ICE Barbie Kristi Noem has gone on Fox News to moan about California Gov. Gavin Newsom’s “menacing” social media activity.
“Kristi Noem is going to have a bad day today. You’re welcome, America,” Newsom’s press office said in a post on X on Saturday morning, igniting a firestorm of MAGA backlash. Department of Homeland Security spokesperson Tricia McLaughlin said the post “reads like a threat,” while Bill Essayli, the acting U.S. attorney for the Central District of California, called on the Secret Service to investigate the post. The White House called it “beyond the pale.”
“Well, it was cryptic, it was really menacing. It immediately panicked my family and friends within a couple of minutes of that being posted,” the Homeland Security chief told Sean Hannity on his eponymous Fox News show on Monday evening.
Noem touched on threats that, she says, forced her to move into Quarters 1, a residence at Joint Base Anacostia-Bolling in Washington, D.C., usually reserved for Coast Guard top brass.
“I started to get text messages and phone calls. Family, my kids saying, ‘Are you OK, Mom? Are you fine?’ They know the threats that I’ve had. They know the threats that they’ve had, the things that have happened to them because of politicians like this that say things, and somebody grabs onto them that has an agenda,” she told Hannity. “The cartels and criminals that have threatened our family already. So when you get a post like that by a governor, immediately, you know, my staff and family think, ‘What is going on? What does he mean?’ and we’re trying to figure it out.”
Noem then brought up the assassination of Charlie Kirk earlier this month. The right-wing commentator was speaking at Utah Valley University in Orem on Sept. 10 when he was shot by a gunman.
“So you know, this is a day and age where we’ve always known that words matter, but there’s been real consequences that we have realized that have happened to incredible people like Charlie [Kirk] that we’ll have to live with forever, and I hope we all learn from that. I hope we all learn that it’s time to start listening to each other, having civil discourse, and stop ridiculous, irresponsible posts like Governor Newsom put out there,” Noem ranted.
What she didn’t mention, however, was that later on Saturday Newsom’s press office clarified that the “menacing” post actually referred to immigration-related legislation that the governor was signing into law. This includes a ban on federal law enforcement officers wearing masks.
In a separate post, the comms team shared a press release announcing the governor’s plan, which he said would “protect immigrant communities” and “hold Trump accountable.”
On Hannity, Noem said Newsom’s proposed bill was “making it more dangerous” for officers to do their jobs.
Asked if she had a message for the California governor, Noem said, “Grow up!” She added that Newsom should stop “posturing to extremists.”
Representatives for Newsom did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The post ICE Barbie Moans About Newsom’s ‘Bad Day’ Post appeared first on The Daily Beast.
