President Donald Trump on Thursday dismissed his embattled Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem and said he plans to nominate Markwayne Mullin, a Republican senator from Oklahoma, to take over the role.
Trump announced the decision on social media two days after Noem faced tough questioning on Capitol Hill from both Republican and Democratic lawmakers.
Even so, he did not directly criticize her leadership. Instead, the president said she would move into a new position as “Special Envoy for the Shield of the Americas.” The White House did not give a single clear reason for her departure, but several controversies are believed to have contributed to the decision.
Even before the congressional hearings, Kristi Noem was already facing growing pressure within the administration. The situation intensified earlier this year after two U.S. citizens were fatally shot by federal officers during immigration operations in Minneapolis. The victims were identified as Alex Good, a mother of three, and Alex Pretti, a nurse. The deaths triggered widespread criticism and calls for greater scrutiny of federal enforcement actions.
Noem publicly defended the federal officers involved in the shootings, saying their actions appeared justified. She also alleged that the two victims had ties to domestic terrorism, though she did not present evidence to support the claim. The investigation into the incident drew further criticism after local authorities were largely kept out of the process by federal investigators.
As tensions mounted, President Donald Trump eventually sent his border adviser Tom Homan to Minneapolis in an effort to ease the situation.
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Noem’s departure makes her the first Cabinet secretary to exit during Trump’s second term. Her tenure at the United States Department of Homeland Security was often marked by controversy, particularly over strict immigration enforcement measures that triggered protests and legal challenges.
Growing dissatisfaction with how she carried out the administration’s tough immigration agenda, especially following the fatal shooting of two U.S. citizens in Minneapolis, added to the pressure surrounding her leadership. During congressional hearings this week, she faced intense criticism from Democrats and some Republicans over those incidents and other concerns.
Apart from immigration policy, Noem also drew criticism from lawmakers, including members of her own party, over the pace at which emergency funds were distributed through the Federal Emergency Management Agency and the administration’s broader handling of disaster response.
Within the department, reports suggested she had a strained relationship with the United States Coast Guard, the only military branch that operates under Homeland Security. At times, those tensions reportedly spilled into open confrontations.
One incident in May became a major talking point in Washington. During a flight involving the secretary, her adviser Corey Lewandowski reportedly berated Coast Guard personnel and even threatened a pilot after the aircraft took off without one of Noem’s personal belongings, a heated blanket.
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But people familiar with President Donald Trump’s thinking say the real turning point came during congressional hearings this week. Lawmakers repeatedly questioned Kristi Noem about several contracts approved by the department, including a $220 million advertising campaign designed to encourage immigrants to leave the United States voluntarily.
During the exchange, Noem said Trump was aware of the contracts being approved. According to people familiar with the matter, as per reports, that response did not sit well with the president. A White House official later told reporters that Trump had not personally signed off on the ad campaign.
John Kennedy later described how the president reacted after the hearing. “He called me after the hearing when he was mad as a murder hornet,” Kennedy said. During the same conversation, Trump also asked the senator for his thoughts on Markwayne Mullin, the Republican lawmaker who would soon be tapped as Noem’s replacement.
Markwayne Mullin will still need confirmation from the Senate to officially take over as Homeland Security secretary. However, under federal rules that govern temporary appointments in the executive branch, he can step in as acting secretary while his nomination is under consideration.