The president defended Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem in a late-night rant on Truth Social on Friday, following growing calls for her removal.
Trump, 79, claimed “Radical Left Lunatics, Insurrectionists, Agitators, and Thugs” were only criticizing Noem because she is a woman, following a week of the president appearing to distance himself from his DHS secretary.
“The Radical Left Lunatics, Insurrectionists, Agitators, and Thugs, are going after Kristi Noem, the Secretary of Homeland Security, because she is a woman, and has done a really GREAT JOB!” the president posted at nearly 10:00 p.m. on Friday.
The DHS boss, 54, has been under intense scrutiny following the killing of ICU nurse Alex Pretti by Border Patrol agents in Minneapolis on Jan. 24. Noem had already been facing impeachment efforts after the fatal ICE shooting of Minneapolis mother Renee Good on Jan. 7.
In a Cabinet meeting on Thursday, Noem was notably skipped over, and Trump appointed his border czar, Tom Homan, to take over the operation in Minneapolis this week. That seems to be in the past for the president now.
In the 180-word Truth Social post, Trump followed up his defense of Noem by holding firm on his immigration policy, praising Noem for helping him fix “the border disaster I inherited” and for removing “violent criminals” let into the country by “sleepy” Joe Biden. He also bragged about the sharp decline in murder rates across the U.S., which are expected to reach the lowest they’ve been in 125 years.
“The Border disaster that I inherited is fixed, the violent criminals that were allowed into our Country through Sleepy Joe’s ‘sick’ Open Border Policy, are largely gone, or being strongly sought for purposes of removal, and the Murder Rate in the USA just reached the lowest level in history, 125 years!” Trump’s Truth social post continued. “Washington, D.C., is now one of the safest cities in America - Likewise, numerous other once very dangerous cities!”
The president has been taking credit for this decrease in violent crime. This month, the White House called it a “direct result of President Trump’s unwavering commitment to Make America Safe Again.”
However, experts have cast doubt on these claims since crime rates were falling well before Trump took office again.
Trump claimed in his Truth Social defense of Noem that nationwide protests against ICE were being used to distract from Democratic corruption. He has been on a warpath against prominent Minnesota Democrats, including Gov. Tim Walz, Rep. Ilhan Omar, and Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey.
“Republicans, don’t let these Crooked Democrats, who are stealing Billions of Dollars from Minnesota, and other Cities and States from all over the Country, push you around,” Trump’s post continued. “They are using this aggressive protest SCAM to obfuscate, camouflage, and hide their CRIMINAL ACTS of theft and insurrection. They should all be in jail. I was elected on Strong Borders, and Law and Order, among many other things. Thank you to Secretary Kristi Noem.”
Despite his support online, Noem has been on the outs in the aftermath of Pretti’s death. The day before his Truth Social rant, he snubbed the DHS secretary at a Cabinet meeting. The president spoke with or acknowledged every other Cabinet member except Noem.
She appeared to try to get back in the commander-in-chief’s good graces by singing her praises for him on X, though she skipped out on walking the black carpet for Melania on Thursday night, following the Cabinet meeting.
