Kristi Noem sacked as US homeland security secretary in 'culmination of many unfortunate leadership failures'

Kristi Noem has been sacked as homeland security secretary after what a source in the Trump administration said was the "culmination of her many unfortunate leadership failures".

Donald Trump put out a social media post announcing she was being replaced by a senator from Oklahoma.

He said Ms Noem would be moving to a new job, special envoy for the Shield of the Americas, in about three weeks.

Posting on Truth Social, his own social media network, Mr Trump praised her "numerous and spectacular results" in the role.

But a White House official struck a very different tone when they spoke about her dismissal to NBC News, Sky's US partner network.

They said her sacking was "a culmination of her many unfortunate leadership failures".

Ms Noem becomes the first cabinet secretary to leave during the president's second term.

She came under scrutiny after calling the actions of Renee Nicole Good in Minnesota an "act of domestic terrorism" after she was shot dead by ICE agents.

Alex Pretti, a 37-year-old ICU nurse, was fatally shot by Border Patrol agents two weeks later.

At hearings in Congress this week, Ms Noem faced stinging criticism from fellow Republicans - particularly over a £165m ($220m) ad campaign she appeared in that encouraged people in the US illegally to leave voluntarily.

She insisted that Mr Trump was aware of the campaign in advance, but he contradicted her in an interview, saying he did not sign off on it.

She faced further criticism over the pace of emergency funding approved through the Federal Emergency Management Agency, as well as over the White House's response to disasters.

Speaking to NBC News, a White House official named these among her failures, as well as "allegations of infidelity".

Congressional hearings this week touched on these allegations when Ms Noem was asked if she had had "sexual relations with Corey Lewandowski" - Mr Trump's former campaign manager.

She dismissed the question as "tabloid garbage".

The White House official added: "Kristi's drama sadly overshadowed and distracted from the Administration's extremely popular immigration agenda, which will continue full force."

In his social media post, Mr Trump wrote: "I am pleased to announce that the Highly Respected United States Senator from the Great State of Oklahoma, Markwayne Mullin, will become the United States Secretary of Homeland Security (DHS), effective March 31, 2026.

"The current Secretary, Kristi Noem, who has served us well, and has had numerous and spectacular results (especially on the Border!), will be moving to be Special Envoy for The Shield of the Americas, our new Security Initiative in the Western Hemisphere we are announcing on Saturday in Doral, Florida.

"I thank Kristi for her service at 'Homeland.'"

Ms Noem addressed a Department of Homeland Security event moments after Mr Trump's announcement but didn't mention her change of role.

She spoke for more than 20 minutes, but read prepared remarks reinforcing the president's message from the State of the Union last month.

Mr Mullin has to be confirmed in his post by the Senate, but he can serve as acting secretary as long as his nomination is formally pending.

In a post on X, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said the president was grateful to Ms Noem "for helping usher in the most secure border in American history".

She added: "President Trump's immigration agenda is keeping our borders secure and deporting illegal alien criminals from our country, and it will continue without interruption."

Hakeem Jeffries, who leads the rival Democratic party in the House of Representatives, branded Ms Noem a "deeply unqualified, unhinged, out-of-control, pathological liar who repeatedly abused her power".

He continued: "She was a complete and total disaster. We made clear weeks ago that Kristi Noem must be fired or she would face impeachment. Her well-deserved termination is long overdue, consistent with what we have demanded."

(c) Sky News 2026: Kristi Noem sacked as US homeland security secretary in 'culmination of many unfortunate leadership