Tipsheet

Trump Has Made His Pick for the Department of Homeland Security

Matt Vespa
Matt Vespa  |  November 12, 2024 7:35 PM

Rebecca has covered the flurry of cabinet nominations made by President-elect Donald Trump. He announced a nomination for one of the big four positions, with Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL) selected as our next secretary of state. Still, Mr. Trump reportedly made another pick late last night: South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem was asked to lead the Department of Homeland Security (via CNN): 

President-elect Donald Trump has selected South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem as his next secretary of the Department of Homeland Security, according to two people familiar with the selection. 

Noem will be tapped to take over the agency as two key immigration hardliners — Stephen Miller and Tom Homan — are slated to serve in senior roles, signaling Trump is serious about his promise to crack down on his immigration pledges. With his selection of Noem, Trump is ensuring a loyalist will head an agency he prioritizes and that is key to his domestic agenda. 

The department saw an immense amount of turmoil the last time Trump was in office. Then, DHS had five different leaders, only two of whom were Senate-confirmed. The agency has a $60 billion budget and hundreds of thousands of employees. 

Let’s see how the vetting process goes. Noem was rumored to be on the shortlist for Trump’s running mate this election cycle but got taken off after controversy arose regarding her book, where she admitted to shooting her dog, ‘Cricket,’ who she claimed was untrainable and had gone on a chicken-killing rampage. I doubt that will derail anything, but you never know what gets discovered. 

Overall, the picks have been pretty solid. Regardless, the DHS needs a makeover and a renewed sense of what they should do on the border: protect it and assist in deporting illegal aliens.

UPDATE: Some people are not happy about this:

UPDATE II: It's confirmed.

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I am pleased to announce that the Governor and former Congresswoman from South Dakota, Kristi Noem, will be appointed to serve as the Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). Kristi has been very strong on Border Security. She was the first Governor to send National Guard Soldiers to help Texas fight the Biden Border Crisis, and they were sent a total of eight times. She will work closely with “Border Czar” Tom Homan to secure the Border, and will guarantee that our American Homeland is secure from our adversaries. I have known Kristi for years, and have worked with her on a wide variety of projects - She will be a great part of our mission to Make America Safe Again. 

Governor Kristi Noem issued the following statement: “I am honored and humbled that President Donald J. Trump has selected me to be the Secretary of Homeland Security. I look forward to working with Border Czar Tom Homan to make America SAFE again. With Donald Trump, we will secure the Border, and restore safety to American communities so that families will again have the opportunity to pursue The American Dream.”