BREAKING: Trump Says Kristi Noem Is Out as DHS Secretary

President Donald Trump has announced Kristi Noem’s replacement as head of the Department of Homeland Security amid bipartisan concerns about her management.

Trump has tapped Oklahoma Republican Sen. Markwayne Mullin to become the new secretary of Homeland Security.

“The current Secretary, Kristi Noem, who has served us well, and has had numerous and spectacular results (especially on the Border!), will be moving to be Special Envoy for The Shield of the Americas, our new Security Initiative in the Western Hemisphere we are announcing on Saturday in Doral, Florida,” Trump said. “I thank Kristi for her service at ‘Homeland.'”

Noem is the first Senate-confirmed cabinet official to leave in Trump’s second term.

“As the only Native American in the Senate, Markwayne is a fantastic advocate for our incredible Tribal Communities,” Trump said. “Markwayne will work tirelessly to Keep our Border Secure, Stop Migrant Crime, Murderers, and other Criminals from illegally entering our Country, End the Scourge of Illegal Drugs and, MAKE AMERICA SAFE AGAIN.”

Noem oversaw more than 2 million reported self-deportations in 2025 and about 670,000 removals of illegal immigrants.

Critics have highlighted Noem’s controversial defense of two fatal shootings of protesters by immigration enforcement agents in Minneapolis.

Noem and her agency justified the shootings by calling protesters’ actions “domestic terrorism,” a characterization that drew widespread backlash when video of the shootings was published online.

Noem’s replacement comes the day after Sen. John Kennedy, R-La., grilled her at a hearing about using $220 million in taxpayer funding for ads featuring herself. Noem said Trump knew about the ads, but the president later told Reuters in a phone interview that he “never knew anything about it.”

At the same hearing, Sen. Thom Tillis, R-N.C, accused Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem of “failure of leadership” and called on her to resign.

Tillis specifically accused Noem of failing to “acknowledge when mistakes are made and speaking too soon for the expediency of social media.”

DHS is partially shut down right now due to Congress failing to pass a bill to fund the agency. Republicans and Democrats did not reach a funding agreement due to Democrats’ demands for ICE changes, including requiring agents not to wear masks.

This story is developing and may be updated.

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