President Donald Trump has fired Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem and announced Senator Markwayne Mullin will replace her, marking the first Cabinet-level termination of his second term.
The ‘last straw’ came when Noem told Senator John Kennedy under oath that she’d been given Trump’s approval for a $220 million taxpayer-funded campaign designed to boost her national profile.
She testified that the multi-million dollar ad campaign was signed off on by the President when pressed by Congress under oath this week. However, reports indicate that her claim caught Trump by surprise.
‘I never knew anything about it,’ he told Reuters in an interview on Thursday.
Noem has been under heavy scrutiny for her alleged affair with her top advisor, Corey Lewandowski. Both Noem and Lewandowski have denied the affair.
Later on Thursday, Trump announced that Senator Markwayne Mullin of Oklahoma would be nominated to become the next DHS Secretary.
‘I am pleased to announce that the Highly Respected United States Senator from the Great State of Oklahoma, Markwayne Mullin, will become the United States Secretary of Homeland Security (DHS), effective March 31, 2026,’ Trump posted on Truth Social.
‘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. I thank Kristi for her service at “Homeland.”’
Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem films an ad at Mount Rushmore. The ad was a part of a $220 million campaign to recruit more DHS workers. Noem said Trump signed off on the expense, but the President refuted that
Trump announced that Senator Markwayne Mullin will be nominated to become the next DHS Secretary
The President lauded Mullin for his Native American roots and claimed the Senator ‘will make a spectacular Secretary of Homeland Security.’
One DHS source told the Daily Mail staff that in the department’s headquarters are cheering the news: ‘Everyone is happy, lots of smiles.’
There’s also an expectation that Corey Lewandowski will follow her out the door. ‘He will go because he knows Mullin will toss him.’ It is unclear if the advisor will depart DHS along with the secretary.
Another DHS insider said Trump had been preparing to fire her for days, but that her performance Tuesday ‘gave him cover’ to do so immediately.
A Senate panel grilled Noem about the ad campaign and the process through which the money was allocated for it.
Noem told lawmakers on Tuesday that there was ‘a competitive process’ to award the contract for the campaign and that it was ‘all done correctly, all done legally.’
One of the ads cut from the $220 million project showed Noem wearing a cowboy hat, riding a horse in front of Mt. Rushmore.
Sources close to the president told NBC News on Thursday that Trump was considering firing Noem. Should Trump replace her, Senator Markwayne Mullin may be selected to replace her, the National Review reported the same day.
Mullin told reporters hours before Trump’s announcement that he had not talked to the president this week and he wouldn’t weigh in on ‘hypotheticals’ about him replacing Noem
Pressed on Thursday whether he is under consideration to lead DHS, Mullin dodged the question.
‘Listen, I haven’t talked to the President all week, so I couldn’t even help you with that answer,’ he said.
When asked if he is interested in the job, Mullin again shot down the inquiry.
‘I’m actually absolutely not dealing with hypotheticals,’ he shot back.
Hours after his remarks, Trump announced Mullin would replace Noem.
The ad campaign and the alleged affair are just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to Noem’s controversies.
The DHS Secretary caught flak earlier this year when her agents shot and killed two Americans – Renee Good and Alex Pretti – during immigration operations in Minnesota.
