Kristi Noem was on stage in Nashville, delivering a keynote, when the ground shifted under her feet. According to CBS News, President Trump told her by phone, then went public mid-speech with plans to replace the DHS secretary.
What You Should Know
According to CBS News, President Trump said he plans to nominate Sen. Markwayne Mullin to replace DHS Secretary Kristi Noem. CBS reports Noem’s last day is March 31st, and DHS officials had been bracing for a shakeup after internal tensions and political blowback.
The way the switch landed matters as much as the switch itself. CBS News reports the announcement caught many inside the Department of Homeland Security off guard, even as weeks of tension built between Noem, her adviser Corey Lewandowski, and the White House.
The Minneapolis Blowback and the Homan Pivot
In CBS News’ account, the flashpoint was the administration’s controversial immigration crackdown in Minneapolis, followed by the fatal shootings of two American citizens, Rene Good and Alex Pretti. Officials told CBS the aggressive ICE and CBP tactics became politically problematic, drawing criticism well beyond Democrats.
Then came a visible power move inside DHS: border czar Tom Homan was put in charge of winding down the Minneapolis operation, a step CBS News says was widely interpreted as sidelining Noem. CBS also reports the enforcement strategy shifted away from sweeping urban operations and toward arrests of immigrants in the country illegally who also have criminal records.
Money, Micromanagement, and the Lewandowski Problem
CBS News reports Trump’s frustration extended to spending and management, including scrutiny over roughly $220 million in DHS advertising. Inside the department, a June 2025 directive requiring Noem’s personal written approval for contracts, grants, and funding obligations above $100,000 was blamed, by officials speaking to CBS, for backlogs that hit mission-critical work, including FEMA disaster relief programs.
Lewandowski’s influence became its own storyline. CBS News points to the so-called blanketgate incident, in which Lewandowski allegedly confronted a Coast Guard plane’s cockpit crew over Noem’s blanket and allegedly fired a pilot on the spot, before the Coast Guard reinstated him, as a moment that intensified internal concerns.
Mullin’s Confirmation Math Gets Personal
Trump’s intended replacement, CBS News reports, is Mullin, an immigration hardliner in the White House’s view, tasked with executing the enforcement agenda and restoring operational discipline. But the nomination runs straight into Senate realities: Mullin would face the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, chaired by Sen. Rand Paul, a fellow Republican Mullin has publicly antagonized.
As CBS News recounts, Mullin recently referred to Paul as a snake during a dispute among Senate Republicans, saying, \”Rand Paul’s a freakin snake.\” Meanwhile, Noem framed her exit as redeployment, telling DHS staff she would serve as Special Envoy for the Shield of the Americas and writing, \”It has been the honor of my life to serve as the Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security and lead you.\”
