Corey Lewandowski was ousted from the Trump administration after he was spotted on a tropical getaway with his alleged lover, fired Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem.
A White House official and three sources close to the Trump administration confirmed Lewandowski’s ousting to the New York Post—Donald Trump’s favorite newspaper—after the special government employee was spotted with Noem, 54, in balmy Guyana, where temperatures ranged from 75°F to 83°F.
The stop in Guyana was the fourth leg of a five-country tour, which began when Noem was still in her old job. It is unclear if the alleged couple therefore flew in the leased luxury Boeing 737 with a private bedroom, which she had at her disposal.
The final decision on Lewandowski’s future as a special government employee, where he served as Noem’s de facto chief of staff, reportedly came on Tuesday or Wednesday.
The Daily Beast has reached out to Lewandowski, DHS, and the White House for clarification on the circumstances behind his departure.
In Guyana, photos—reportedly taken on Tuesday—show the alleged couple meeting government and corporate officials.
The business meeting in the tropical country had seemed to mark the first such public outing for Noem in her new role as Special Envoy for the Shield of the Americas—a position created by Trump after booting her from DHS and replacing her with former MAGA Senator Markwayne Mullin, who was sworn in on Tuesday. But State Department officials briefed CBS News after the pictures were published by its embassy in Guyana that it was not a State Department trip, suggesting that Noem essentially sneaked in a vast foreign tour under the radar of her new bosses. The Daily Beast has reached out to the State Department for clarification.
U.S. and State officials also told CBS News that Lewandowski is not employed by the State Department and will not be in the future, including as a special government employee.
One source told the Post that Lewandowski quit because he didn’t want to work at the State Department. However, two others told the outlet that Trump was forcing Lewandowski out after disapproving of contract decisions he made.
Other people fired by Trump mid-travel have found themselves stranded, including Signalgate leaker Mike Waltz, who had to watch Air Force One take off without him.
Noem touched down in Ecuador on Wednesday for the fifth stop of her foreign tour, where Ecuadorean President Daniel Noboa presented her with an award for the “steadfast dedication and successes achieved by the U.S. government, in collaboration with its Ecuadorian counterparts” against drug trafficking, according to the U.S. Embassy in Ecuador. Lewandowski was not pictured in the embassy’s photos from her visit.
At DHS, Lewandowski, a former Trump campaign adviser, was known as Noem’s right-hand man, with their alleged relationship frequently touted as “D.C.’s worst-kept secret.”
For months ahead of Noem’s abrupt departure, Lewandowski’s involvement in the department raised concerns across the political spectrum—including, reportedly, within the White House.
The day before her hasty exit following a controversial $220 million taxpayer-funded advertising campaign promoting the administration’s immigration crackdown, Noem was finally backed into a corner over her alleged affair during a congressional hearing, when she was asked about the relationship by Rep. Sydney Kamlager-Dove.
“This is what you do—the socialist liberal left—is you go off and you attack conservative women," Noem fired back, before declaring she was neither “stupid” nor a “sl-t.”
