Cabinet Casualty No. 1
Noem is no more
In one of the most overdue moves of Donald Trump’s second term, the president decided he’s had enough of Kristi Noem. The Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security was fired Thursday and will be replaced by Republican Senator Markwayne Mullin of Oklahoma.
Trump, who has filled his Cabinet with dangerous and unqualified toadies, has been loath to get rid of any of them. It’s quite an accomplishment to be the first.
Trump announced the move on social media and made it sound as if Noem received a promotion: “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.’”
After months of terrible decisions and controversy, it was Noem’s grilling on the Hill this week that decided her fate.
On Tuesday, Republicans, yes Republicans, questioned the wisdom of spending $220 million on an advertising campaign that prominently featured Noem. Many of those millions were given to a company with close ties to her.
“The president approved ahead of time you spending $220 million running TV ads across the country in which you are featured prominently?” Senator John Kennedy (R-LA) asked. She answered yes.
That got the president’s attention. Several news outlets reported Trump was “furious” with Noem and called senators to deny he knew about the ads.
Noem tried to save herself by telling the committee that the ads had been effective, to which Kennedy shot back, “effective in building your name recognition.”
Questions about the self-aggrandizing ads were just the beginning of a bad day.
She was chastised by members of both parties for acquiring three multimillion-dollar private jets, one outfitted with a private bedroom.
She was admonished for lowering hiring and training standards for new immigration agents to such an extent that recruits were reportedly struggling with basic literacy and physical fitness.
But what really sank her ship was immigration — Trump’s self-proclaimed signature issue that became an embarrassment and a tragedy after federal agents killed two Americans in Minneapolis.
Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker, whose state also dealt with unwanted and unwarranted ICE raids, said of Noem on social media, “Here’s your legacy: Corruption and chaos. Parents and children tear gassed. Moms and nurses, U.S. citizens, getting shot in the face. Now that you’re gone, don’t think you just get to walk away. I guarantee you, you will still be held accountable.”
And let’s not forget that the government is partially shut down because of her agency. It is so poorly run that Democrats refuse to allow funding without changes.
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer applauded Noem’s removal but said the issues at DHS go beyond the secretary.
“The problems at ICE transcend any one individual. ... It goes beyond any one person,” he said Thursday. “You need to straighten out the whole agency. The rot there is deep.”
Who’s next? We’ve heard from many of you with suggestions. The list is long.
There’s Attorney General Pam Bondi, of course, who has been in Trump’s sights for months because she’s been unable to get convictions (or even indictments) on any of Trump’s prosecutorial fantasy wish list. And because of the botched release of the Epstein Files.
Speaking of which, he could go with Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, who is in the files, including evidence he visited Epstein’s island, after saying he’d cut ties with the convicted sex offender.
Bondi and Lutnick have been subpoenaed to testify before Congress — suddenly a precarious proposition for job security in the Trump administration.
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Stay Steady,
Dan
Now let's see if congress will hold her accountable for the enormous messes she has made and the huge amounts of money she has spent to make them. Not to mention the lives she has ruined or even terminated.
Hey Dan - you got your headlines mixed up - it should have been "A Reason to Smile."