Noem’s $220 Million Ads Spark Split With Trump, End Her DHS Tenure/ Newslooks/ WASHINGTON/ J. Mansour/ Morning Edition/ President Donald Trump fired Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem after controversy over a $220 million immigration ad campaign featuring her prominently. Republican lawmakers questioned the spending during congressional hearings, raising concerns about oversight and contracts tied to the campaign. Trump said he was unaware of the advertising effort and later announced plans to nominate Sen. Markwayne Mullin as her replacement.
Kristi Noem DHS Exit Quick Looks
- President Donald Trump dismissed Kristi Noem as Homeland Security secretary.
- A $220 million immigration advertising campaign sparked intense scrutiny.
- Republican lawmakers criticized the spending during Congressional hearings.
- Trump reportedly said he was not aware of the ad campaign.
- Noem frequently appeared in DHS videos promoting strict border enforcement.
- The campaign featured dramatic imagery including Mount Rushmore and border messaging.
- The Department of Homeland Security reportedly skipped a full competitive bidding process for some ad contracts.
- Trump plans to nominate Sen. Markwayne Mullin of Oklahoma as the next DHS secretary.
- Noem will serve as Special Envoy for the Shield of the Americas, a regional security initiative.
Deep Look
Kristi Noem’s Tenure at DHS Ends After Ad Campaign Controversy
President Donald Trump has dismissed Kristi Noem as secretary of the Department of Homeland Security, ending her 13-month tenure after growing controversy over a massive advertising campaign and mounting criticism from lawmakers.
The decision followed heated congressional hearings in which Republican senators and representatives sharply questioned the department’s decision to spend $220 million on a nationwide advertising campaign that prominently featured Noem.
The ads, which promoted the administration’s strict immigration enforcement message, placed the secretary herself at the center of the campaign — a strategy that ultimately drew scrutiny and political backlash.
High-Profile Advertising Campaign Draws Criticism
One of the most visible advertisements featured Noem riding a horse through a forest near Mount Rushmore while delivering a warning about illegal immigration.
“You cross the border illegally, we’ll find you,” Noem says in the one-minute video.
The ad combines images of American landmarks and patriotic scenes with clips of Trump, including footage from his presidential inauguration and moments from the campaign trail.
The video concludes with a message welcoming immigrants who enter the country legally.
“But if you come here the right way, your American dream can be as big as these open skies,” Noem says.
The ad campaign was broadcast widely on television and digital platforms across the United States.
Congressional Hearings Intensify Pressure
During congressional hearings this week, lawmakers questioned whether the massive advertising budget was appropriate at a time when the administration has emphasized cutting government waste.
Sen. John Kennedy, a Republican from Louisiana, pressed Noem repeatedly about the spending and whether Trump personally approved the campaign.
Kennedy asked whether the president had authorized the department to spend hundreds of millions of dollars on advertising featuring the secretary.
Noem responded that the campaign had gone through proper legal procedures and had been approved.
“We went through the legal processes. Did it correctly,” she told lawmakers.
However, Kennedy responded that while the ads may have been effective, they appeared to benefit Noem personally by boosting her public profile.
“Well, they were effective in your name recognition,” Kennedy said.
Conflicting Accounts Between Noem and Trump
The controversy deepened when Trump told reporters he had not been aware of the advertising campaign.
In an interview with NBC News, Trump said the spending caught him by surprise.
“I spent less money than that to become president,” Trump said. “I didn’t know about it.”
Kennedy later told CNN that Trump contacted him following Noem’s testimony and appeared furious about the situation.
The senator said the president’s account differed significantly from the secretary’s description of events.
“Her version and the president’s version of whether the president was informed and consented are decidedly different,” Kennedy said.
According to the senator, Trump was “mad as a murder hornet” after learning more details about the campaign.
Questions Over Contracting Process
The advertising campaign also drew scrutiny over how contracts were awarded.
Reporting by the Associated Press previously revealed that the Department of Homeland Security bypassed a fully competitive bidding process when launching the campaign early in 2025.
Officials cited “an unusual and compelling urgency” related to border security as justification for awarding initial contracts to two firms with Republican ties.
Critics argued the lack of competitive bidding raised concerns about transparency and oversight.
Noem Made Herself the Public Face of DHS
Throughout her tenure, Noem frequently appeared in videos and social media posts promoting the administration’s immigration enforcement efforts.
Her communications strategy emphasized highly visible field appearances.
Videos showed the secretary accompanying Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents during arrest operations in New York City and other major cities.
In one clip filmed during an early enforcement operation, Noem described detained migrants as “dirtbags.”
Other posts showed her participating in enforcement raids, standing alongside officers during operations near a Chicago Walmart, and visiting a prison facility in El Salvador where deported migrants were being held.
Images released by DHS also showed Noem piloting an aircraft in Alaska and participating in firefighting training exercises.
The steady stream of photos and videos helped portray the secretary as actively carrying out the administration’s immigration agenda.
Controversies During Her Tenure
Noem had already faced criticism from Democrats over the administration’s hard-line immigration policies.
The controversy intensified following the shooting deaths of two protesters in Minneapolis during an immigration enforcement operation involving federal officers.
Noem characterized the protesters as agitators, drawing outrage from critics.
Despite the backlash, Trump publicly supported her for months and praised her border enforcement stance.
Trump Announces Replacement
Following Noem’s dismissal, Trump announced plans to nominate Republican Sen. Markwayne Mullin of Oklahoma to lead the Department of Homeland Security.
At the same time, the president said Noem would take on a new role as Special Envoy for the Shield of the Americas, a proposed security initiative focused on strengthening cooperation across the Western Hemisphere.
While the move keeps Noem within the administration, it removes her from the high-profile position she held at DHS.
A Political Rise — and Abrupt Fall
Noem entered the administration with a reputation as a strong advocate for strict border security and quickly became one of the most visible members of Trump’s Cabinet.
Her strategy of personally appearing in enforcement operations and advertising campaigns helped elevate her national profile.
But the same visibility that boosted her prominence also intensified scrutiny.
In the end, the advertising campaign designed to highlight the administration’s immigration message became the defining controversy of her tenure — and contributed to her removal from one of the government’s most powerful cabinet positions.
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