DHS secretary doubles down on Trump’s baseless 2020 election claims
Mullin Reinforces Trump's Unsubstantiated Election Assertions
Homeland Security Secretary Stands Firm on Controversial Claims
DHS secretary doubles down on Trump - Markwayne Mullin, serving as the United States homeland security secretary, reaffirmed Donald Trump's election assertions without solid foundation on Friday. This reinforcement came as his department continues supporting the president's policy priorities. The secretary's position gained attention after Trump referenced a memorandum prepared by the Department of Homeland Security during his televised evening address to the nation on Thursday. The memo served as a cornerstone for numerous claims that lacked substantial verification.
Following widespread criticism of the presidential speech—which failed to present fresh information regarding electoral safety despite asserting the system falls "catastrophically short" of "greatness"—Mullin defended the administration's stance. He emphasized that the matter extends beyond revisiting past controversies.
"This isn't about rehashing the 2020 election. This is just exposing what took place, and to make sure it never happens again," Mullin stated.
Expert Skepticism Regarding Methodology
The secretary made a significant assertion regarding voter registration records, claiming that the Department of Homeland Security discovered "250,000 noncitizens registered to vote in California, in Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and Nevada." This figure drew immediate scrutiny from election specialists. David Becker, who serves as executive director of the non-partisan Center for Election Innovation and Research, pointed out that the administration has failed to demonstrate transparency concerning the methodology employed to arrive at this statistic.
State officials from the affected regions responded promptly to these assertions on Thursday. Al Schmidt, Pennsylvania's Republican secretary of state, explained that residents within the Keystone state must complete identity verification procedures before casting ballots. These requirements encompass providing appropriate identification whenever individuals register to vote, participate through mail, or visit a polling location for the first time.
"All evidence has shown that noncitizen voting is extremely rare across the country, including in Pennsylvania," Schmidt remarked.
Save Program Statistics Under Examination
Additional claims emerged regarding the Save program, a DHS initiative designed to confirm citizenship status. Mullin reported that 28,000 noncitizens had been identified among voter registration lists in 23 predominantly Republican states that collaborated proactively with the administration. Becker acknowledged this figure appears reasonable but contextualized it by noting it represents merely 0.04% of the 68 million eligible voters residing in those states.
The secretary expressed confidence in the accuracy of these statistics when speaking with journalists. He characterized the data as straightforward facts rather than interpretive narratives.
"One thing that I love about numbers, and I love about facts is they don't lie," Mullin told reporters today. "This isn't something that I'm trying to tell you to spin a narrative. This is what is going on, and what we are saying is that every state should partner with us to work to secure this."
Conspiracy Theories and Voting Machine Concerns
Mullin echoed several of the president's unfounded conspiracy theories delivered during Thursday's evening remarks. Most notably, he questioned the security of voting machines despite consistent reassurances from election administrators and cybersecurity professionals. These experts regularly emphasize that voting equipment remains disconnected from internet networks and undergoes thorough examination prior to every election to ensure integrity.
Addressing foreign involvement, Mullin asserted that adversaries—not allies—contribute essential components to voting machinery. His statement appeared to reference Trump's claims regarding CIA intelligence about a Venezuelan plot orchestrated by the Maduro administration to manipulate digital elections in 2020. According to CIA analysis, however, the vulnerability concerned voting technology utilized within Venezuela by Smartmatic and did not extend to American systems.
Assertions that Venezuela's leadership maintains control over electronic voting infrastructure globally—including equipment deployed during the 2020 American election—constitute an enduring conspiracy theory lacking credible evidentiary support.
Final Assertions Without Supporting Evidence
On Friday, Mullin reiterated another contention without presenting verification: that political opponents possess the capability to alter both voter registration information and individual ballots. He characterized this possibility as beyond reasonable dispute.
"There's not a question. It's not even for debate," he concluded.