President-elect Donald Trump announced on Tuesday that he has chosen South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem as Secretary of Homeland Security, saying that she will “work closely with Border Czar Tom Homan” and “ensure” that the country is safe from her “adversaries.”
Trump, who confirmed the appointment through a statement published on his profile on the social network Truth Social, stressed that Noem, who is “very firm on border security,” was the first governor to send National Guard agents to Texas to “combat the border crisis” of the Joe Biden Administration.
“I have known Kristi for years and have worked with her on a wide variety of projects. She will be a big part of our mission to make America safe again,” said the former president. For her part, Noem said she felt “honoured” that Trump had chosen her for the post: “I look forward to working with border tsar Tom Homan to make the US safe again,” she said.
In this regard, the governor has indicated that, thanks to Trump, she will “secure” the border and “restore” security in American communities so that families once again have the opportunity to pursue the American dream.”
Noem, who was previously a representative for South Dakota, will now be tasked with overseeing a sprawling agency that oversees everything from Customs and Border Protection and Immigration and Customs Enforcement to the Federal Emergency Management Agency and the Secret Service.
The Republican was a candidate for the country’s vice presidency in the elections held this month, but was ultimately left off the list of candidates when she revealed in a book that she killed her dog, arguing that this “anecdote” was intended to demonstrate what she is capable of doing when necessary in some of the most “horrible jobs in life.”
