Trump boots Kristi Noem, picks Markwayne Mullin as new DHS secretary

President Trump said Thursday that he is installing Sen. Markwayne Mullin as the head of the Department of Homeland Security and axing Secretary Kristi Noem, ending her mixed tenure and marking the first ouster from his second-term Cabinet.

Mr. Trump said on social media that Ms. Noem will be moved to a “special envoy” post he is creating for a Western Hemisphere security initiative.

Ms. Noem said in a statement that she welcomed the new job, which she said will have her working closely with the State and Defense departments to combat smuggling cartels.

She took a victory lap over her 13 months at the Homeland Security Department.

“We delivered the most secure border in American history, 3 million illegal aliens have left the U.S., we have located 145,000 children, FEMA delivered disaster relief at a 100% faster rate, we ushered in the golden age of travel, saved the American taxpayer $13 billion, and revitalized the U.S. Coast Guard,” she said.

In rocky appearances this week on Capitol Hill, Ms. Noem appeared to shift blame for a controversial TV ad contract onto Mr. Trump and struggled to explain other snafus, such as the purchase of a luxury jet.

“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,” Mr. Trump said.

Mr. Mullin will need Senate confirmation to win the post, though sitting senators usually get approval without too much of a rocky path.

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“I look forward to earning the support of my colleagues in the Senate and carrying out President Trump’s mission alongside the department’s many capable agencies and the thousands of patriots who keep us safe every day,” Mr. Mullin said.

The Homeland Security Department is in the midst of a shutdown, with Congress failing to pass a spending bill to fund it.

Many of its operations, including immigration enforcement, are continuing, though some employees are working without pay.

Mr. Mullin was in the House for a decade before claiming a Senate seat from Oklahoma in 2023.

He has been a fierce advocate for Mr. Trump.

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Ms. Noem, a former House member and later governor of South Dakota, oversaw some of Mr. Trump’s biggest accomplishments, including the lowest levels of illegal immigration ever recorded at the border.

She was also in charge when Homeland Security personnel fatally shot two American citizens in separate incidents in Minneapolis in January.

Mr. Trump kept her on after that, but Ms. Noem’s self-promotion as secretary has long seemed on a collision course with the president and his need to be the star of the show.

The final straw seems to have been Ms. Noem’s testimony to Congress this week that Mr. Trump had given her the OK to pursue a $220 million ad campaign calling on illegal immigrants to self-deport and featuring her in the ads.

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She repeatedly said Mr. Trump knew of and approved the idea.

“We had that conversation, yes, before I was put in this position,” she said.

Sen. John Kennedy, Louisiana Republican, was incredulous.

“To me, it puts the president in a terribly awkward spot,” he said. “I’m not saying you’re not telling the truth; it’s just hard for me to believe.”

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Lawmakers said a portion of the ad contract went to a firm run by the husband of Tricia McLaughlin, Ms. Noem’s press secretary at the time.

Ms. Noem was the subject of an impeachment resolution backed by nearly 190 House Democrats. It accused her of obstruction of Congress, violating the public trust and self-dealing — the latter charge based on the ad campaign.

“Good riddance,” said Rep. Robin Kelly, Illinois Democrat and the chief sponsor of the impeachment effort. “She was an incompetent leader who enriched her friends and unleashed her Gestapo agents with no regard for the law or human life. It’s time for her to go home and never enter public service — or adopt a dog — again.”

House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, New York Democrat, said on social media that Ms. Noem should be only the first departure.

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“Pam Bondi is next,” he said.

Sen. Lindsey Graham, South Carolina Republican, said “it was time for a change” and Mr. Mullin was “one of the most prepared people President Trump could’ve picked.”

Sen. John Fetterman, Pennsylvania Democrat, called Mr. Mullin a “nice upgrade” at the post.

Sen. Christopher Murphy, Connecticut Democrat, said the person in the secretary’s seat doesn’t matter.

“I think we’re better off without her, but she wasn’t running the department,” he said. “Stephen Miller runs the department and will continue to run the department, so I don’t really think much will change.”

Mr. Miller is deputy chief of staff at the White House and has been a crucial immigration adviser to Mr. Trump.

The president called Mr. Mullin “a MAGA warrior” who “truly gets along well with people.”

“Markwayne will work tirelessly to Keep our Border Secure, Stop Migrant Crime, Murderers, and other Criminals from illegally entering our Country, End the Scourge of Illegal Drugs and, MAKE AMERICA SAFE AGAIN,” the president wrote.

If Mr. Mullin secures the job, then Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt, a Republican, would pick a replacement to serve until the next election this year.

Mr. Trump’s Cabinet had been remarkably stable, with no departures until now.

The president said Ms. Noem “has served us well” and achieved “spectacular results” on the border.

He said she will become the special envoy for the Shield of the Americas, a security initiative Mr. Trump is set to announce this weekend in Florida.

Ms. Noem, speaking at an event in Nashville, Tennessee, after Mr. Trump’s announcement, didn’t address her ouster but did nod at the hemisphere security initiative.

“I’ll be there with him on Saturday,” she said.

In addition to the ad campaign, Ms. Noem found herself under fire for bungles such as the purchase of a set of jets. Among them is a Boeing 737 fitted with a plush bedroom and lounge.

The secretary told lawmakers that the law requires her department to have a command-and-control aircraft, but she said she would refurbish it to carry deportees.

Ms. Noem also defended her living situation, saying she is in a Coast Guard residence for safety reasons.

She said she is paying rent to live there, contradicting a report this summer that said she was living rent-free.

Although the personal issues appear to have cost Ms. Noem with Mr. Trump, other Republicans were dismayed by the way the Minneapolis enforcement surge played out.

Sen. Thom Tillis, North Carolina Republican, unloaded on Ms. Noem during a hearing Tuesday. He said she chased big deportation numbers at the expense of good police work.

“Quality matters, not quantity,” said Mr. Tillis, calling on her to resign.

He also raised her own story, told in her memoir, of shooting a 14-month-old dog, Cricket, and a goat, both because of unruly behavior. She had cast the killings as tough leadership decisions, but Mr. Tillis said they exposed a “failure of leadership.”

“Those are bad decisions made in the heat of the moment — not unlike what happened up in Minnesota,” Mr. Tillis said.

• Stephen Dinan can be reached at sdinan@washingtontimes.com.

• Mallory Wilson can be reached at mwilson@washingtontimes.com.