{"id":31123,"date":"2026-03-09T14:14:30","date_gmt":"2026-03-09T18:14:30","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/news\/?p=31123"},"modified":"2026-03-09T14:14:30","modified_gmt":"2026-03-09T18:14:30","slug":"president-trump-fires-dhs-secretary-kristi-noem-after-tensions-failures","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/news\/2026\/03\/president-trump-fires-dhs-secretary-kristi-noem-after-tensions-failures","title":{"rendered":"President Trump Fires DHS Secretary Kristi Noem After Tensions, Failures"},"content":{"rendered":"
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The White House<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

President Trump has fired DHS Secretary Kristi Noem after reported tensions between Noem and border czar Tom Homan, excessive spending, and rumors of immorality. President Trump made the announcement over Truth Social<\/a>. President Trump has appointed Oklahoma Senator Markwayne Mullin to replace Noem effective March 31, 2026. Noem has been reassigned as \u201cSpecial Envoy for The Shield of the Americas.\u201d Noem thanked President Trump for the assignment. \u201cI do want to thank the president for creating this and for giving me the honor and the opportunity to serve as a special envoy to this region, to the Western Hemisphere,\u201d she said during a summit.<\/p>\n

While the president praised Noem\u2019s work at DHS, other reports paint a more grim picture of her handling of the department. \u201cPresident Donald Trump’s decision to fire her, which took way too long, liberates many Republicans to acknowledge what many in the media, including me, along with Democrats and outside critics, have been saying all along: Noem was a slow-motion train wreck,\u201d wrote Howard Kurtz for Fox News<\/em><\/a>. He blamed Noem for ICE\u2019s \u201chyper-aggressive approach\u201d in Minneapolis that had turned public opinion against Trump\u2019s immigration enforcement.<\/p>\n

Another point of contention during Noem\u2019s tenure was a hotly contested $220 million advertising contract that Noem claimed, under oath, that the president had approved. The ad focused on Noem\u2019s accomplishments and seemed like a mega ego fluffing at taxpayers\u2019 expenses. During questioning by lawmakers, Senator John Kennedy informed Noem that the president denied ever approving the contract. Speaking to NBC News <\/em>about the contract, the President said, \u201cI wasn\u2019t thrilled with it. I spent less money than that to become president. I didn\u2019t know about it.”<\/p>\n

There were also troubling rumors that Noem, a married woman, was having an affair with her one of her senior advisers, Corey Lewandowski, who is also married. There have been reports that the two have had romantic ties dating back to Noem\u2019s days as governor of South Dakota. Both have denied the rumors, with Noem brushing off questions about the affair during a House Judiciary Committee hearing on Wednesday, March 4. However, there are unconfirmed reports that Lewandowski has been dismissed from his position<\/a> at DHS as well. Noem\u2019s ouster is the first major firing during Trump\u2019s second term, which was plagued by turnover during his first term. \u201cKristi Noem made the job about her, her hair, her makeup, her outfits, her vanity. It was a giant distraction from the mission,\u201d wrote Tomi Lahren on X<\/a>. \u201cShe did the same sh*t as governor of South Dakota. Once the cameras turned on she forgot about the people and went on a personal PR mission. Not cute. Good riddance and hide your dogs.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

President Trump has fired DHS Secretary Kristi Noem after reported tensions between Noem and border czar Tom Homan, excessive spending, and rumors of immorality. President Trump made the announcement over Truth Social. President Trump has appointed Oklahoma Senator Markwayne Mullin to replace Noem effective March 31, 2026. Noem has been reassigned as \u201cSpecial Envoy for…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":516,"featured_media":31126,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"fbia_status":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-31123","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"yoast_head":"\nPresident Trump Fires DHS Secretary Kristi Noem After Tensions, Failures<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"President Trump fires DHS Secretary Kristi Noem amid reported tensions, spending concerns, and controversy, appointing Sen. 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