WASHINGTON – President Donald Trump has grown frustrated with Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem and has begun considering possible replacements, lawmakers and people familiar with the discussions told NBC News.
Trump has been speaking with Republican lawmakers this week about his displeasure with Noem and has made clear in those conversations that he is considering replacing her, according to two Republican lawmakers, a person familiar with White House thinking and three people familiar with the president’s private discussions.
They said the president has not made any decisions but has told lawmakers he is not satisfied with Noem’s testimony this week before the House and Senate committees.
Trump was particularly frustrated by Noem’s response when asked repeatedly about her role in approving contracts, specifically a $220 million advertising campaign to encourage immigrants to self-deport, the sources said.
At one point during questioning, Noem told Sen. John Kennedy, R-La., that Trump knew about her decision to approve the advertising campaign contracts, an answer that did not sit well with the president, the sources said. Advertising contracts were signed through a process that limited competitive bidding.
“I can assure you that he is not happy with her,” said one of the lawmakers who spoke with Trump this week and who, like others, was granted anonymity to discuss sensitive internal discussions. “He did horrible at the hearings and made a lot of mistakes.”
When asked for comment on Trump’s frustrations with Noem, a Department of Homeland Security spokesperson said: “Secretary Noem is a pleasure to the president. She is honored to serve the American people and lead DHS. Under her leadership, we have the most secure border in American history, 3 million illegal aliens left the United States, and we now have the lowest murder rate in 125 years.”
The White House did not respond to a request for comment on the president’s opinion of Noem.
Sources say that while Trump has at times been unhappy with Noem’s performance leading the Department of Homeland Security (most recently over her handling of the shootings by immigration agents in Minneapolis), his frustrations have really escalated this week.
If he were to replace Noem, he would be the first Cabinet secretary to leave office in Trump’s second term. Noem has also been at the forefront of immigration, one of the president’s top policy priorities.
White House officials have already discussed names of potential Noem replacements, including Republican Sens. Markwayne Mullin of Oklahoma and Steve Daines of Montana, according to two of the people familiar with the discussions.
The White House has been in contact with Daines’ office, the two sources said. Daines recently announced that he will not seek reelection to spend more time with his family. Still, sources stressed that Noem’s ouster is not final and no successor has been chosen at this time.
Another potential complication is that funding for Homeland Security expired on Feb. 13, forcing a partial shutdown of the department affecting the Transportation Security Administration, the Federal Emergency Management Agency, the Coast Guard and cybersecurity.
Democrats have been negotiating with the White House on changes to immigration enforcement to secure their votes to fully reopen the agency.
