State employees suspected of stealing from low-income Texans’ public assistance accounts
Seven human services employees were fired after a string of fraud and theft — and the largest data breach in agency history.
A Trump DOJ could bring an end to the yearslong investigation of his ally Ken Paxton
Donald Trump and the Texas attorney general have forged a friendship over the years, one that has been cemented in their shared political and legal struggles and their willingness to come to each other’s aid at times of upheaval.
‘Safer, stronger, and freer’: Securing the border set to feature large in Noem’s opening remarks to Senate
FIRST ON FOX: Securing the nation’s border will feature large in South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem’s opening remarks to Senate lawmakers on Friday as she works to lock down her confirmation as the country’s next secretary of homeland security, Fox News Digital exclusively learned. “Securing our homeland is a serious, sacred trust that must be relentlessly pursued and can never be taken for granted. Being safe within our borders is an American right, yet Americans feel less safe than they have in decades. For the first time in 30 years, more than 40% of Americans are afraid to walk alone at night within a mile of their home,” Noem is expected to tell the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee on Friday morning in her opening remarks. “President-Elect Trump is going to change that.” Fox News Digital exclusively obtained a copy of the South Dakota Republican’s opening statement, which is set to not only showcase Noem’s vision for a secure and safe nation, but also underscore her rural roots and life in the Mount Rushmore State. “I’m a wife, mother, a grandmother, a farmer, a rancher, a businesswoman, and a governor,” a copy of the remarks states. “I have spent my life in rural America. I understand what it means to work hard every day to build a better future for our kids and our communities. I come before you today with a deep sense of responsibility and humility as the nominee to lead the Department of Homeland Security. And also a commitment to the more than 330 million Americans, whom we will serve to work to keep them safe and secure in their homes, their communities and their country.” NATIVE TRIBE LIFTS BANISHMENT ON NOEM AHEAD OF SENATE CONFIRMATION HEARING President-elect Donald Trump announced NOem as his pick to lead DHS shortly after his decisive win over Harris in November, pointing to her efforts to secure the southern border amid the immigration crisis under the Biden administration. The DHS oversees U.S. Customs and Border Protection, Immigration and Customs Enforcement, the U.S. Secret Service and the Federal Emergency Management Agency. Noem’s opening remarks heavily focus on securing the border, including highlighting that she was the first governor to deploy National Guard troops to border states in 2022. She has since repeatedly deployed South Dakota National Guard troops to the southern border in Texas to help stem illegal border crossings as part of Gov. Greg Abbott’s Operation Lone Star. ON THIS DAY IN HISTORY, OCTOBER 4, 1927, MOUNT RUSHMORE’S MOMENT OF CREATION BEGINS IN SOUTH DAKOTA “As a nation, we have the right and responsibility to secure our borders against those who would do us harm. And we must create a fair and lawful immigration system that is efficient and effective and that reflects our values. President Trump was elected with a clear mandate to achieve this mission. Two thirds of Americans support his immigration and border policies, including the majority of Hispanic Americans.” “I was the first Governor to send National Guard troops to Texas when they were being overwhelmed by an unprecedented border crisis. If confirmed as Secretary, I will ensure that our exceptional, extraordinary f agents have ALL the tools, resources, and support they need to carry out their mission effectively. The same is true of my commitment to the outstanding men and women of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. They are responsible for apprehending, detaining, and deporting illegal immigrants. Getting criminal aliens off the streets and out of the country will help make American communities safe again. The bravery and dedication of the Border Patrol and ICE are unmatched, and I will restore dignity to their work,” the copy of her remarks states. Noem is also set to tout her leadership skills in the remarks, including leading the Mount Rushmore State for the last six years, including overseeing thousands of state employees. “I have led South Dakota for the last 6 years with a focus every day on making our state safer, stronger, and freer. I have focused every day on making the best decisions not just for right now, but for generations to come. I have overseen a state budget of over $7 billion and a state employee workforce of more than 13,000, including more than 7,000 reporting to the Governor. I have addressed important