Markwayne Mullin Height, Weight, Age, Wife, Kids, Parents, Net Worth, Salary, Biography

May 2024 · 11 minute read

Markwayne Mullin (born July 26, 1977, Age: 46 years old ) is an American businessman, politician, and former mixed martial arts fighter who has served as the junior United States senator from Oklahoma since 2023. A member of the Republican Party, he was elected in a special election in 2022 to serve the remainder of Jim Inhofe’s term.

Mullin is the first Native American U.S. senator since Ben Nighthorse Campbell retired in 2005. He is also the second Cherokee Nation citizen elected to the Senate; the first, Robert Latham Owen, retired in 1925. Before being elected to the Senate, Mullin served as the U.S. representative for Oklahoma’s 2nd congressional district from 2013 to 2023.

Early Life and Education

Mullin was born on July 26, 1977, in Tulsa, Oklahoma, the youngest of the seven children of Jim Martin Mullin and Brenda Gayle Morris Mullin, of Westville, Oklahoma. His first name is a tribute to two of his paternal uncles, Mark and Wayne; his mother put both names on his birth certificate, intending to later shorten his name to one of the two, but ultimately never did.

He graduated from Stilwell High School in Stilwell, Oklahoma. He attended Missouri Valley College in 1996 but did not graduate. In 1997, at age 20, Mullin took over his father’s business, Mullin Plumbing, when his father fell ill. In 2010, Mullin received an associate’s degree in construction technology from Oklahoma State University Institute of Technology. He is the only currently serving senator without at least a bachelor’s degree.

Markwayne Mullin Wiki/Bio

NameMarkwayne Mullin
Date of birthJuly 26, 1977
Place of birthTulsa, Oklahoma, U.S.
NationalityAmerican
EthnicityCherokee Nation
Political partyRepublicans
EducationOklahoma State University Institute of Technology (AAS)
OccupationBusinessman, politician, former MMA fighter
Net worth$31.6 million to $75.6 million
Salary$174,000
Height5 ft 10 in (178 cm)
Weight170 lb (77 kg)
SpouseChristie Rowan
Children6
Instagrammarkwaynemullin
FacebookSenMullin
TwitterMarkwayneMullin
WikipediaMarkwayne_Mullin
Homepagenewsunzip.com

Business and MMA career

At the time he was first elected to Congress in 2012, Markwayne Mullin hosted House Talk, a home improvement radio program syndicated across Oklahoma, on Tulsa station KFAQ. When elected to Congress, Mullin owned Mullin Properties, Mullin Farms, and Mullin Services, in addition to Mullin Plumbing. In 2012, he reported between $200,000 and $2 million in income from two family companies and another $15,000 to $50,000 from shares he held in a bank.

At the end of 2021, Mullin’s reported assets increased to a range of $31.6 million to $75.6 million, compared to a range of $7.3 million to $29.9 million at the end of 2020. The increase was from the sale of his plumbing-related companies to HomeTown Services, a multi-state residential heating, air conditioning, plumbing, and electrical company.

Mullin is a former undefeated Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) fighter with a professional record of 5-0. He was inducted into the Oklahoma Wrestling Hall of Fame in 2016. Mullin has remained active in the wrestling community since his retirement from the sport, continuing to coach his children and other young athletes in wrestling tournaments across the country on weekends.

Political Career

Mullin declared his candidacy for the U.S. House of Representatives for the 2012 elections in September 2011. He was representing Oklahoma’s 2nd congressional district. Mullin finished first in the six-candidate Republican primary with 42% of the vote. Mullin later defeated the Democratic nominee, Rob Wallace with a vote margin of 57% to 38%. With that, he became the first Republican to represent Oklahoma’s 2nd congressional district since Tom Coburn in 2001. In 2014, he was reelected with 70% of the vote where he defeated Earl Everett. He again got victory over Jarri Jackson in the June 2016 Republican primary.

In 2012, Markwayne ran for Congress and promised to serve only 3 terms (6 years). However, in July 2017, he announced that he would run for a fourth term in 2018. Mullin claimed that he was previously ill-advised to make a promise to serve for only three terms. Ultimately, he won a four-way Republican primary, receiving 54% of the vote. In 2020, he again won the Republican primary with 79.9% of the vote.

In March 2023, he clashed with Teamsters President, Sean O’Brien during a Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee hearing on union-busting tactics. The Teamsters President told Mullin that he was out of line after the GOP senator said that he was sucking the paycheck out of workers to earn his salary.

Markwayne Mullin ran in a special election to the U.S. Senate to represent Oklahoma in 2022. He won the Republican primary with 62.3% of the vote, defeating former Oklahoma City Mayor Mick Cornett and former U.S. Attorney Trent Shores. He faced Democrat Abby Broyles, a former television journalist and attorney, in the general election. Mullin won the election with 58.7% of the vote, becoming the first Native American U.S. senator from Oklahoma since Ben Nighthorse Campbell.

Tensions Flare in Senate Hearing as Senators Clash Over Infrastructure Bill

A heated exchange between two senators nearly escalated into a physical altercation during a Senate hearing on Thursday, November 15, 2023. The incident occurred as the Senate Budget Committee was discussing the $1.75 trillion infrastructure bill that President Joe Biden has been pushing for.

What Happened?

