Governor Kristi Noem Faces Allegations of Compromising National Security: An In-Depth Analysis

South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem is facing criticism over allegations that she disregarded a report from an internal watchdog warning that her airport security policy changes could pose “significant” national security threats.

The Department of Homeland Security’s Inspector General, Joseph Cuffari, highlighted in his report Noem’s controversial decision last summer to eliminate the requirement for passengers to remove their shoes during security screenings.

According to a classified report filed by Cuffari in November, Transportation Security Administration (TSA) scanners are not equipped to effectively scan shoes. This oversight, as reported by The Wall Street Journal, has introduced new vulnerabilities into airport security protocols.

The Department of Homeland Security allegedly intervened to prevent the public release of Cuffari’s report, which detailed issues he claimed to have communicated to Noem in August, by classifying it at a higher security level.

Homeland Security officials have indicated to the Wall Street Journal that Noem’s handling of the report is indicative of her broader approach to national security matters.

Noem, who has been nicknamed ‘ICE Barbie,’ was also accused by department-wide officials of being more concerned with her public image and standing with Donald Trump than DHS’s actual work. 

A spokesperson for DHS told WSJ that they had appropriately responded to the report and disputed Cuffari’s claims. 

They also argued that many of his recommendations had already been put into practice.

Kristi Noem faces another wave of controversy after it was revealed she’s ignored an internal watchdog who says her changes to airport security are creating ‘significant’ risks

The report refers to Noem getting rid of requirements forcing passengers to take off their shoes when going through screenings

As far as getting rid of the policy of taking your shoes off, DHS claimed it had been tested and risk assessed over a thousand times, dating back to the Biden administration. 

Cuffari told Congress in a letter, dated February 17, that DHS and TSA have not responded to any request to deal with the problem, breaking the law by not addressing his recommendations within three months. 

He wrote that he made ‘four recommendations for corrective action’ that TSA has yet to engage with. A department spokesperson disputed that. 

Many White House officials are allegedly unaware of the report. 

Trump’s press secretary Karoline Leavitt told the Daily Mail in response to the allegations: ‘President Trump and Secretary Noem have ensured the most secure border in our Nation’s history and our homeland is undoubtedly safer today than it was when the President took office last year. 

‘The President continues to have full confidence in the Secretary.’ 

The Daily Mail has reached out to DHS for further comment. 

After more than two decades of forcing travelers to remove their shoes in airport security lines, the shoe removal requirement was suddenly pulled effective immediately last July.

According to an internal memo at the time, the policy shift appeared to be tied to recent improvements in screening technology and an updated assessment of current security threats. 

Travelers enrolled in TSA PreCheck have long enjoyed the privilege of keeping their shoes on but now that same courtesy is being extended to the general public.

DHS inspector general Joseph Cuffari (pictured) referred to Noem getting rid of requirements forcing passengers to take off their shoes when going through screenings

The policy shift appeared to be tied to recent improvements in screening technology and an updated assessment of current security threats 

To bypass the shoe rule, passengers must hold a federally approved REAL ID or passport to board a domestic flight, with a standard driver’s license no longer cutting it. 

Travelers requiring special security procedures may still be asked to remove their footwear under the new requirements.

The original rule was introduced in the wake of the 2001 incident involving Richard Reid, infamously known as the ‘Shoe Bomber,’ who attempted to detonate explosives hidden in his sneakers during a transatlantic flight. 

Since then, passengers have been required to walk through security checkpoints barefoot or in socks unless they were PreCheck members, under 12, or over 75 years old.

Noem has been as under fire as any cabinet secretary under the second Trump administration, especially following the two ICE-involved shootings in Minnesota in January.

Last week, it was reported that Noem has developed a secret plan to quit the Trump administration for a return to the Senate as voters begin turning on the president’s mass deportation agenda. 

Noem and her rumored lover Corey Lewandowski commissioned a poll to evaluate her approval rating with the public, a source told the Daily Mail.  

Around this time, however, voters in South Dakota were asked whom they would vote for in a matchup between herself and the state’s Republican Sen. Mike Rounds, according to the Atlantic. 

Noem and her rumored lover Corey Lewandowski commissioned a poll to evaluate her approval rating with the public, a source told the Daily Mail last week

Last week, it was reported that Noem has developed a secret plan to quit the Trump administration for a return to the Senate as voters begin turning on the president’s mass deportation agenda

Noem previously served two terms as South Dakota’s governor before joining Trump’s cabinet. 

The possibility of Noem running to electoral office in the state has prompted clandestine discussions among advisers close to Trump about waiting to shake up Homeland Security leadership until after next month’s filing deadline, according to the Atlantic.

Noem’s potential departure from Homeland Security would make her the first cabinet secretary to exit the Trump administration since the start of his second term.

Her tenure at DHS has been marred by allegations of corruption and bitter infighting within the department.

Widespread reports paint a culture of fear among the rank-and-file in Homeland Security as Noem and Lewandowski openly began firing and demoting officials not viewed as loyal to her for the past year. 

The department has splintered into two camps: those loyal to Noem and a bloc of career law enforcement officials aligned with Trump’s border czar, Tom Homan, multiple DHS insiders have revealed. 

Homan’s decades-long career in immigration enforcement has earned him credibility among law enforcement officials frustrated with Noem and Lewandowski’s leadership.

As pressure grows for Noem to meet Trump’s deportation goals, approximately 80 percent of career leadership at ICE has been fired or demoted by Noem. 

After the death of Pretti, Trump sidelined Noem by placing Homan in charge of the immigration crackdown in Minneapolis.