issues like cybersecurity, human trafficking, drug interdiction, and natural disasters – the same challenges facing so many of you here and the people you represent back at home.” WHAT TO KNOW ABOUT KRISTI NOEM, THE ‘BORDER HAWK’ NOMINATED BY TRUMP TO LEAD DHS Noem will join the Senate committee with a bevy of high-profile endorsements under her belt, including at least eight police groups and unions throwing their support behind the South Dakota governor for DHS. Crises have also broken out in the waning days of the Biden administration, including a terrorist attack that shook New Orleans early New Year’s Day and raging fires in the Los Angeles area. Following the attack, Noem picked up an endorsement from Republican Louisiana Gov. Jeff Landry, who warned now is “no time to play around” while calling on Senate lawmakers to swiftly confirm Noem. While the massive and historically Democrat firefighter union, the International Association of Firefighters, also endorsed Noem while the California wildfires first raged earlier this month. Noem is expected to note that, if confirmed, she will emphasize resiliency in the face of disaster. “I recognize that homeland security is not only about prevention but also about resilience. When disasters strike, as we know they will, the Department of Homeland Security must be ready to respond swiftly, efficiently, and effectively to protect the lives and property of Americans. As governor, I have worked with FEMA in response to a dozen natural disasters in South Dakota. These have included historic floods, tornados, blizzards, wildfires, a derecho, and even a global pandemic. As Secretary, I will enhance our emergency preparedness and strengthen FEMA’s capabilities. We will ensure that no community is left behind and that life-saving services like electricity and water are quickly restored,” she said. She is set to also turn her attention to cybersecurity in the nation, vowing
Spiritual Leader lauds India’s Triumph in Space: Adichunchanagiri Mutt’s Pontiff congratulates ISRO on SpaDeX success
SpaDeX, short for Space Docking Experiment, involved the precise maneuvering and docking of two Indian spacecraft: the Chaser and the Target.
Biden commutes nearly 2,500 more sentences in final days of presidency
President Biden announced Friday morning he is commuting the sentences of nearly 2,500 inmates as the end of his presidency draws near. The commutations are for people convicted of non-violent drug offenses “who are serving disproportionately long sentences” compared to what they would receive if sentenced under today’s law. “Today’s clemency action provides relief for individuals who received lengthy sentences based on discredited distinctions between crack and powder cocaine, as well as outdated sentencing enhancements for drug crimes,” Biden said in a statement. The president said now is the time to “equalize these sentencing disparities” as recognized through the Fair Sentencing Act of 2010 and the First Step Act of 2018. BIDEN COMMUTES SENTENCES OF 37 FEDERAL DEATH ROW INMATES IN FINAL MONTH OF PRESIDENCY “This action is an important step toward righting historic wrongs, correcting sentencing disparities, and providing deserving individuals the opportunity to return to their families and communities after spending far too much time behind bars,” he continued. The decision puts Biden thousands of cases ahead of all other presidents who have issued acts of clemency during their terms. “With this action, I have now issued more individual pardons and commutations than any president in U.S. history,” Biden said. BIDEN SETS RECORD WITH FIRST-TERM CLEMENCY GRANTS, HERE’S HOW OTHER PRESIDENTS RANK While granting clemency is not uncommon for a president, Biden has come under bipartisan fire for who he has decided to pardon or commute sentences for. At the end of December, he chose to commute the sentences of 37 of the 40 men on federal death row – helping them escape execution and sending them to prison for life without parole instead. He was also criticized for pardoning his son, Hunter, of all crimes he “has committed or may have committed” against U.S. law from Jan. 1, 2014, to Dec. 1, 2024. Hunter was convicted last year of gun and tax crimes in two separate federal cases. Biden also boasted about completing the “largest single-day grant of clemency” on Dec. 12 when he commuted sentences for 1,500 people and pardoned 39 others, most of whom were already serving time in home confinement because of decisions made during the COVID-19 era. CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP The president added that he is “proud of [his] record on clemency” and said he will “continue to review additional commutations and pardons” ahead of his final full day in office on Jan. 19. There are 1,947 people awaiting to be pardoned once they complete their sentence and around 6,625 cases awaiting commutation after Friday’s decision, according to Jan. 13 statistics from the Department of Justice.
