Homeland Security Secretary Noem defends Trump's hard-line immigration policies under scrutiny

WASHINGTON — Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem defiantly defended the Trump administration’s hard-line immigration policies on Thursday during a House committee hearing, portraying migrants as a major threat faced by the nation that justifies a crackdown that has seen widespread arrests, deportations and a dizzying pace of restrictions on foreigners.

Noem, who heads the agency central to President Donald Trump’s approach to immigration, received backup from Republicans on the panel but faced fierce questioning from Democrats — including many who called for her resignation over the mass deportation agenda.

The secretary's testimony was immediately interrupted by protesters shouting for her to stop Immigration and Customs Enforcement raids and “end deportations,” and they trailed her down the halls as she left the hearing early for another engagement, chanting, ”Shame on you!"

But she vowed she “would not back down."

“What keeps me up at night is that we don’t necessarily know all of the people that are in this country, who they are and what their intentions are,” Noem said.

The hearing was Noem's first public appearance before Congress in months, testifying at the House Committee on Homeland Security on “Worldwide Threats to the Homeland,” and it quickly grew heated as she emphasized how big a role she believed immigration played in those threats. It focused heavily on the Trump administration's immigration policies, whereas in years past the hearing has centered on issues such as cybersecurity, terrorism, China and border security.

Rep. Bennie Thompson, the panel's ranking Democrat, said Noem has diverted vast taxpayer resources to carry out Trump’s “extreme” immigration agenda and failed to provide basic responses as Congress conducts its oversight.

“I call on you to resign,” the Mississippi congressman said. “Do a real service to the country.”

Trump returned to power in January with what he says is a mandate to reshape immigration in the U.S., claiming the country is under an invasion.

In the months since, the number of people in immigration detention has skyrocketed; the administration has continued to remove migrants to countries they are not from; and, in the wake of an Afghan national being accused of shooting two National Guard troops, Noem’s department has dramatically stepped up checks and screening of immigrants in the U.S.

Tough questions from Democrats

Several Democrats repeatedly told Noem flatly that she was “lying” to them and to the public. They presented cases of U.S. citizens being detained in immigration operations and families of American military veterans being torn apart by deportations of loved ones who have not committed serious crimes or other violations.

“You lie with impunity,” said Rep. Delia Rodriguez, D-Ill., who said Noem should resign or be impeached.

Republicans largely stood by Noem, thanked her for the work the department is doing to keep the country safe and urged her to carry on.

“Deport them all," said Rep. Andy Ogles, R-Tenn.

Since Noem's last Congressional appearance in May, immigration enforcement operations, especially in Los Angeles and Chicago, have become increasingly contentious, with federal agents and activists frequently clashing over her department's tactics.

Noem did not address the calls to resign, but she tangled with the Democratic lawmakers -- interrupting some — and suggested that she and the department she leads weren’t going anywhere.

“We will never yield. We will never waver, and we will never back down,” she said.

Noem, whose own family, including an infant granddaughter, was in the audience, praised the Trump administration’s efforts when it comes to immigration, saying, “We’re ending illegal immigration, returning sanity to our immigration system.”

During the hearing, a federal judge ordered the government to free Kilmar Abrego Garcia, whose wrongful deportation to a notorious prison in El Salvador made him a flashpoint in the Trump administration’s immigration enforcement. Noem did not address the judge’s order, nor was she asked about it during the hearing.

Noem left the hearing early, saying she was headed to a meeting of the Federal Emergency Management Agency review council. The meeting, however, was abruptly canceled, according to a person familiar with the matter who wasn't authorized to discuss the development publicly and spoke on the condition of anonymity.

Noem and her department are under scrutiny

The worldwide threats hearing, usually held annually, is an opportunity for members of Congress to ask the leaders of the Department of Homeland Security, the FBI and the National Counterterrorism Center about threats facing the U.S. and what their agencies are doing to address them.

Noem linked the U.S. seizure of an oil tanker off the Venezuelan coast to the Trump administration’s antidrug campaign in the region, saying it has seized cocaine.

The hearing offered lawmakers a rare opportunity to hear directly from Noem, but many members of the panel used the bulk of their allotted time to either praise or lambast her handling of immigration enforcement.

During one sharp exchange, the secretary levied broad criticism for the program through which the man suspected of shooting two National Guard members last month came to the United States.

"Unfortunate accident?” Noem retorted after Thompson raised the issue. She called it a “terrorist attack.”

The program, Operation Allies Welcome, was created by then-President Joe Biden's Democratic administration after the 2021 decision to leave Afghanistan following 20 years of American intervention and billions of dollars in aid. Thompson pointed out that the Trump administration approved the asylum claim of the suspect in the National Guard attack.

Noem's department is under particular scrutiny because Congress in July passed legislation giving it roughly $165 billion to carry out its mass deportations agenda and secure the border. The department is getting more money to hire 10,000 more deportation officers, complete the wall between the U.S. and Mexico and increase detention and removal of foreigners from the country.

The secretary's appearance also comes as a federal judge is investigating whether she should face a contempt charge over flights carrying migrants to El Salvador.

FBI Director Kash Patel did not appear, but sent Michael Glasheen, operations director of the national security branch of the FBI.

Glasheen said the nation faces “serious and evolving” threats, from terrorism plots and foreign intelligence operatives to sophisticated cyberattacks, among others. But pressed for details about the bureau’s claims of Antifa as terrorist groups, he could not respond. And notably, he did not identify immigration as among the most pressing concerns for the homeland.