Kristi Noem visited key senators Wednesday in her bid to become secretary of Homeland Security in the upcoming Trump administration, stressing her support for President-elect Donald Trump’s tough-on-immigration stances.
Noem had visited incoming Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Chairman Rand Paul, R-Ky., on Tuesday, and followed up Wednesday with a meeting with outgoing panel chair Sen. Gary Peters, D-Mich.
After leaving Peters’ office, Noem said she hoped for Democratic support for her confirmation. She will be a key leader in implementing Trump’s campaign promises for a tough-on-immigration policy, including mass deportation of undocumented immigrants.
“We’ve just had great conversations with Sen. Peters, talked about some concerns within the agency, what we can do to solidify our national security interests,” Noem told reporters. “And I think Republicans and Democrats in this country recognize how important homeland security is, and that we’re working together to make sure that we’re safe.”
Noem traversed the Senate on Wednesday with aides affiliated with Trump’s transition team and Sen. Kevin Cramer, R-N.D., who represents a neighboring state of the South Dakota governor.
Noem posted about her meetings with committee members on social media, writing that Sen. Josh Hawley, R-Mo., “knows we need a safer border and more secure nation” and how Sen. Roger Marshall, R-Kan., “understands how the open border impacts every state, including our Midwestern states.”
Trump signaled during the weekend in a “Meet the Press” interview he’d be open to legislative protections for “Dreamers,” undocumented immigrants who were brought into the country at a young age and remain in the United States.
Asked about her views on Trump’s comments on the Dreamers, Noem signaled her support for the president-elect but was noncommittal.
“You know, I appreciate the president’s word on this issue, and I know he wants our laws to be followed, so I’ll work with him to get his vision accomplished,” Noem told a CBS reporter.
Unlike other Trump nominees, Noem has not faced the same strong headwinds. But her confirmation is not without criticism. On Wednesday, CNN reported some South Dakota residents are unhappy with the way she handled key issues and accused her of neglecting her state to raise her national profile.
When a reporter asked Noem about the story during her visit to Capitol Hill, Noem rejected the assertions as “absolutely not true whatsoever.”
“The CNN report left out some incredibly important information on the 1,000-year flood we had in South Dakota this last year and our response to it immediately days before the flood came and hit the state,” Noem said. “Those families went through something extremely tragic and we’re continuing to work through the FEMA process to bring them all the resources that they need.”
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