The Senate confirmed Kristi Noem to lead the Department of Homeland Security on Saturday morning, solidifying a crucial staffing post in President Donald Trump’s Cabinet as he plans to carry out mass deportations.
Seven Democrats — including John Fetterman, Tim Kaine and Andy Kim — joined 52 Republicans to confirm Noem. She will lead the agency that oversees ICE, FEMA, Border Patrol and other security organizations. The former South Dakota Governor will take a prominent role in leading Trump’s mass deportation efforts alongside Tom Homan, whom Trump appointed as “border czar.”
Noem, once a favorite to be Trump’s vice presidential nominee before she bizarrely admitted to killing her dog in her memoir, told senators during her confirmation hearing that she requested the DHS job because she “knew it was the president’s number one priority.”
Noem told Senators she was eager to pursue Trump’s plans for mass deportations during her confirmation hearing, brushing off concerns from Sen. Ruben Gallego, D-Ariz., that such schemes could send massive shockwaves throughout the country.
Noem said the priority was removing “those who have broken our laws and perpetuated violence,” but didn’t directly address removal efforts for law-abiding undocumented Americans.
“Getting criminal aliens off of our streets and out of the country will help American communities be safer again,” Noem told senators last week. “The number one priority of the president is to secure the border and to deport these criminal actors immediately.”
Noem has also indicated that she supports Trump’s efforts to end birthright citizenship.
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