Former Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem made a surprise appearance at President Donald Trump’s “Shield of the Americas” summit at Trump National Doral Golf Club in South Florida on Saturday, marking her first public sighting alongside adviser Corey Lewandowski since her dramatic ouster from the Cabinet earlier this week.
Noem’s resurfacing comes just three days after Trump fired her as the nation’s top homeland security official on Thursday, tapping Sen. Markwayne Mullin, R-Okla., as her replacement. Noem became the first Cabinet secretary to leave her post during Trump’s second term, which began with his inauguration on January 20, 2025.
Trump announced Mullin’s nomination in a Truth Social post: “I am pleased to announce that the Highly Respected United States Senator from the Great State of Oklahoma, Markwayne Mullin, will become the United States Secretary of Homeland Security (DHS), effective March 31, 2026.”
The president spoke with Noem Thursday afternoon about transitioning her to a new role as “Envoy for The Shield of the Americas,” a position Trump described as leading “our new Security Initiative in the Western Hemisphere.” Noem’s appearance at Saturday’s summit represents her first step into this new diplomatic role.
An administration official told NBC News that Noem’s removal stemmed from “a culmination of her many unfortunate leadership failures including the fallout in Minneapolis, the ad campaign, the allegations of infidelity, the mismanagement of her staff, and her constant feuding with the heads of other agencies, including CBP and ICE.”
The controversies surrounding Noem’s tenure reached a crescendo during congressional hearings Tuesday and Wednesday, where lawmakers grilled her about a $220 million advertising campaign urging anyone in the U.S. illegally to self-deport. According to AdImpact data, DHS spent almost $80 million to air the ads since the start of 2025, not including production costs. The campaign, conducted mostly in English, featured Noem prominently.
During her Senate Judiciary Committee testimony on Tuesday, Noem claimed Trump approved the multimillion-dollar initiative. The White House swiftly denied this assertion through press secretary Karoline Leavitt, creating a public rift between the department and the administration.
Lewandowski, who served as a close aide and adviser to Noem, also expects to leave DHS, according to administration sources. Lewandowski, one of the first staff members on Trump’s 2016 presidential campaign, faced intense scrutiny from lawmakers over his role at the department, particularly regarding whether he held authority to approve grants and contracts.
During this week’s hearings, Noem, who is married, confronted questions about her personal relationship with Lewandowski. The appearance of both figures together at Saturday’s summit immediately sparked conversation among political observers.
Additional complications arose during Noem’s tenure when federal agents shot and killed two U.S. citizens during immigration operations in Minneapolis — Renee Good on January 7 and Alex Pretti on January 24. Her relationship with the Coast Guard, the only branch of the military under her command as Homeland Security Secretary, also frayed during her time leading the department.
Just hours before her removal, Noem delivered the keynote address at the Sergeants Benevolent Association Major Cities Conference in Nashville, Tennessee. She made no mention of her impending departure during the speech.
The selection of Mullin caught many by surprise, including the senator himself. Mullin told reporters he was “super excited about this opportunity.”
Mullin was attending a Senate Republican lunch Thursday when he received a phone call, then abruptly got up and rushed out of the room, leaving “a full plate of food behind,” according to Sen. Roger Wicker, R-Miss. Mullin later revealed the call came from the White House switchboard, so he didn’t initially recognize it as coming from Trump.
Mullin, a former MMA fighter, served a decade in the House before winning a 2022 special election to the Senate. If confirmed as DHS secretary, Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt would appoint another Republican to fill the vacancy until the November midterm elections.
Leavitt called Mullin “extraordinarily qualified” and said the White House would work with the Senate to confirm him “as quickly as possible.”
Noem’s new position marks a significant demotion from her previous role overseeing Trump’s mass deportation agenda, which administration officials described as increasingly unpopular. She now joins the diplomatic sphere, where her focus will shift to building regional partnerships across the Western Hemisphere.
Mike Waltz, who previously left his post as national security adviser in May 2025 amid the Signal chat controversy, later received Senate confirmation as U.N. Ambassador in September 2025 — a different trajectory than Noem’s forced exit. Her departure represents the first involuntary Cabinet departure of Trump’s second term.
Saturday’s summit appearance signals Noem’s attempt to move forward from the tumultuous end to her DHS tenure and establish herself in her new role focused on hemispheric security initiatives.