Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said Thursday she is looking forward to a new role overseeing a Western Hemisphere security initiative and touted her accomplishments after more than a year leading one of the toughest jobs in the Trump administration.
President Donald Trump announced on Truth Social that he was reassigning Noem as special envoy for the "Shield of the Americas," a new security program that Trump said will focus on improving security and cooperation across countries in the Western Hemisphere. He also announced that Sen. Markwayne Mullin, R-Okla., would be his pick to replace Noem.
"Thank you @POTUS Trump for appointing me as the Special Envoy for the Shield of the Americas," Noem wrote on X. "@SecRubio [Marco Rubio] and @SecWar [Pete Hegseth] are incredible leaders and I look forward to working with them closely to dismantle cartels that have poured drugs into our nation and killed our children and grandchildren.
"The Western Hemisphere is absolutely critical for U.S. security. In this new role, I will be able to build on the partnerships and national security expertise I forged over the last 13 months as Secretary of Homeland Security."
Trump wrote that details of the new security initiative will be unveiled Saturday. He said Noem "served us well and has had numerous and spectacular results (especially on the Border!). … I thank Kristi for her service at 'Homeland.' "
"We have made historic accomplishments at the Department of Homeland Security to make America safe again," Noem wrote. "We delivered the MOST secure border in American history, 3 million illegal aliens have left the U.S., we have located 145,000 children, FEMA delivered disaster relief at a 100% faster rate, we ushered in the golden age of travel, saved the American taxpayer $13 billion and revitalized the U.S. Coast Guard."
Noem had faced criticism, however, especially following immigration enforcement operations in Minneapolis. Two protesters at demonstrations related to Immigration and Customs Enforcement were fatally shot in separate incidents following encounters with federal law enforcement. Several lawmakers, including Sen. John Fetterman, D-Pa., called for Noem to be fired.
DHS has been partially shut down since Senate Democrats last month blocked a House-passed appropriations bill for the current fiscal year, saying their demands for changes to immigration enforcement were not met.
Although the shutdown has not affected the administration's immigration enforcement efforts, it has halted funding for other DHS components. Those include the Federal Emergency Management Agency, the Coast Guard, the Secret Service, the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, and the Transportation Security Administration.
Michael Katz ✉
Michael Katz is a Newsmax reporter with more than 30 years of experience reporting and editing on news, culture, and politics.
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