The Department of Homeland Security is firing back at comedian Jimmy Kimmel, accusing the late-night host of ridiculing Secretary Markwayne Mullin’s blue-collar roots.
In a statement to Fox News Digital, a DHS spokesperson defended Mullin’s journey from a family plumbing business to the president’s Cabinet.
“Secretary Mullin represents the best of blue-collar America, and failed comedian Jimmy Kimmel chooses to ridicule him for it,” the agency said.
The disagreement began after Kimmel mocked Mullin’s qualifications during his show last week. He compared the former senator’s qualifications to those of the famous Nintendo character Mario, a plumber.
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“He’s the now-former senator of Oklahoma. Before he was elected to the Senate, Markwayne Mullin was a low-level MMA fighter and a plumber. That’s right. We have a plumber protecting us from terrorism now. It worked for Super Mario. Why not Markwayne?” Kimmel said.
Mullin attended college on a wrestling scholarship before leaving to take over his family’s plumbing business when his father became ill. Before becoming Homeland Security secretary, Mullin represented Oklahoma in the House and Senate for over a decade.
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“In what other country could a young plumber from rural Oklahoma get fed up one day, run for Congress, serve his community in the House and Senate, and then be called to serve in the president’s Cabinet to protect the homeland?” DHS added.
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Kimmel defended his original comments on Thursday, directly addressing the backlash during his monologue.
“Let me make this very clear, I’m not upset that the head of Homeland Security used to be a plumber. I’m upset that he isn’t still a plumber,” Kimmel said, accusing conservative commentators of twisting his words and arguing he was not trying to insult plumbers.
“I wouldn’t put a plumber in charge of Homeland Security for the same reason I wouldn’t call a five-star general to pull a rat out of my toilet. OK? We all have our areas of expertise,” Kimmel added.
The DHS statement also pointed to comments from President Donald Trump on “The Five” Thursday, where he called Mullin “country smart” and well-respected. Mullin was sworn in as DHS chief last week after his confirmation by the U.S. Senate.
A representative for Kimmel did not immediately respond to a request for comment.