Source: Washington Post

At a Senate hearing, Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin declined to confirm that his department would follow legal rulings, accusing some federal judges of politicizing their decisions.

Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin on Tuesday accused some federal judges of politicizing their decisions and dodged questions from lawmakers about whether the Department of Homeland Security would abide by court rulings under his leadership.

During a testy exchange with Sen. Chris Murphy (D-Connecticut), Mullin stated repeatedly that he would never violate the Constitution. At the same time, he suggested that some judges “make a political opinion from the bench” because they view themselves as above the law.

“That’s why we see lower courts overturned by higher courts constantly,” Mullin said.

During questioning at the Senate Appropriations subcommittee hearing, Murphy pressed Mullin over a Politico story last month that found federal judges had ruled in more than 10,000 cases that federal immigration officers had illegally detained migrants without providing them a chance to plead their cases. Murphy asked Mullin whether DHS would obey a court order.

“If we didn’t think the courts were politicized, I would be able to answer that,” Mullin replied. “But we see courts over and over again that use their bench for their political opinion, not just the rule of law.”

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