President Donald Trump’s demotion of Kristi Noem smells a lot like his decision to can Mike Waltz. Poor optics was the driving factor in both cases, but MAGA loyalty appears to be their saving grace.
During his first term, the president had falling-outs with numerous high-level officials, resulting in their ousters. Waltz and Noem stayed true to Trump, who had their backs in public despite their failures.
If Waltz hadn’t showcased his loyalty as national security adviser, Trump wouldn’t have made him the United Nations Ambassador. And if Trump felt backstabbed by Noem’s tenure as Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security, he wouldn’t have created a whole new position to keep her in his administration.
DEMOCRATS REACT TO NOEM’S DHS OUSTER AND MARKWAYNE MULLIN’S NOMINATION
What exactly Noem will be doing as special envoy for The Shield of the Americas remains a mystery, but one thing is clear: the hail of harsh headlines hammering Homeland Security during Noem’s time there was too heavy for even Trump (who is no stranger to negative media coverage) to brave.
The optics surrounding Signalgate sank Waltz, but with Noem it was a charcuterie of controversies. The killings of Renee Good and Alex Pretti were the beginning of the end.
Good’s case was easier for the Trump administration to justify — she literally hit the officer with her SUV. But in Pretti’s case, while he, too, was a violent far-left agitator, he never brandished his firearm or put an officer’s life in danger. Trump vehemently defended the officers in both cases, regardless of the optics of each situation, but those headlines demanded change.
The first domino to fall was Border Patrol Chief Gregory Bovino, whom they relieved of his duties as “commander at large” in Minneapolis and put White House “Border Czar” Tom Homan in charge of cleaning up the mess left by DHS. In the same manner as Waltz and Noem, Bovino was not “fired” — his responsibilities simply shifted.
But after allegations of the ousted DHS secretary having an affair with one of her advisers surfaced, as well as revelations of a $220 million pro-Noem ad campaign pushed by a company run by one of her former aides, Bovino being put under investigation for comments he made about Jewish people, and other stories alleging dysfunction at the agency, prompting many in the MAGA camp to turn on her, Trump finally pulled the trigger and nominated Sen. Markwayne Mullin (R-OK) to replace the former governor.
Trump didn’t seem to have a problem with the results DHS produced. He has routinely boasted about the agency’s successes, including the mass removal of illegal immigrants, especially those convicted of heinous crimes, and the prevention of border crossings. But he’d obviously like to be able to tout those successes without the added baggage of his secretary’s scandals.
SENATE REPUBLICANS BERATE KRISTI NOEM OVER DHS LEADERSHIP
Could demotion be Trump’s new way to fire people without provoking them to write nasty books about him? Perhaps. But it seems people such as Noem, Waltz, and Bovino would remain friendly to the president whether or not they’re employed by the administration.
With Noem being the latest to receive the Waltz treatment, embattled Attorney General Pam Bondi should watch out lest she, too, be given a “special envoy” role.