Kristi Noem riled up White House officials by referring to meetings she led at the Department of Homeland Security as “cabinet meetings,” according to a report.
Noem, dubbed “Ice Barbie” for her love of cosplaying in uniform roles, seemed to be playing presidential dress-up by referring to internal DHS meetings with subagency heads by the same name as high-level gatherings between the commander-in-chief and top Cabinet officials.
Donald Trump’s aides viewed Noem’s labeling of her DHS get-togethers as meetings of her “cabinet” as a troubling sign that the homeland security secretary was more focused on her own presidential ambitions than on advancing the administration’s message, sources told The Wall Street Journal.
Trump was also reportedly “annoyed” after Noem set aside $200 million from the department’s budget to fund an ad campaign—in which she herself starred—warning immigrants in the country illegally to “leave now.”
The president asked White House staff where Noem had secured the funding for the ads, with insiders telling the Journal they believed the campaign was another signal she was laying the groundwork for a future presidential run.
A DHS spokesperson defended Noem, saying it was appropriate to call the gatherings “DHS component cabinet meetings” and that the $200 million ad campaign was coordinated with the White House and has been “tremendously successful.”
Noem was once considered a frontrunner to be Trump’s 2024 running mate. However, the former South Dakota governor destroyed her chances of becoming vice president after she wrote about shooting her 14-month-old dog, Cricket, in her book No Going Back.
The detail about the fake Cabinet meetings was one of several explosive revelations in the Journal’s report about Noem and the “constant chaos” at DHS.
The outlet also reported that Noem and top Trump ally Cory Lewandowski—with whom she has long been rumored to be having an affair—have been traveling together on a luxury 737 MAX jet typically reserved for “high-profile deportations,“ complete with a private cabin in back.
Trump and several senior advisers are said to be “uncomfortable” with the pair’s relationship, with the alleged affair described by insiders as the “worst-kept secret in D.C.” Noem and Lewandowski, both of whom are married, have denied the allegations.
In February 2025, The Daily Beast’s The Swamp newsletter reported that Lewandowski was spotted taking out the trash at Noem’s Washington, D.C., home. Lewandowski, Trump’s former campaign manager, is also frequently spotted at the military base home usually reserved for the top Coast Guard official, which Noem moved into last year.
The Journal also described a ridiculous incident in which Lewandowski tried to have a Coast Guard pilot fired after a blanket Noem was traveling with was left behind on a plane. Noem has to disembark from a plane due to a maintenance issue. After boarding another plane to continue her journey, she discovered her blanket had not been moved to the second plane.
Lewandowski then fired the pilot and said he would have to take a commercial flight home upon arrival. The pilot was later reinstated after the pair were unable to find another pilot to fly them back.
The Daily Beast has contacted the Department of Homeland Security for comment.
