Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem‘s immigration enforcement policy might make more headlines, but the former South Dakota governor’s leadership of other branches of DHS is also coming under fire.
In a week where she was called to testify before the House and Senate Judiciary Committees about her time in Donald Trump’s Cabinet, Noem was asked to respond to accusations that she held up Federal Emergency Management Agency contracts and lived for free in the house of the U.S. Coast Guard commandant.
In his opening statement Wednesday, the top Democrat on the House Judiciary committee said Noem was “living rent-free in the official waterfront residence reserved for the commandant.”
An Aug. 15 Washington Post report claimed Noem was living in the commandant’s house at Joint Base Anacostia-Bolling. Former DHS spokeswoman Tricia McLaughlin acknowledged that Noem was living there because of threats to her safety. Noem rejected the accusation this week, saying she is renting an apartment with her own money.
“Let me clarify a couple things. I’m not in the commandant’s house. I’m in a Coast Guard house, but not the commandant’s house,” she said to the committee. “The commandant is in his house.”
Senate Democrats released a report Wednesday finding Noem’s policy of personally approving FEMA expenditures over $100,000 has held up over 1000 contracts, grants and awards. The report from Sens. Gary Peters, D-Mich., and Andy Kim, D-N.J., states that “the Secretary’s directive delayed approval or left approval pending for 1,034 contracts, grants, or disaster assistance awards as of September 8, 2025.” The delays included funding for survivors of the fatal July 2025 flash floods in Texas and Hurricane Helene.
“Communities across our country are bearing the consequences of Kristi Noem’s failures as Secretary,” Kim said in a press release. “For an administration that touts the importance of efficiency, her needless red tape is proven to have left vulnerable communities without crucial funding when they needed it most.”
A spokesperson for DHS denied the report’s findings.
“Contrary to claims in the forthcoming report, there are no systemic delays. There is no evidence of a three-week average wait for aid decisions,” the spokesperson said. “In fact, Secretary Noem’s review process was specifically designed to break through bureaucratic red tape and expedite funding requests that had previously languished for years under prior administrations.”
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