Kristi Noem was taken aback by the intense interrogation. Democrat Lauren Underwood questioned her during a Thursday hearing held specifically for this discussion. Donald Trump 's deportation programs.
Noem serves as Trump's Secretary for the Department of Homeland Security, partly because facing the task of ensuring Americans' safety at the border .
She has similarly earned the nickname 'ICE Barbie' due to her habit of sporting a complete makeup look and hair extensions whenever she’s at work.
Lauren Underwood, an Illinois Democrat, questioned Noem at a House Appropriations subcommittee hearing about her adherence to Trump's choices on funding for programs.
Underwood inquired, "Do you think the administration can bypass legislative funding laws to halt and end certain expenditures?" Congressional funding?'
Following Noem’s attempt at answering the query, Underwood angrily repeated the question, insisting on getting a response.
Noem said that DHS has 'evaluated grants to make sure they're being spent appropriately.'
Underwood grew agitated, asserting that Congress holds the authority over the funding as they possess "the power of the purse," and pointed out that the Trump administration was disregarding judicial decisions on this issue.
She then asked if people were entitled to 'due process under the law' in cases of illegal migrants.
Noem attempted to respond, but Underwood aggressively insisted on a simple 'yes or no' before stating she was 'taking back her time.'
Underwood attempted to seek clarification with a simple yes-or-no question, but Noem refrained from reducing her response to such terms. She replied, "I'll interpret that as a no."
She then asked if the government had the authority to deport American citizens, which Noem said they did not.
Underwood subsequently charged Noem and the president with ' deporting American citizens' prior to stating that she was supporting the president and her political party instead of upholding the Constitution.
Noem countered by defending her position, alleging that the Biden administration was neglecting to monitor crimes committed by migrants.
"The Voices Office was established during the Trump administration, but President Biden attempted to conceal precisely how many offenses were committed against individuals in our nation. We have reinstated that office. We think such information could prove beneficial," stated Noem.
She mentioned that presently there are approximately 1.2 million deportation orders, however, they must collaborate with other nations to ensure these individuals can be returned to their home countries.
"There are several nations that continue to refuse repatriating their own citizens, and I want to emphasize that each country bears the duty of bringing their people home. This has consistently been a matter of international common sense," stated Noem.
Many nations nowadays, despite collaborating with us, do not swiftly repatriate their own citizens. They might restrict us to just one or two flights per week. For an extended duration, Mexico imposed limitations on our operations, including constraints on the types of aircraft we could utilize. Therefore, managing these countries involves consistent diplomatic efforts that require constant attention.
Noem's intense gaze-off with Underwood comes amid reports that her photo opportunities are apparently annoying some of her staff members, who are grumbling that these distractions are hindering their work processes.
The Wall Street Journal published on Monday night on some of the complaints made about Noem, who has been nicknamed 'ICE Barbie' for wearing a full face of makeup and hair extensions while on the job.
A few days following Noem’s inauguration as the Homeland Security Secretary, she joined Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers during a raid early in the morning. New York City raid.
'Streaming live from NYC right now. On it,' she shared on X on January 28 at 4:43 a.m.
Noem, who previously served as the governor, South Dakota , wore an ICE baseball cap while entering a vehicle.
Individuals acquainted with the operations informed The Journal that ICE’s activity was still underway when Noem discussed it online, thereby compromising the aspect of unexpectedness.
Although the New York raid proceeded as planned, authorities ended up making fewer arrests compared to what they had anticipated, according to sources cited by The Journal.
The Department of Homeland Security spokesperson, Tricia McLaughlin, refuted this claim and stated that the operation was almost finished by the time Governor Noem’s social media update was published.
Noem began her term at DHS by hosting a town hall meeting, during which her entrance song was Trace Adkins' "Hot Mama."
Ever since then, images of Noem have been displayed throughout the office.
Noem is adorned with a cowboy hat and a Border Patrol jacket, riding on horseback as she joins a unit.
A different image depicts the secretary driving an all-terrain vehicle.
Within the department, The Journal discovered that certain employees view Noem as more of a spokesperson rather than a conventional agency head.
This impression is intensified due to Noem’s frequent travels, with D.C.-based staff members seeing her for just a few hours each week.
As per The Journal report, this has annoyed numerous people at DHS.
Before The Journal’s report came out, many conservative women had already been criticizing Noem for apparently pretending to be someone she isn’t at work.
Former Fox News host Megyn Kelly blasted the DHS head Following an incident where Noem was photographed holding a firearm improperly during a photo op with ICE officers at a Phoenix, Arizona raid.
The host of The Megyn Kelly Show referred to Noem as an 'embarrassment' and said she should cease her 'absurd photo opportunities.'
Just stop attempting to make the mission seem more glamorous than it is and avoid positioning yourself at the center of everything as though you were an ICE agent, which you aren’t," Kelly stated on Wednesday. "This only undermines ICE, DHS, and CBP; she isn't actually an agent. She’s just someone who handles administrative policies and was chosen by Trump due to her unwavering loyalty to him.
Kelly claimed that Noem 'looks like I look right now, but she's out in the field with her gun,' adding that she needs to 'stop with the glam.'
'No one wants you there. First of all, nobody ever wants the extra lady who doesn't actually belong. They just don't,' Kelly said.
Meghan McCain, the daughter of the former Senator John McCain who has passed away, also flamed Noem .
'I don't think that it is productive to have a full face of hair and makeup and hair extensions - and I used to wear 60 pounds of hair extensions - when you're doing things like that,' McCain said on her 'Meghan McCain's Happy Hour' show.
McCain particularly criticized Noem for aiming her firearm at the head of an ICE officer during the event in Phoenix.
'I hail from Arizona and have handled firearms since my childhood...' She potentially could have decapitated that man; anyone with basic knowledge of firearm safety understands this," McCain stated.
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