Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem faced an uncomfortable and revealing exchange on Sunday after attempting to blame last week’s deadly shooting of two National Guard members on the Biden administration—only to be confronted with the fact that the suspect’s asylum was actually approved under former President Donald Trump’s second administration.
The incident at the center of the discussion occurred last Wednesday, when two West Virginia National Guard members deployed to Washington, D.C., as part of Trump’s crime-focused security mission were shot in what officials described as a targeted attack near the White House. One of the soldiers, 20-year-old Sarah Beckstrom, later died of her injuries, while the second, 24-year-old Staff Sgt. Andrew Wolfe, remains hospitalized in critical condition.
Authorities have identified the suspected shooter as Rahmanullah Lakanwal, a 29-year-old Afghan national who arrived in the United States following the 2021 U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan. Lakanwal had reportedly worked with the CIA on counterterrorism operations while overseas, a detail that has added complexity to the early coverage of the case. Questions have since emerged over how he entered the country, how he was vetted, and which administration was ultimately responsible for approving his asylum request.
During an appearance on NBC’s Meet the Press, Secretary Noem swiftly placed blame on President Biden, arguing that his administration had allowed dangerous individuals into the country without adequate background checks. “The vetting process happens when the person comes into the country, and Joe Biden completely did not vet any of those individuals, did not vet this individual!” Noem said, asserting that the shooting was the predictable result of what she characterized as failed immigration policy.
But moderator Kristen Welker quickly challenged Noem’s account, noting a key fact that undermined her claim: Lakanwal’s asylum request was approved this April, during the Trump administration—not under Biden.
“His asylum was approved in April of this year on the Trump administration’s watch, so just to be very clear, was there a vetting process in place to approve that asylum request?” Welker asked.
The correction appeared to catch Noem off guard. Her response—“Yeah, the vetting process all happened under Joe Biden’s administration”—sidestepped the timeline entirely. Welker pressed her again, reiterating that whatever vetting did or did not occur when Lakanwal arrived in the United States, his asylum determination was still granted during Trump’s second term. That distinction is significant in terms of administrative responsibility, especially because asylum approval involves its own independent process, separate from the screening that happens when a migrant first enters the country.
“But was he vetted when he was granted asylum—are you saying he wasn’t vetted when he was granted asylum?” Welker asked, attempting to pin down a clear answer.
Noem did not directly respond. Instead, she repeated her original accusation, insisting that the Biden administration had “abandoned” rigorous vetting, while declining to explain how that claim aligned with the fact that the decision point she was citing occurred under Trump. “Vetting is—vetting is—vetting is happening when they come into the country, and that was completely abandoned under Joe Biden’s administration,” she repeated, appearing increasingly flustered.
The exchange underscored a recurring challenge for Republican officials attempting to tie high-profile crimes to immigration policies: the timeline and administrative details do not always align with the political narrative. In this case, Noem’s attempt to place sole responsibility on the Biden administration was undercut in real time by the documented record regarding when and how the suspect’s asylum was adjudicated. Welker’s questioning exposed a glaring gap between Noem’s claims and the available facts, leaving Noem struggling to reconcile her statements with the timeline presented on air.
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