SpaceX Starship explodes, leaving a trail of fiery debris across the sky
[unable to retrieve full-text content] SpaceX’s Starship spacecraft has exploded only minutes after taking off on a test flight, leaving trails of debris.
Will Pam Bondi, attorney general pick, retract claims of ‘stolen’ election?
In sometimes fiery exchanges, former Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi fielded questions during a Senate confirmation hearing for her attorney general nomination about whether she would prosecute President-elect Donald Trump’s declared political enemies. Bondi also refused to deny falsehoods about the 2020 presidential election being “stolen”. In the January 15 hearing, Senator Alex Padilla, for California, asked Bondi whether she would retract her previous statements that Trump won Pennsylvania in 2020. The two spoke over each other as Padilla pushed for a “yes or no” response and Bondi tried to answer differently. Eventually, Bondi told the senator she was “not going to be bullied”. Bondi’s hearing came on the second day of high-profile confirmation hearings for Trump’s second-term nominees. Senator Marco Rubio, for Florida, also had a separate hearing the same day. Rubio called on the United States not to rely on China for supply chains, in line with Trump’s campaign promises to get tough on China. Rubio also said he disagreed with President Joe Biden’s January 14 announcement that Cuba would be removed from the state-sponsors-of-terrorism list. Advertisement Here’s a fact-check of Bondi’s statements. Bondi repeats Trump line that Biden’s Justice Department targets political opponents As Bondi responded to questions about whether she would prosecute Trump’s political opponents – which he promised to do during the 2024 campaign – she claimed that Biden’s Justice Department has done the same. “No one will be prosecuted, investigated because they are a political opponent,” Bondi said. “That’s what we’ve seen for the last four years in this administration.” We’ve rated similar Trump claims false. Trump was charged twice in federal court and separately in Manhattan and Fulton County, Georgia. In the Manhattan case, a unanimous jury found Trump guilty in May 2024 of all 34 counts of falsifying business records in an alleged scheme to cover up a hush money payment to adult film actor Stormy Daniels before the 2016 presidential election. The other three cases were dropped or put on hold after Trump won the 2024 election. Legal experts have told us there was no sign Trump was not given due process or that Biden ordered the prosecutions. Bondi said she had ‘not listened’ to Trump’s call with Georgia officials to ‘find’ him votes in 2020 election Senator Dick Durbin, for Illinois, questioned Bondi about Trump’s January 2, 2021, phone call with Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger. Durbin asked whether Bondi was concerned that Trump called an election official and asked him to find enough votes to change the election results. Advertisement Bondi responded that she has “not listened to the hourlong conversation, but it’s my understanding that is not what he asked him to do”. Except, that is what Trump asked Raffensperger, a Republican, to do, according to the call’s transcript and recording. In the call, Trump asked Georgia officials to investigate his unfounded allegations about 2020 election fraud. Many of his directives involved a quest to “find” enough ballots to put him in the winning column. (President Joe Biden beat Trump in Georgia by 11,779 votes.) Trump framed his requests to state officials as a mission to ferret out criminal wrongdoing. “You can’t let it happen, and you are letting it happen,” Trump said. “You know, I mean, I’m notifying you that you’re letting it happen. So, look. All I want to do is this. I just want to find 11,780 votes, which is one more than we have because we won the state.” Bondi wrongly claims a 2021 peaceful transfer of power Durbin asked Bondi, who has repeatedly bolstered Trump’s false claims that the 2020 election was stolen, whether she was willing to say Trump lost. Bondi first dodged the question then claimed there was a peaceful transfer of power in 2021. “(Biden) was duly sworn in, and he is the president of the United States,” she said. “There was a peaceful transition of power.” Her statement ignores the violent January 6, 2021, attack on the US Capitol that disrupted the election certification. More than 1,500 people have been charged in federal court related to the riot, with charges including obstruction of law enforcement; violence with a deadly