President Trump said Thursday that Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem lied to Congress about getting his approval for a $220 million ad campaign featuring herself.
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“I never knew anything about it,” Trump told Reuters.
3 Kristi Noem rides a horse while filming an ad at Mount Rushmore National Memorial in South Dakota, on Oct. 2, 2025. DHS photo by Tia Dufour
3 President Trump speaks during an event about the Ratepayer Protection Pledge, in the Indian Treaty Room of the Eisenhower Executive Office Building on the White House complex, on March 4, 2026, in Washington, DC. AP
Two sources close to the White House told The Post that Trump was furious that Noem testified that he approved of the ads — and set in motion his later move to fire her.
Sen. John Kennedy (R-La.) told CBS on Thursday that he spoke with Trump and that “put it this way, his recollection and her recollection are different.”
Here’s the latest on the firing of Kristi Noem
3 Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem testifies during a House Judiciary Committee hearing in the Rayburn House Office Building on March 4, 2026, in Washington, DC. Getty Images
Ex-Secretary Kristi Noem’s most memorable photo ops during her tenure at DHS:
Previous 1 of 18 Next Kristi Noem trains with the Maritime Security Response Team West during a visit to Coast Guard Cutter Elm, in San Diego, CA, March 16, 2025. U.S. Coast Guard District 11 Noem conducts a firefighting simulation at Coast Guard Base Kodiak, in Kodiak, Alaska, March 17, 2025. DHS photo by Mikaela McGee Advertisement Kristi Noem rides an all-terrain vehicle (ATV) along the U.S.-Mexico Border Wall in El Paso, Texas, April 28, 2025. DHS photo by Tia Dufour Kristi Noem observes federal law enforcement and their partners assisting with immigration enforcement efforts in Chantilly, VA, March 4, 2025. DHS photo by Mikaela McGee Kristi Noem rides on the USCG MSRT Small Boat in South Bay, San Diego, California, March 16, 2025. DHS photo by Tia Dufour Advertisement Kristi Noem takes a horse tour with Border Patrol agents in Brownsville, TX, Jan. 7, 2026. DHS photo by Mikaela McGee Noem boards the US Coast Guard Cutter Escanaba for a meeting on drug interdiction on June 24, 2025 in Panama City. POOL/AFP via Getty Images Kristi Noem speaks during a tour of the Terrorist Confinement Center (CECOT) as prisoners stand, looking out from a cell, in Tecoluca, El Salvador, on March 26, 2025. POOL/AFP via Getty Images Advertisement Noem riding a camel during a trip to Qal’at al-Bahrain Fort in Bahrain on May 25, 2025. Getty Images Noem dancing during a trip to Buenos Aires, Argentina on July 29, 2025. Photo by Alex Brandon-Pool/Getty Images Noem throwing a coin in Rome’s Trevi Fountain on May 23, 2025. Getty Images Advertisement Noem piloting a boat in Manama, Bahrain on May 25, 2025. Getty Images DHS Secretary Kristi Noem seen riding a horse in front of Mount Rushmore for a DHS ad on Oct. 2, 2025. DHS photo by Tia Dufour Advertisement
Trump later Thursday fired Noem on Truth Social and announced Sen. Markwayne Mullin (R-Okla.) as her replacement.
YesterShill on March 5th, 2026 at 19:26 UTC »
Did Trump just give direct evidence that Noem committed perjury?
shapu on March 5th, 2026 at 19:20 UTC »
Setting her up for criminal charges in the next democratic administration. Great work, Donald - another reminder that your loyalty only cuts one way
CT_Phipps-Author on March 5th, 2026 at 19:15 UTC »
*throws Kristie under bus*
But it's okay, she'll bounce back. Trump has made her director of SHIELD.