Images via Screengrab.
At the opening of the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee confirmation hearing on Wednesday, Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) made it clear that he believes Oklahoma Sen. Markwayne Mullin (R-Okla.), President Donald Trump's pick for director of Homeland Security, has a history of being a hot-head and embracing violence.
Paul's open statement recalled that he first came into office the year that Rep. Gabby Giffords (D-Ariz.) was shot in the head. He was also in the batting cage when officials were fired on at the congressional baseball game. Paul has faced off against his own violent encounters with an irate neighbor who broke several of the senator's ribs.
Paul also recalled a policy disagreement over a refugee program in which Mullin called him "a freakin' snake" and said he "understands why [Paul] was assaulted."
"I was shocked that you would justify and celebrate this violent assault," said Paul.
Mullin said "regrets" his statement and told the Republican senator "I've had to pray about my attitude."
"The record should show, and I think the record will show, a lack of contrition and no apology or no regrets for your support," the senator said. "You understand the violence on me. The only thing you quibble about it is whether I met you somehow when you were in the House. I don't think we ever met. This idea that the only thing you are upset about is not that you abhor violence. What you are upset about is I called you a liar because you said it to my face, which is more about this machismo you have."
Paul hit on Mullin's "low impulse control," noting he spoke to Mullin personally and, even then, Mullin never apologized.
"You just said we can let our political difference go by, and you said a few minutes ago we can just set it aside. Political differences we can. But when you say you agree with a felon, a Trump-hating felon who attacked me, sometimes you think I'm just going to set that aside? Oh, it's no big deal? 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 is great and should be extolled?" Paul continued.
"The sheer lack of any kind of self-awareness that you're going to be leaving thousands of men and women who have the use of force and there's been great questions about how that will be used, and you think a violent attack is just fine," he added.
When Mullin responded, denying his outbursts.
"It was not heated, and I am not apologizing," said Mullin.
Paul replied by playing a supercut of videos showing Mullin's documented outbursts.