weapon; assault; disorderly conduct; and unlawful possession of firearms. Advertisement Rioters forcibly breached and vandalised the Capitol, attacked police officers and chanted “Hang Mike Pence!” Trump has promised to pardon defendants, but it is unclear how many. Pam Bondi listens during her Senate Judiciary Committee confirmation hearing on Capitol Hill on Wednesday, January 15, 2025 in Washington, DC [Jabin Botsford/The Washington Post via Getty Images] Bondi hits Schiff on California’s robbery statistics As Senator Adam Schiff, California, asked Bondi whether she would investigate Trump’s political enemies, Bondi shot back, saying, “You know what we should be worried about? The crime rate in California right now is through the roof. Your robberies are 87 percent higher than the national average, that’s what I want to be focused on, senator.” Bondi is close on her assessment. For the 12 months of 2023, FBI data shows that the average rate of robbery per 100,000 people was about 89 percent higher in California than it was nationwide. However, California had rates lower than the national average for homicide and rape. The state was above the national average for aggravated assault, the fourth type of crime the FBI categorises as violent. PolitiFact Chief Correspondent Louis Jacobson contributed to this report. Adblock test (Why?)
LA wildfires day 11: What is the latest, and what do investigations show?
Although the hazardous fire weather conditions that have stoked Los Angeles’s devastating fires have subsided, forecasters caution that another round of Santa Ana Winds is expected early next week. The death toll has risen to 27, the Los Angeles County Medical Examiner said on Thursday evening. Authorities warn that the number could climb further as search and rescue efforts continue. According to local media reports, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives has received more than 150 tips on what may have started the Palisades Fire. Here is what we know: What’s the latest on the ground? Death toll and missing people The fires have killed at least 27 people, with 31 others still missing. Entire neighbourhoods have been destroyed, and authorities said it would take months to clean them up. Ten of the deaths were related to the Palisades Fire, and 17 deaths to the Eaton Fire. About 82,400 people are still under evacuation orders, with another 90,400 under evacuation warnings. Advertisement Active fires Palisades Fire: It has burned nearly 9,596 hectares (23,713 acres) in and around the Pacific Palisades and is 27 percent contained. No growth has been reported over the last 72 hours. Eaton Fire: This fire has burned more than 5,713 hectares (14,117 acres) and is now 55 percent contained, an increase of 10 percent since yesterday. The city of Pasadena has declared a local public health emergency in response to the ongoing effect of the Eaton Fire. “Ash and debris pose a significant potential current and future risk to health, safety, and the environment,” the Pasadena Public Health Department (PPHD) said in a press release. “PPHD is declaring a local health emergency to ensure residents take appropriate measures to protect themselves from toxic ash and debris.” Auto Fire: This started in Ventura County and is now contained by 85 percent. Firefighters halted its forward progress, limiting the burn area to 25 hectares (61 acres). According to Cal Fire, more than 5,000 firefighters are fighting the fires, including reinforcements from Israel who arrived on Thursday and crews from Canada and Mexico. Recently contained fires Hurst Fire: The fire that scorched 324 hectares (800 acres) in the San Fernando Valley is now fully contained. Little Mountain Fire: San Bernardino police officers investigating the Little Mountain Fire, which scorched 14 hectares (34 acres), reported the arrest of a man on two felony charges, including reckless burning. According to local media reports, the fire has been fully contained. Advertisement What’s expected on Friday? The Los Angeles area is experiencing improved weather conditions, which are aiding firefighting efforts against the ongoing wildfires. The National Weather Service has indicated that the strong Santa Ana winds, which have significantly contributed to the fires’ rapid spread, are expected to subside by the weekend. This shift is anticipated to bring increased moisture from the Pacific Ocean, creating more favourable conditions for containment. Firefighters are using this window of calmer weather to strengthen containment lines around major fires. However, authorities caution that while