The Senate voted on Saturday to confirm Kristi Noem as Secretary of Homeland Security, putting the former South Dakota governor in charge of the department at the heart of President Trump’s agenda to crack down on immigration.
the vote He was 59 to 34 years old. Justice Clarence Thomas of the Supreme Court was sworn in later Saturday.
Ms. Noem, a longtime and one-time ally of Mr. Trump He is seen as a competitor To be his deputy, he issued A statement On Saturday, he thanks him and pledges to “work to make America safe again!”
She takes charge of a sprawling agency that runs the country’s immigration system — including Customs and Border Protection and Immigration and Customs Enforcement — and which leads counterterrorism efforts. The Department of Homeland Security also oversees the Secret Service, Coast Guard and Federal Emergency Management Agency. (In recent days, Mr. Trump has done just that Suggest a solution Federal Emergency Management Agency.)
Ms. Noem, a former congresswoman and two-term governor of South Dakota, has been closely allied with Mr. Trump on immigration, an issue he says won him the White House.
She has called the high levels of immigration to the United States in recent years an “invasion” and has supported restoring the policy requiring asylum seekers to remain in Mexico for the duration of their cases in the United States. The policy, implemented during Trump’s first term, has been strongly criticized by Democrats and immigration rights activists.
As governor of South Dakota, she opposed accepting Afghan refugees after the chaotic US withdrawal from Afghanistan. She sent members of her state’s National Guard to Texas to address the immigration crisis — a controversial move cited by Mr. Trump in selecting her for Homeland Security secretary.
While most Senate Democrats opposed Ms. Noem’s nomination, she received scattered support from Democratic lawmakers. Confirmed smoothly compared to Fierce battle to confirm Defense Secretary Pete HegsethHe faced allegations of sexual assault and heavy drinking, which he denied. Mr. Hegseth was approved by a vote of 51 to 50 on Friday after Vice President J.D. Vance stepped in to cast the tie-breaking vote.
One of the Democrats who voted for Ms. Noem, Sen. Andy Kim of New Jersey, He said he thought he would Be able to work with her and keep an open line of communication.
However, Senator Chuck Schumer of New York, the Democratic minority leader, He said on the Senate floor He believed Ms. Noem was “going in the wrong direction” on immigration. Senator Ruben Gallego, Democrat of Arizona, He said he wasn’t sure Ms. Noem will respect the rule of law. Neither of them voted to confirm it.
Ms. Noem has been grilled by lawmakers over whether she would administer disaster relief to Democratic-led states even if Mr. Trump ordered her not to. During his first term, Trump initially opposed opening federal funding to California after severe wildfires in 2018. As his former aides said.
“Under my leadership of the Department of Homeland Security, there will be no political bias in how we deliver disaster relief to the American people,” Noem told lawmakers. “I will deliver programs in accordance with the law.”
She also pledged to reform the Secret Service, which has suffered from attrition and has been the focus of several investigations into malfunctions that allowed a gunman to shoot Trump, slightly wounding him, during a rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, in 2018. July.
Mr. Trump appointed Sean Curran, who led Mr. Trump’s personal security detail during the presidential campaign, as director of the Secret Service, a position that does not require Senate confirmation.
Ms. Noem was a hero Conservative positions On a number of cultural issues. She signed a law in South Dakota that prohibits transgender women and girls from competing in school sports consistent with their gender identity, saying she Fight critical race theorya framework that argues that racism is embedded in law and other modern institutions.
Many speculate That her chances of being chosen as Mr. Trump’s running mate were diminished by the election Publish her memoirs“No Turning Back: The Truth About What’s Wrong in Policy and How to Move America Forward.”
His pitch didn’t go well. In the book, Ms. Noem described fatally shooting her family dog, sparking bipartisan outrage. The pre-publication version of the book also included a false story about her interview With Kim Jong Un, North Korea’s leader, during her time in Congress. The section has been removed.
With Ms. Noem’s confirmation on Saturday, Larry Rhoden, who was He served as its deputy governorHe was promoted to Governor of South Dakota. Mr. Rhoden is a conservative Republican and former state legislator.
