President Donald Trump announced in a Truth Social post Thursday that Noem would be replaced by Senator Markway Mullin of Oklahoma, a staunch Trump ally and immigration hardline. Trump wrote, “The current Secretary of State, Kristi Noem, who has served us well, and who has had many more great results (especially at the border!), is to become the Special Envoy for The Shield of the Americas, our new security initiative in the Western Hemisphere we are announcing Saturday in Doral, Florida.” “I thank Christie for her service on ‘Homeland’.”
DHS did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Agencies under DHS include Immigration and Customs Enforcement, U.S. Customs and Border Protection, Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, Federal Emergency Management Agency, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, U.S. Coast Guard, and others. It’s a massive network whose vast responsibilities and rapidly growing budget have put it at the center of the Trump administration’s overhaul of immigration and border policy.
There has been speculation for months about Noem’s departure. Critics have criticized DHS’s aggressive immigration enforcement tactics, while Noem and the likes of White House border czar Tom Homan have reportedly been at odds over how to execute the administration’s mass deportation agenda, with Noem and senior adviser Corey Lewandowski said to have emphasized large numbers of arrests and deportations above other considerations.
The relationship between Noem and Lewandowski has itself been the subject of controversy, with CNN reporting that a September meeting between the two and President Donald Trump turned “contentious.” Last month, the Wall Street Journal reported that Lewandowski attempted to fire a pilot during a flight because he failed to bring Noem’s blanket from one plane to another during a transfer.
The ousted secretary faced increasing scrutiny over the deaths of American civilians during federal operations in Minneapolis, including the killings of Renee Good and Alex Pretty by federal agents under Noem’s employ. In both cases, Noem publicly labeled the dead as “domestic terrorists”, a move also supported by Trump and other key administration officials. Video evidence, witness testimony and an independent autopsy refuted the agency’s claims, including initial claims that Preeti had brandished a gun.
Scrutiny of Noem’s tenure has ranged from the deadly shooting in Minneapolis to aggressive enforcement tactics, warrantless raids and a widespread pattern of mass detention camps. A secret policy directive issued in May 2025, first reported by the Associated Press, authorized ICE agents to forcibly enter private residences without judicial warrants. The memo, signed by Acting ICE Director Todd Lyons, instructs agents to rely only on administrative removal documentation to circumvent Fourth Amendment requirements. This policy led to several documented instances of federal agents entering the wrong homes, including a January raid in Minnesota where agents removed a US citizen at gunpoint without lawful reason.
A record 53 people died in ICE or CBP custody last year, according to House Democrats on the Homeland Security Committee. Concurrently, Noem has launched a $38 billion procurement effort to buy and refurbish 24 warehouses across the country, with the aim of converting them into massive detention camps for people awaiting deportation.
Noem’s tenure has also caused controversy at other DHS agencies. His insistence on approving any contract or grant over $100,000 in the department has created particular pressure on FEMA, which has experienced a massive backlog of funding that has slowed normal processes at the agency. A report released Wednesday by Senate Democrats found that more than 1,000 contracts, grants and awards have been put on hold because of Noem’s investigative process at FEMA. Several FEMA employees have told WIRED that this process has left the agency less prepared to respond to disasters and threats.
<a href