In picking Gov. Kristi Noem of South Dakota to lead the Homeland Security Department, President-elect Donald J. Trump tapped a rancher and staunch ally who will be expected to make every effort to enforce his stricter border control and immigration measures, including mass deportations.
If she is confirmed, Ms. Noem, 52, a second-term governor who was re-elected in 2022, will oversee Immigration and Customs Enforcement, the agency that is responsible for enforcing U.S. immigration laws, among many other agencies, including the Secret Service. Ms. Noem previously served as South Dakota’s lone representative to the House for four terms.
Here are five things to know about her.
Championed Conservative Cultural Issues
Since becoming governor in 2019, Ms. Noem has taken on significant cultural issues, particularly around transgender rights. In 2021, she signed a law prohibiting transgender women and girls from competing in school sports that match their gender identity.
Her supporters believed this protected women’s sports, while critics saw it as discriminatory. Ms. Noem also fought critical race theory, an academic theory that argues that historical patterns of racism are ingrained in law and modern institutions. She pushed for a law to restrict its teaching in South Dakota schools, and when that failed, she signed an executive order to limit it in 2022.
Fought Pandemic Shutdowns
During the coronavirus pandemic, Ms. Noem emphasized individual freedoms and economic concerns. South Dakota was known for having the fewest restrictions of any state, with neither a mask mandate nor significant limits on businesses.
According to data from the South Dakota Department of Health, there were a number of surges in cases in the state. Critics argued that her policies had contributed to higher infection rates. Her supporters praised her for keeping businesses open and the economy stable.
Despite South Dakota’s high per capita death toll, the state held the Sturgis motorcycle rally in August 2020, which attracted nearly 500,000 attendees.
Republicans in the state argued that the governor’s resistance to shutdowns played a key role in maintaining one of the lowest unemployment rates in the nation. Supporters believe this approach not only helped maintain tourism but also made the state increasingly attractive to new residents.
Angered Native American Tribes
In 2019, the Oglala Sioux Tribe declared Ms. Noem unwelcome on the Pine Ridge Reservation after she supported a state law intended to limit protests similar to those during the Dakota Access Pipeline demonstrations in 2016. The tribe’s president issued a warning that ignoring this directive could result in her banishment from their lands.
Ms. Noem also faced criticism from another tribe, the Cheyenne River Sioux, over Fourth of July fireworks at Mount Rushmore, a site the tribe regards as a desecration of territory historically taken from them.
Tribal leaders in South Dakota criticized Ms. Noem this year for pushing a narrative that Mexican cartels were running rampant in the state’s tribal nations.
Deployed South Dakota Troops to Border
As governor, Ms. Noem took several anti-immigration steps. She opposed accepting Afghan refugees in 2021, and, in a notable move, sent members of the South Dakota National Guard to Texas to assist with border efforts, funded by private donations.
While she argued the action was necessary to support states that were struggling with immigration challenges, critics viewed it as a political stunt that used state resources for national partisan aims.
Penned Murky Memoir
In a memoir published this year, Ms. Noem wrote about her exposure to foreign leaders and stated that dealing with them took “resolve, preparation and determination.”
She faced widespread criticism from her political opponents because of another anecdote she included in the memoir, in which she described killing a family dog she called “untrainable” and “dangerous.” Many people have speculated that this story led to her chances of being Mr. Trump’s running mate to quickly deteriorate.
In the pre-publication version of the book, Ms. Noem wrote about meeting with Kim Jong-un, the leader of North Korea, during her tenure in Congress. She recounted her experience staring down “little tyrants.”
The claim stirred controversy and prompted questions from news outlets that had obtained early copies of the memoir. While avoiding direct responses to questions about whether the meeting occur, Ms. Noem said the anecdote should not have been in the book and the text would be updated before publication.
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