progress is being made, the situation remains dynamic, and residents should stay alert for any changes. Looking ahead, meteorologists warn of the potential return of strong winds early next week, which could exacerbate fire conditions. “There’s definitely a high likelihood of critical fire conditions developing sometime next week,” Rich Thompson, an incident meteorologist for the Palisades Fire, said at a news conference on Wednesday evening. Good news: We are expecting a much-needed break from the fire weather concerns to close this week. Bad News: Next week is a concern. While confident that we will NOT see a repeat of last week, dangerous fire weather conditions are expected. #cawx #PalisadesFire #EatonFire pic.twitter.com/zhXmHUWtgp — NWS Los Angeles (@NWSLosAngeles) January 15, 2025 What do we know about the investigation of what started the fires? Utility equipment under scrutiny Southern California Edison (SCE), Los Angeles’s electrical utility, is under investigation for its potential role in igniting the Eaton Fire. Advertisement At least four lawsuits have been filed alleging that SCE’s equipment may have sparked the blaze. Among the petitioners is Jeremy Gursey, whose home in Altadena, according to CNN, was destroyed by the Eaton Fire. He filed a lawsuit in Los Angeles County Superior Court on Monday, saying SCE was responsible. Gursey referenced photographs taken by Altadena residents Jennifer Errico and Marcus Errico as evidence. They captured images of a small fire beneath transmission lines in Eaton Canyon. However, Marcus Errico said he wasn’t sure if SCE was responsible for the blaze. “I saw a glow in the hillside right above our house,” Errico told CNN. “And as I got closer, I could see right across from us on the hillside in Eaton Canyon, there are a series of transformer towers with power lines stretching up into the mountains. And at the base of one, there was just a small ring of flames around the whole base,” he added. The company has defended its decision to keep transmission lines operational, stating that wind speeds were just below the threshold required for shutdown. However, safety auditors have raised concerns about SCE’s fire risk modelling, suggesting that their assessments may not adequately account for severe wind events. A fire on New Year’s Day Some Pacific Palisades residents have expressed concerns that the devastating Palisades Fire may be linked to a smaller blaze that occurred on New Year’s Day, potentially ignited by fireworks, in the same area. According to authorities, the earlier fire broke out six days prior in the same vicinity and was reported to have been contained within hours by local firefighters. Advertisement The close timing and location of the two fires have raised questions about whether strong winds could have rekindled smouldering debris from New Year’s Eve fireworks, possibly triggering the Palisades Fire. However, earlier this week, Los Angeles City Fire Chief Kristin Crowley stated there is currently no evidence linking the two incidents. “We do not have any information suggesting there’s a connection, but that’s the benefit of bringing in outside resources to
‘Woke green hydrogen bomb’: Historian blasts California leaders for ‘nonsensical’ wildfire response
There were many things that preceded the “nonsensical” response from Los Angeles and California state leaders to the devastating wildfires that continue to blaze across the region, according to historian and political commentator Victor Davis Hanson. “To mitigate you have to know what went wrong, and there were short-term and long-term problems,” Davis, a Hoover Institution public policy think tank senior fellow, told Fox News Digital in a Tuesday interview. “And I don’t think climate change played a role, at least a non-immediate role.” Davis described the situation as a “woke green hydrogen bomb” — from Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass’ absence during the critical first 24 hours of the inferno to empty fire hydrants, a dysfunctional reservoir, a defunded fire department and a lack of new water infrastructure despite Gov. Gavin Newsom’s support of the billions of dollars earmarked to address it. LA COUNCILWOMAN WHOSE DISTRICT RAVAGED BY WILDFIRES LOOKS TO HOLD LEADERS ACCOUNTABLE FOR EMPTY RESERVOIRS “It’s a very fragile system,” Hanson said. “What Gavin Newsom did not do is he did not take the allotted money and build the reservoirs that would have accommodated the increased population. Number two, that water that is being pumped across the [Sacramento-San Joaquin River] Delta, he let go out into