Just months after taking over the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), Secretary Markwayne Mullin finds himself facing an unlikely source of political peril: Donald Trump’s own base of MAGA stalwarts. Mullin attempted to curb certain ICE vehicle-stop practices following a series of shootings and deaths involving immigration enforcement operations. By many of the measures that the administration itself uses to judge immigration enforcement, DHS under Mullin has been highly aggressive. In that view, even discussing legal immigration pathways or labor-market needs risks validating arguments long associated with business groups and immigration reform advocates. Now, the question remains: How far is Mullin willing to go to appease the hard-line wing of the MAGA movement?