Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem‘s day in Congress started bad and got worse.
A hearing of the House Homeland Security Committee began with Democratic lawmakers calling for her to resign and devolved into protests, shouting matches and gotchas. Rep. Bennie Thompson, D-Miss, opened the hearing with a call for Noem to step down, saying she “put [her] own interests above the department and violated the law.”
“You are making America less safe,” Thompson said. “Rather than sitting here and wasting your time and ours with more corruption, lies and lawlessness, I call on you to resign. Do a real service to the country.”
Rep. Thompson to Kristi Noem: “You are making America less safe…I call on you to resign. Do a real service to the country and just resign. That is if President Trump doesn’t fire you first.” pic.twitter.com/vzaTSc2TQs
— The Bulwark (@BulwarkOnline) December 11, 2025
Democratic lawmakers drubbed Noem over her allegedly lawless tenure. Rep. Dan Goldman, D-N.Y., grilled Noem over deportations of asylum seekers, implying agencies under her leadership broke the law via illegal deportations.
“If you don’t like the asylum system, you change the asylum law. Bring it to us, we’ll work with you,” Goldman said. “But you can’t just decide that you’re not going to follow the law, and asylum is a law, and deport people who have ongoing applications.”
Rep. Delia Ramirez, D-Ill., accused Noem of repeatedly lying to Congress. She said that her time in the administration was coming to an end and urged her to vacate her position.
“Either you’re going to resign, Trump’s going to fire you, or you will be impeached,” she said.
In one particularly dramatic moment, a Rep. Seth Magaziner, D-R.I., pressed Noem on whether her agencies had carried out deportations of US veterans. When Noem said they hadn’t, he revealed a Zoom call with Sae Joon Park. The 55-year-old veteran self-deported to South Korea earlier this year after receiving a removal order, returning to a country he left almost 50 years ago.
MAGAZINER: How many veterans have you deported?
NOEM: We haven’t deported veterans
MAGAZINER: We are now joined on Zoom by a combat veteran you deported to Korea pic.twitter.com/oz8Epvf4I4
— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) December 11, 2025
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The hearing was also interrupted by a protestor dressed in the robes of a Catholic bishop. Holding up a cross between himself and Noem he yelled, “End ICE raids! The power of Christ compels you!”
JUST NOW: Two Anti-ICE protesters interrupt Kristi Noem’s testimony: “Stop ICE raids! The power of Christ compels you! End deportations! The power of Christ compels you! Get ICE off our streets! Stop terrorizing our communities!” pic.twitter.com/j7ZcTRRNNO
— Marco Foster (@MarcoFoster_) December 11, 2025
Noem bailed out of the hearing early, with representatives joking that she didn’t want to face their questions.
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