the bay under the demands of environmentalists. He said in his defense that the reservoirs are full. That’s not true. If you look at the biggest one, it’s only 75% full, and we are in a semi-drought right now.” Newsom told NBC News in a pretaped interview that aired Sunday, “The reservoirs are completely full — the state reservoirs here in Southern California. That mis- and disinformation, I don’t think, advantages or aids any of us.” But as of Tuesday, Shasta Lake, California’s largest reservoir, was at 77% capacity, holding approximately 3.52 million acre-feet of water out of its total capacity of 4.55 million acre-feet, according to the Bureau of Reclamation. Fox News Digital reached out to Newsom’s office for comment and has not yet received a response. California’s existing reservoirs can only hold so much water, and many were built in the mid-20th century. In 2014, Golden State voters passed Proposition 1, also known as the Water Quality, Supply and Infrastructure Improvement Act, which authorized $2.7 billion in bonds to increase the state’s water storage capacity through building new reservoirs and groundwater storage facilities. Yet as of January, no new reservoirs have been completed under Prop. 1. In 2024, the state experienced record-breaking rainfall after an atmospheric river event, but the existing water infrastructure faced difficulties managing the sudden influx of water. A significant portion of that rainfall was dumped into the ocean as the state struggles to properly store water, multiple California agencies said. “There was a roughly 120 million gallon reservoir that could have been used because they only had three million in reserve — that would have probably made the difference,” Hanson said. “That had been idle for almost a year, and it was because the cover was torn. It was just nonsensical.” The out-of-order reservoir Hanson referred to, known as the Santa Ynez Reservoir in Pacific Palisades, has been closed for repairs since February due to a tear in its covering, which was designed to maintain the water quality, the Los Angeles Times first reported Tuesday. FIRST HEARING IN ‘TRUMP-PROOF’ CALIFORNIA SPECIAL SESSION CANCELED AS CHAIRMAN’S DISTRICT HIT BY WILDFIRES Hanson has a Central Valley farm that relies on snowmelt from the Sierra Nevada Mountains, he explained. In California’s Central Valley, farming water typically comes from the Sierra, mainly through the San Joaquin River system, which is supported by major dams like Shaver, Huntington and Pine Flat. That water is often released into the Sacramento River, which flows into the Delta. Despite increasing demand, no new dams have been built on the San Joaquin system in decades. On the west side of the valley, water comes from snowmelt in northern California’s Cascade Range and northern Sierra, filling larger reservoirs like Oroville and Folsom. These reservoirs were designed to store water during wet years, ensuring a steady supply in average years and a backup for drought years. However, California has faced a prolonged dry spell, with little rain or snow in recent weeks, causing reservoir levels to drop. “So when Gavin Newsom says, well, ‘they’re full,’ they’re not all full, but they’re descending at a rapid rate, because he will not stop the releases to the ocean,” Hanson said. “They’re still going on, as you and I speak, and they’re not pumping 100% of it to the aqueduct, which serves agriculture in Los Angeles.” Newsom, meanwhile, has shifted the blame to local management and ordered an independent review of the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power. “We need answers to how that happened,” Newsom wrote to the department’s director and the director of Los Angeles County Public Works on Jan. 10, regarding reports of lost water supply. ‘DEVASTATING’: CALIFORNIA HAD RECORD RAINFALL LAST YEAR, BUT LACKED INFRASTRUCTURE TO STORE IT For his part, Newsom also proposed allocating at least $2.5 billion in additional funding to bolster California’s emergency response and recovery efforts in Los Angeles, his office announced on Monday. The proposed funding would support recovery and cleanup operations, enhance wildfire preparedness and assist in reopening schools closed due to the fires. The funding would come from the state’s Disaster Response Emergency Operations Account, with $1.5 billion coming from speeding up the use of climate bond funds for immediate use, according to his office. There has been a slight increase in containment for the deadly Palisades and Eaton fires burning in Los Angeles County, according to a Wednesday night update from the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection. The Palisades fire, the larger of the two at 23,713 acres burned as of Wednesday, is at 21% containment after its ignition in the Pacific Palisades neighborhood more than a week ago, according to the department. The Eaton Fire in the Altadena/Pasadena area was at 45%