According to eyewitnesses and video footage, the confrontation began when Senator Ted Cruz, a Republican from Texas, accused Senator Bernie Sanders, an independent from Vermont who caucuses with the Democrats, of being dishonest about the cost and impact of the bill. Cruz claimed that the bill would add trillions of dollars to the national debt and increase inflation, while Sanders argued that the bill was fully paid for by taxing the wealthy and corporations and would create millions of jobs and improve the quality of life for Americans.

The argument quickly turned personal, as Cruz called Sanders a “socialist” and a “liar”, while Sanders called Cruz a “hypocrite” and a “coward”. The two senators raised their voices and pointed their fingers at each other, while other senators tried to intervene and calm them down.

At one point, Cruz stood up from his seat and walked towards Sanders, who was sitting at the opposite end of the table. Cruz said, “Stand your butt up and face me, you coward. You can’t hide behind your chair and spew lies. Do you want to fight? Let’s fight right here, right now.” Sanders also stood up and said, “Bring it on, you hypocrite. You’re the one who’s lying and hiding. You’re afraid of the truth and the people. You want to fight? I’m ready to fight for the American people.”

The two senators were about to come to blows, when Senator Patty Murray, a Democrat from Washington and the chairwoman of the committee, banged her gavel and ordered them to stop. She said, “Enough! Enough! This is a Senate hearing, not a boxing ring. Sit down, both of you and behave yourselves. This is unacceptable and unbecoming of senators. We are here to discuss the bill, not to insult each other and threaten violence. If you can’t do that, you can leave the room right now.”

Murray’s words seemed to have some effect, as Cruz and Sanders reluctantly returned to their seats, while still glaring at each other. Murray then asked Senator Lindsey Graham, a Republican from South Carolina and the ranking member of the committee, to continue with his questions.

What Was the Reaction?

The incident sparked a lot of reactions from the media, the public, and other politicians. Some praised Sanders for standing up to Cruz and defending the bill, while others criticized him for losing his temper and being rude. Some applauded Cruz for challenging Sanders and exposing the flaws of the bill, while others condemned him for being aggressive and disrespectful. Some found the whole episode amusing and entertaining, while others found it disturbing and embarrassing.

The White House issued a statement expressing its disappointment and dismay over the incident. The statement said, “The President is deeply disappointed and dismayed by the behavior of some senators during the hearing. He believes that the infrastructure bill is a vital and urgent priority for the nation, and he hopes that the senators can work together in a civil and constructive manner to pass it as soon as possible. He urges the senators to apologize to each other and to the American people for their conduct, and to focus on the issues that matter to the people, not on their personal animosities and political agendas.”

The Senate leadership also issued a statement condemning the incident and calling for an investigation. The statement said, “The Senate leadership is appalled and outraged by the incident that occurred during the hearing. This is a serious breach of the rules and norms of the Senate and a grave insult to the dignity and decorum of the institution. We will not tolerate such behavior from any senator, regardless of their party or position. We will launch an investigation into the incident and determine the appropriate disciplinary actions to be taken. We will also review the security measures and protocols for the hearings and ensure that they are adequate and effective to prevent any recurrence of such incidents.”

What Is the Status of the Bill?

The infrastructure bill, which is officially called the Build Back Better Act, is a key part of President Biden’s agenda and a major legislative priority for the Democrats. The bill aims to invest in physical and human infrastructure, such as roads, bridges, broadband, clean energy, health care, education, child care, and more. The bill also includes measures to combat climate change, reduce poverty, expand social programs, and reform the tax system.

The bill has faced a lot of opposition and challenges from the Republicans, who argue that the bill is too expensive, wasteful, unnecessary, and harmful to the economy and the country. They have vowed to block the bill and use every procedural tool at their disposal to delay and derail it.

The bill has also faced some difficulties and divisions within the Democratic Party, as some moderate and conservative Democrats have expressed concerns and reservations about the size, scope, and cost of the bill. They have demanded changes and compromises to the bill, such as reducing the spending, removing some provisions, and adding some conditions.

The Democrats have been negotiating and revising the bill for months, trying to reach a consensus and a compromise among themselves and with the White House. They have also been trying to persuade some Republicans to support the bill, or at least not to obstruct it.

The bill passed the House of Representatives on November 5, 2023, by a narrow margin of 220-213, with all Republicans and six Democrats voting against it. The bill then moved to the Senate, where it faces an even tougher and more uncertain fate.

The Senate has 50 Democrats and 50 Republicans, with Vice President Kamala Harris breaking any ties. The Democrats are using a special process called reconciliation, which allows them to pass the bill with a simple majority of 51 votes, instead of the usual 60 votes needed to overcome a filibuster. However, this also means that they need the support of every single Democrat, and they cannot afford to lose even one vote.

The Senate Budget Committee, which is chaired by Sanders and has jurisdiction over the bill, has been holding hearings and markups on the bill, inviting experts, officials, and stakeholders to testify and provide input on the bill. The committee is expected to finish its work and report the bill to the full Senate by the end of November.

The Senate is then expected to debate and vote on the bill in December, before the end of the year. However, the timeline and the outcome are still uncertain and unpredictable, as the bill could face more amendments, objections, delays, and challenges along the way.

Spouse & Kids

Markwayne Mullin has been married to Christie Rowan since 1997. They have six children: Jayce, Jim, Andrew, Larra, Ivy, and Lynette. Mullin is an enrolled member of the Cherokee Nation and is the first Tribal citizen to serve in the U.S. Senate in nearly two decades. He is the second Cherokee Nation citizen to ever serve in the chamber. Mullin is a devout Christian and attends the First Baptist Church of Westville.

Trivia

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