There have been rumors about friction between DHS Secretary Kristi Noem and border czar Tom Homan for some time.
Homan, while being tough as nails, wanted to concentrate on removing all hardened criminals before going after everyone else, while Noem wanted every illegal immigrant in this country removed at the first opportunity.
After two shootings in Minnesota, Noem was pulled, and Homan was sent in to clean up the mess. But the friction was once again apparent, as Homan took a veiled shot at ICE Barbie.
The moment that Democrats started to demand Noem’s dismissal, they guaranteed her job security.
Even so, while Trump stated that Noem would not be removed, she was pulled from Minnesota.
No formal announcement was made by the White House, but it was clear that Trump wanted her out of there to try to de-escalate the situation.
If you needed any further proof that Noem was rapped on the knuckles by Trump, her demeanor during last week’s Cabinet meeting was all you needed to see, as she was clearly both dejected and upset.
After the shooting death of Alex Pretti, hostilities in Minnesota were turned up rather significantly, and while it took a few days. Trump finally backed off a bit.
During an interview last week, Trump stated, "Bottom line, it was terrible. Both of them were terrible.”
Trump further stated that his administration was "going to de-escalate a little bit" and try to get things calmed down in Minneapolis.
Trump also gave Democrats some fodder to attack, saying that Pretti should not have had a gun on him. The comment drew a rebuke by the NRA, and it was used on Democrat social media accounts.
We referenced ICE Barbie above because that is how the media and Democrats have portrayed Noem, believing she was all about the photo-op. Homan appeared to be targeting that perception, telling the media, “I didn’t come to Minnesota for photo ops or headlines.”
Homan also recognized problems with the current operation, stating, “I’ve been on the ground less than three full days. I’m staying until the problem’s gone, but we’ve made a lot of progress — a lot of progress — in the last few days.”
Homan continued, “We can do better. And I thank the local state leaders for meeting with me, we made some significant gains, significant coordination and cooperation, and you’re going to see some massive changes occurring here in this city.”
I have always liked Homan, and to be perfectly honest, he would have been my choice to head DHS were I in Trump’s shoes. I would challenge anyone to find a man or woman who has more experience keeping our border secure. I am glad to see him take over, and I believe he will have this situation resolved very quickly.