Trump DHS pick Noem likely to face scrutiny over deportation, border plans at confirmation hearing
South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem heads to Capitol Hill on Friday for her confirmation hearing to lead the Department of Homeland Security — a hearing where border security and plans to launch a massive deportation operation are likely to take center stage. Noem, nominated by President-elect Trump to lead DHS, will appear before the Senate Homeland Security Committee at 9 a.m. ET. The governor has largely stayed out of the spotlight, with more controversial nominees drawing attention from politicians and the media. But, if confirmed, she will play an important role in the next administration, leading the agency involved not only with border security but also cybersecurity, response to natural disasters and counterterrorism. SENATE GOP TEES UP CONFIRMATION HEARING BLITZ IN EFFORT TO MEET AMBITIOUS TRUMP TARGETS That broad role has been highlighted in recent days with wildfires engulfing Los Angeles, where the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) plays a key role in response. FEMA’s importance was also on display late last year during the hurricane season. She will also be engaged in the battle for cybersecurity, including against threats from communist China. Dealing with natural disasters and cybersecurity are both areas where Noem has experience. As governor, she banned TikTok from state-owned devices in 2022, citing the company’s ties to China. Separately, Dakota State University has one of the top cyber units in the country, and cybersecurity is the fastest growing industry in South Dakota, an expansion encouraged by Noem. Noem has in-depth experience with the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) because the state has dealt with flooding, including in June when there were record-setting floods in the state. Noem, a former member of Congress, was elected governor of South Dakota in 2018 and won re-election in 2022. WHAT TO KNOW ABOUT KRISTI NOEM, THE ‘BORDER HAWK’ NOMINATED BY TRUMP TO LEAD DHS But it is likely to be border security, and the promise by Trump to launch a historic deportation operation, which will feature in any contentious exchanges. Trump, nominating Noem, had argued that she is “very strong” on border security. “She will work closely with ‘Border Czar’ Tom Homan to secure the border and will guarantee that our American homeland is secure from our adversaries. I have known Kristi for years and have worked with her on a wide variety of projects. She will be a great part of our mission to make America safe again,” Trump said in a statement. “With Donald Trump, we will secure the border and restore safety to American communities so that families will again have the opportunity to pursue the American dream,” Noem said. While Homan has been charged with leading the deportation operation, Noem will be in charge of DHS agencies, including Customs and Border Protection (CBP) and Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE.) Democrats may choose to quiz Noem on their objections to mass deportations, although a number of Democrats have indicated their openness to border security and legislation mandating ICE detention for some illegal immigrants — after a historic border crisis during the Biden administration that only recently subsided, and which was a top issue in the 2024 election. CLICK HERE FOR MORE IMMIGRATION COVERAGE Noem previously backed a pause on accepting migrants from terrorist hot spots. As governor, she pledged in 2021 not to take any more migrants from the Biden administration and also deployed National Guard to the border in Texas. “My message to illegal immigrants is — Call me when you’re an American,” she said on Facebook in 2021. Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., the new chairman of the Senate Homeland Security Committee, told McClatchy that he believes there will be a quick confirmation of Noem, and that she will likely have a few Democrats voting in favor. “I think the bar is so low that any kind of attempt to slow down the mass illegal migration would be an improvement,” Paul said. “I think they’re going to be very aggressive, not only her but the entire [Trump] administration.”