‘Firing her is not enough’: Democrats celebrate Kristi Noem departure but say she must be ‘held accountable’ – US politics live

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Kristi Noem confronts grim truth that everyone is expendable in Trump world

Kristi Noem once led a dog to a gravel pit and ended its life with the cold precision of a mafia hit. On Thursday, the homeland security secretary confronted the grim truth that she, too, was expendable.

Noem became the first cabinet member fired in Donald Trump’s second term, a striking contrast to the revolving-door chaos of his first. Like other members of Team Trump, she had assumed that ostentatious displays of fealty to the president would insulate her.

As the face of immigration enforcement, often putting herself in the centre of the action, she managed to turn Trump’s signature issue into a political liability. Add a disastrous appearance before Congress this week and it was enough for the president to finally resurrect his reality TV phrase: “You’re fired!”

Who is Markwayne Mullin, Trump's 'Maga warrior' pick to replace Kristi Noem?

Joseph Gedeon

First-term Oklahoma senator Markwayne Mullin, 48, spent a decade in the House before winning a special election for his Oklahoma Senate seat in 2022, with Trump’s endorsement.

A member of the Cherokee nation, he studied construction technology rather than completing a four-year degree, and is widely reported to be the only sitting senator without a bachelor’s degree.

His record on immigration enforcement has aligned closely with Trump’s hardline stance. He co-sponsored the Laken Riley Act, which mandates ICE detention for undocumented immigrants charged with theft or burglary until deportation proceedings are complete. He has long defended ICE, criticized sanctuary city policies as an obstruction of federal law and consistently frames mass deportation as a legal obligation.

Throughout Trump’s second term, he has become one of the most visible Republican voices on social media and on the Sunday news shows, a reliable and combative surrogate for an administration that prizes both qualities.

More here:

Democrats celebrate Noem ousting but warn of battle to come for future of DHS

Hello and welcome to our live coverage of the day.

Yesterday Donald Trump announced that he was replacing Kristi Noem as secretary of the Department of Homeland Security – the first cabinet official of Trump’s second administration to be ousted from their role.

Democrats cheered her departure – Noem’s scandal-plagued tenure as secretary was marked by federal immigration crackdowns that created atmospheres of fear in cities around the country and resulted in immigration agents killing two US citizens – Renee Good and Alex Prett – in Minneapolis.

“Hey, Kristi Noem, don’t let the door hit you on the way out,” Illinois governor JB Pritzker said on a video posted on X. “Here’s your legacy: Corruption and chaos. Parents and childrens tear-gassed. Moms and nurses – U.S. citizens – getting shot in the face.”

But Democrats also warned the public to not forget that the issues with DHS won’t go away with Noem – and to hold her accountable for her time as secretary.

“Of course, Kristi Noem deserved to be fired. But rather than spend energy celebrating this Trump setback, let’s recognize that the disaster of today’s DHS runs much deeper than the (former) secretary’s incompetence – and keep stepping up the political pressure,” former transportation secretary Pete Buttigieg posted on X.

“Let me be clear: I’m glad Kristi Noem was fired. But we still have to abolish ICE,” Massachusetts senator Ed Markey said.

“Firing her is not enough. Noem, Greg Bovino and Stephen Miller all must be held accountable for terrorizing and endangering the American people,” said Gavin Newsom, the California governor who has confirmed that he is considering a 2028 presidential run.

One Democratic senator, Andy Kim, has already gone on the record to say he won’t be voting to confirm Trump’s next pick to head DHS – “Maga warrior” Markwayne Mullin, who serves in the Senate alongside Kim.

In other developments:

• The US House of Representatives on Thursday voted down a Democratic-backed measure to halt hostilities with Iran, as Republicans cleared the way for Trump to continue the conflict that has drawn in countries across the Middle East.

• Trump is scheduled to meet with defence secretary Pete Hegseth today as the conflict continues to rage in the Middle East. The president is also scheduled to meet with interior secretary Doug Burgum following Burgum’s visit to Venezuela earlier this week. Both meetings are closed to the press.

• Nigel Farage, leader of the far-right Reform UK party, is scheduled to meet with Trump at Mar-a-Lago for dinner to discuss the Chagos Island deal. Trump changed his mind on supporting the Chagos Island deal because the UK will not permit its airbases to be used for a pre-emptive US strike on Iran. In his latest change of heart on the deal, the Trump posted on social media that Keir Starmer was “making a big mistake” by handing sovereignty of the islands to Mauritius in exchange for continued use by the UK and US of their airbase on one of the islands, Diego Garcia.

• The US supreme court is scheduled to hold conference today to consider cases for the upcoming term – which includes Trump’s petition to review the verdict in the E. Jean Carroll case that found Trump liable for sexual abuse.

• A Jan. 6 Capitol rioter who was pardoned by Trump was sentenced on Thursday to life in prison for molesting two children. Federal prosecutors said Andrew Paul Johnson, 45, had entered the Capitol building through an office window that other rioters had smashed and cursed at police officers after they used teargas to disperse the mob of Trump supporters.