Homeland Security Secretary fired by Donald Trump
Updated ,first published
Washington: US President Donald Trump has fired Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, who oversaw controversial immigration raids in major American cities, and has now become the first person to be ousted from his cabinet in his second term.
Trump announced on Truth Social that Noem will be replaced by Oklahoma senator Markwayne Mullin at the end of the month. He said Noem, who “served us well,” would be the special envoy for a new western hemisphere security initiative.
This comes after intense speculation in Washington that Trump might take action against Noem following her testimony before Senate and House committees this week.
Noem has refused to apologize for labeling U.S. citizens Renee Good and Alex Pretti “domestic terrorists” in the hours after they were killed by federal immigration officers in Minneapolis in two separate incidents in January. Noem said she trusted the information agents provided during the “chaotic scene.”
He has also been heavily featured about his US$220 million ($315 million) ad campaign encouraging illegal immigrants to deport themselves and his relationship with de facto chief of staff Corey Lewandowski.
Asked whether she had had sexual intercourse with Lewandowski, as was widely reported in Washington, Noem replied: “I’m surprised we’re selling tabloid garbage in this committee.”
Trump was reportedly unhappy with Noem’s responses to the committee, including her statement that the president had signed off on the expensive ad campaign.
“POTUS has not signed on for a $220 MILLION ad campaign. Absolutely not,” a White House official previously told NBC News.
In a post on X, Noem thanked Trump for the new appointment and said she looked forward to working with other cabinet members to dismantle drug cartels in the Western Hemisphere. He said more than 3 million illegal immigrants had left the country under his watch.
Trump praised Noem for delivering “numerous and spectacular results” and highlighted her role in disrupting illegal crossings at the U.S. southern border.
But the pressure had been mounting since the deadly shooting in Minneapolis. Trump appointed his own adviser, Tom Homan, to take control of the operation in Minnesota and “de-escalate some tension,” effectively sidelining him and Border Patrol commander Greg Bovino.
Under Noem’s leadership, masked immigration agents have descended on U.S. cities such as Los Angeles, Chicago and Washington, scouring neighborhoods, car washes and mall parking lots for illegal immigrants.
Polls have shown the popularity of Trump’s approach to immigration has fallen as agents detain U.S. citizens and tear gassed the streets last year to speed up deportations that fell short of the administration’s 1 million annual target.
Noem, a former Republican governor of South Dakota who at one point ran to become Trump’s vice president, also rose to fame after revealing in a 2024 memoir that she once shot and killed her 14-month-old dog, Cricket, and a family goat.
Democrats, who have been pursuing Noem on multiple fronts, including the department’s purchase of a luxury jet, reacted with joy to her dismissal.
“We don’t need to impeach him anymore,” said Robert Garcia, the top Democrat on the House Oversight Committee.
Minnesota’s Democratic governor, Tim Walz, who clashed violently with Noem at the height of ICE’s deployment in his state, said Noem had done a “staggering” amount of damage and was “good to go.”
But this did not change the need for a complete overhaul of the department and impartial investigations into the deaths of Good and Pretti, Walzzaid.
via Reuters
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Michael Koziol is the North America correspondent for The Age and the Sydney Morning Herald. He is a former Sydney editor, Sun-Herald deputy editor and a federal political correspondent in Canberra.Connect with: X or email.
