Kristi Noem speaks in Nashville minutes after Trump replaces her - The Tennessean

Kristi Noem speaks in Nashville minutes after Trump ousts her

Noem spoke in Nashville at a conference of the Sergeant Benevolent Association, the union of New York Police Department sergeants on March 5 at the Grand Hyatt hotel.

She was speaking in Nashville at a conference of the Sergeant Benevolent Association on March 5 at the Grand Hyatt hotel. The SBA is the union that represents about 13,000 active and retired sergeants of the New York City Police Department.

Trump announced he was replacing Noem after lawmakers grilled her this week about a $220 million ad campaign that featured her prominently.

Trump announced on social media that Noem would be succeeded by Sen. Markwayne Mullin, R-Oklahoma, effective March 31.

Trump said Noem would become special envoy for the Shield of the Americas, his initiative for security against narcotics trafficking in the western hemisphere.

"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," Trump wrote. "I thank Kristi for her service at 'Homeland.'"

Noem took the podium in Nashville as news of her ouster broke but did not address it during her remarks.

She praised law enforcement cooperation nationwide in immigration crackdowns, citing the ongoing operation in Memphis. She said that Trump is working hard to fulfill his promise "to make America safe again," and that the agency has tracked more than 1,500 known terrorists that illegally entered the country. She also said that more than 7,700 gang members have been removed nationwide. She leveled sharp criticism at so-called "sanctuary cities," saying they make it difficult for law enforcement to do their jobs when it comes to enforcing immigration laws.

Noem cited Trump's recent State of the Union address and said the primary role of government and public officials should be to serve and protect American citizens.

“They should come first under our Constitution and our laws and they should be prioritized, especially over other people who are from other countries," Noem said. "The Constitution demands that we treat our citizens that way, and the men and women who serve at Department of Homeland Security, they understand the importance of that, and we also understand the importance of all our law enforcement officers.”

She praised federal, state and local law enforcement for their cooperation in keeping Americans safe and frequently referenced ongoing immigration crackdowns nationwide.

“The people give us the right to do our jobs each and every day. And as long as this world is fractured and as long as human nature is fallen, we will need brave men and women who step up and serve and enforce our rights and our laws and our values," Noem said.

After speaking for roughly 15 minutes, Noem began taking questions from those gathered.

Immigration bills in the Tennessee legislature

Noem’s message comes as Tennessee Republican lawmakers seek to implement a version of the Trump Administration’s immigration agenda on the state level.

A package of eight bills, filed by Republican leaders, would require proof of citizenship or legal immigration status for school enrollment, medical care, car tag renewal and professional licensing. Other bills would make it illegal to be present in Tennessee if a final deportation order has been issued. Another would require driver’s tests to be issues in English.

House Speaker Cameron Sexton has said much of the legislation was drafted with direct input from Trump’s deportation architect Stephen Miller. Many of the bills advanced through more committee hurdles this week.

Since the shooting deaths of Renee Good and Alex Pretti in Minneapolis in January as they protested immigration enforcement, many Americans have become disillusioned with President Donald Trump's immigration crackdown.

Noem's removal comes as the Department of Homeland Security is partially shut down because of a dispute in Congress over Trump’s immigration crackdown as Democrats have demanded policy changes such as requiring immigration enforcement.

There have been reports that U.S. citizens, including military veterans, have been detained, though Noem has denied it. Immigration officers have used unwarranted violence against people and destroyed property, but there has been little effort at accountability within Noem's agency.

Noem was grilled by Democrats and some Republicans during a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing earlier this week. Questions focused on her early descriptions of the deaths of two U.S. citizens who were killed by federal immigration enforcement officers in Minneapolis, DHS’ use of administrative warrants to search private property, her use of executive jets, and whether she will deploy immigration officers to polling places in November.

During the hearing, Noem stood by her early description of the killing of Alex Pretti, continuing to claim Pretti’s actions constituted an act of domestic terrorism, describing the circumstances as “tragic” and declining to offer any sort of apology to the families of either citizen killed.

Noem denounced the rumors as “tabloid garbage,” “this is what you do, the socialist, liberal left, you attack conservative women, and you say that we’re either stupid or we’re sluts.”

“According to one of the FEMA administrators that you fired, there is nothing — including contracts — that’s brought to you that he hasn’t reviewed,” said U.S. Rep. Jared Moskowitz, D-Fla. “In fact, a significant number of DHS internal routing documents have his signature on it above deputy secretaries.”

Noem is temporarily renting secure U.S. Coast Guard housing at Joint Base Anacostia-Bolling, a move made necessary due to death threats against her, according to DHS.

USA TODAY contributed.

Vivian Jones covers state government and politics for The Tennessean. Reach her [email protected].