President Donald Trump on Thursday said he was ousting Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem from that post and replacing her with Sen. Markwayne Mullin, an Oklahoma Republican.
Noem’s announced departure from the Department of Homeland Security comes after a wave of criticism of the former South Dakota governor’s management of the department and her handling of Trump’s immigration enforcement agenda, which saw two American citizens killed by federal agents in Minnesota in January.
She is the first Cabinet secretary to be fired by Trump in his second term in the White House, which has been relatively quiet in turnover of top positions, in stark contrast to his first term, from January 2017 through January 2021.
Sen. Thom Tillis, R-N.C., during a hearing Tuesday where Noem was testifying, called her leadership of DHS a “disaster.”
“We’re an exceptional nation,” Tillis told her that day. “And one of the reasons we’re exceptional is we expect exceptional leadership. And you have demonstrated anything but that.”
At a hearing on Wednesday by the House Judiciary Committee, Noem, who is married, was asked if she has ever had sex with her top advisor, Corey Lewandowski, who is also married. She refused to answer, calling the question “tabloid garbage.”
U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem attends a House Judiciary Committee hearing on “Oversight of the Department of Homeland Security” to testify, on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C., U.S., March 4, 2026.
Elizabeth Frantz | Reuters
Trump, in a post Thursday on Truth Social, said “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,’ ” Trump added.
Noem, moments after her firing was announced, kept a speaking engagement in Nashville at the Sergeant Benevolent Association Major Cities Conference. She spoke calmly from behind a podium, taking questions about law enforcement logistics from a live audience.
House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., told reporters, “Good riddance,” referring to Noem.
Jeffries, referring to Mullin, said, “I don’t have a comment right now on what’s to come.”
“A change in personnel is not sufficient,” he added. “Kristi Noem was a disgrace.”
Mullin would have to be confirmed as DHS secretary by the Senate.
But Trump said Mullin would begin serving in that post on March 31.
Sen. Markwayne Mullin (R-OK) (L), accompanied by Sen. Roger Marshall (R-KS) (R), speaks during a nomination hearing for Dr. Casey Means, for the medical director in the Regular Corps of the Public Health Service and U.S. surgeon general during a Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee hearing on Capitol Hill on Feb. 25, 2026 in Washington, DC.
Andrew Harnik | Getty Images
Mullin told reporters at the Senate, “It’s an honor to be nominated.”
“We’re excited about it, excited to get to work, but we still got the nomination process,” Mullin said.
“We’e wanting to get Department of Homeland Security working for the American people, and that’s that’s going to be our focus,” he said. “And so we’re open to new ideas, doing things that, as I said takes care of the job we need to get done.”
Trump, in his social media post Thursday, lauded Mullin, calling him “a MAGA Warrior, and former undefeated professional MMA fighter” who “truly gets along well with people, and knows the Wisdom and Courage required to Advance our America First Agenda.”
“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,” Trump said. “Markwayne will make a spectacular Secretary of Homeland Security.”
— CNBC’s Garrett Downs and Justin Papp contributed to this article.
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