Kristi Noem’s year-long tenure as homeland security secretary has been plagued by controversies as she led an aggressive immigration crackdown that hasprompted protests and lawsuits.
There have been scandals, legally dubious deportations condemned by human rights groups, taxpayer-funded publicity campaigns, and false claims about US citizens.
After she described two US citizens killed by immigration agents in Minneapolis as being involved in actions of “domestic terrorism” – assertions which independent analyses and state officials said the footage did not support – bipartisan pressure on her leadership mounted and public support plummeted.
Here’s a look back at some of the key moments in Noem’s controversial time as the head of DHS.
12 November 2024 – Trump selects Noem for homeland security
Then president-elect Donald Trump announced that South Dakota governor Kristi Noem would serve as homeland security secretary in his second administration. Trump selected Noem largely because of her hard-line positions on immigration and her loyalty to his agenda, including plans for large-scale deportations and tougher border enforcement. The choice was one of many signals that immigration enforcement would be a central focus of the administration’s national security strategy.
Earlier in 2024, Noem went on an ill-fated book tour, widely seen, at least at the time, as an audition to be Trump’s running mate. The memoir is now remembered mostly for her admission that she had shot and killed the family’s “untrainable” hunting dog, a 14-month-old wirehair pointer named Cricket.
January 2025 – Senate confirmation
Noem was confirmed by the Senate on 25 January by a 59–34 vote, with some bipartisan support. She was sworn in that same day and resigned as governor of South Dakota to take the position. Within days, she joined federal immigration enforcement operations, including raids targeting undocumented immigrants in New York.
Early 2025 – immigration crackdowns
One of Noem’s earliest policy moves was to rescind temporary protections for large groups of migrants. Her department moved to end an 18-month extension of temporary protected status for roughly 600,000 Venezuelans – a move which was later blocked by the courts. Noem later revoked legal protections for more than 500,000 migrants from Cuba, Haiti, Nicaragua and Venezuela, who had entered under humanitarian programs.
April 2025 – deportation controversies
Major controversies emerged pretty much immediately into her tenure. Following the deportation of Kilmar Ábrego García, whom the Trump administration admitted was mistakenly sent to an El Salvador mega-prison, Noem said if Ábrego García was sent back to the US, the administration “would immediately deport him again”. García has since been in and out of ICE custody after returning to the US as the administration has repeatedly tried to deport him again, despite court rulings.
July 2025 – ICE presence grows
ICE continues to be a bigger and bigger presence across the US, becoming the unofficial blueprint for the Trump administration’s policies and approach to policing. The agency grew in numbers by promising new recruits $50,000 signing bonuses and pledges of patriotism. Noem faced further scandal when a report was published that revealed she had failed to disclose $80,000 she accepted while serving as South Dakota’s governor.
August 2025 – politics and pop culture
The TV comedy South Park shocked viewerswith its critical depiction of the Trump administration, satirizing the incompetence of several members of the administration, not least Noem. An episode poked fun at her perceived penchant for killing dogs, racial profiling and cosmetic surgery. Noem responded by accusing the show of sexism. The show’s high ratings were seen as a sign of the public’s increasingly negative sentiment towards the administration’s mass deportation campaign.
September 2025 – inhumane conditions in Ice detention
Pressure continued to mount as several reports emerged that detailed the horrific conditions that detainees were forced to endure in ICE custody. A Guardian investigation found US immigration officials had been increasingly detaining people in small, secretive holding facilities for days or even weeks at a time in violation of federal policy. Outrage over the treatment of immigrants grew, with a total of 32 people having died in ICE custody by the end of 2025.
The Trump administration tried repeatedly to use social media and so-called “Maga influencers” to push their policies and popularize the deportation campaigns. In early October, Noem toured the ICE facility in Portland, accompanied by a trio of conservative influencers, one of many examples of right-leaning media figures given special access in exchange for more positive coverage. These attempts to normalize hardline immigration methods among younger audiences were met with moderate success, but not nearly enough to cancel out the growing unease and plummeting approval ratings.
January 2026 – Minneapolis shootings crisis
A turning point came early this year when immigration enforcement operations intensified to unprecedented degrees. During separate incidents in a crackdown in Minneapolis, immigration officers shot and killed two US citizens, 37-year-old local residents Alex Pretti and Renee Nicole Good, triggering nationwide protests. Both had been protesting the ICE raids. Noem defended the officers and accused the two killed Americans of “domestic terrorism” , remarks that drew immediate backlash from Democrats and some Republicans who questioned her leadership and demanded investigations.
February 2026 – mounting investigations and bipartisan pressure
Noem appeared before Congress amid escalating scrutiny over enforcement tactics and departmental spending. Lawmakers questioned DHS leadership over the Minneapolis killings, agency oversight, and alleged obstruction of investigations. Several members of Congress began publicly calling for her resignation or removal.
By mid-February, it emerged Tricia McLaughlin, the homeland security department’s top spokesperson and one of the most visible defenders of the Trump administration’s deportation raids, was leaving.
March 2026 – $220m DHS advertising controversy
Yet another political scandal erupted over a $220m DHS advertising campaign for border security that prominently featured Noem in promotional material. Lawmakers from both parties questioned the contracting process and whether the campaign amounted to taxpayer-funded self-promotion. The controversy deepened when Trump said he had not approved the campaign, contradicting testimony that suggested he had been informed.
On 4 March, Noem appeared at a House judiciary committee oversight hearing and was asked about reports turmoil at the department and reports she had engaged in a personal relationship with Corey Lewandowski, a former Trump campaign manager who was her senior adviser. Both are married.
Noem denied the reports and described them as “tabloid garbage”.
5 March 2026 – Trump fires Noem
By early March, tensions between the White House and Noem had escalated sharply, with Trump officially announcing her ousting on Truth Social, marking the first major personnel change of Trump’s second term. Trump said Noem “has served us well, and has had numerous and spectacular results (especially on the Border!)”, and that she would become special envoy for “the Shield of the Americas”, a security initiative Trump said he planned to announce over the weekend.
Trump also announced Markwayne Mullin, a Republican Oklahoma senator, would take over from Noem starting on 31 March, though Congress would need to vote to confirm the choice first.
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