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Welcome to The Logoff: Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem is out of a job.
what happened Noem was fired Thursday in a social media post by President Donald Trump, shortly after reports surfaced that he was considering making a change.
In his post, Trump said Noem would be “Special Envoy for the Shield of the Americas” — apparently part of an announced “security initiative,” but an attempt to save face.
Noem is the first Cabinet secretary to leave in Trump’s second term. That was a change of pace from his first term, which saw a turnover rate unprecedented in previous administrations.
Why was Noem fired? Noem is bad at his job in a way that is embarrassing for Trump and the administration, and has put him on the wrong side of even Trump-loyal Republicans.
In particular, his testimony before a Senate committee this week seemed to be a breaking point: Noem was pressed on a $220 million DHS ad campaign, which he said was approved by Trump — a statement that reportedly angered the president.
What did Noem do at DHS? It may not have cost him his job, but Noem’s tenure at DHS was a management disaster, plagued by allegations of corruption.
He also oversaw and defended some of the harshest policies of Trump’s second term, including illegal deportations, widespread brutality by immigration agents, and the killing of two American citizens in Minneapolis.
Who got a job at DHS today? Trump said Thursday that Oklahoma Sen. Markwayne Mullin will “become” DHS secretary at the end of this month. That’s not quite how it works — Mullin would first have to be nominated to the role and confirmed by the US Senate, on a timetable independent of Trump — but he’s highly likely to land the job in the near future.
And with that, it’s time to log off…
I loved, and I was very jealous, this Washington Post story about Paris’ annual baguette competition, the Grand Prix de la Baguette de Tradition Française (it’s a gift link). The winner of the competition – this year, a boulangerie called Fournil Didot – will be able to supply bread to the French president’s residence, the Élysée Palace, for a year.
Have a great night, and see you back here tomorrow!
