President Donald Trump stoked fresh speculation about DHS Secretary Kristi Noem’s political standing during a Cabinet meeting on Thursday, Jan. 29 — not by what he said, but by what he didn’t.
Trump’s televised Cabinet sessions typically give top officials a chance to highlight their department’s priorities while the president weighs in on major headlines. But Thursday’s meeting unfolded under a cloud of intensifying criticism tied to the Department of Homeland Security’s controversial presence in Minnesota — and two choices by Trump ensured the topic never surfaced in the room.
The federal immigration operation in Minneapolis has drawn sharp backlash for weeks, including the fatal officer-involved shootings of American citizens Renee Good and Alex Pretti; widespread attention to distressing updates involving 5-year-old Liam Conejo Ramos after his ICE detainment while returning home from preschool with his father went viral; and a recent attack on Minnesota Rep. Ilhan Omar during a town hall where she condemned Noem’s leadership.
During the meeting, Trump called on multiple Cabinet members to provide updates on issues such as housing, the economy, and the ongoing situation in Venezuela. But afterward, CNN chief White House correspondent Kaitlan Collins noted that the president skipped over Noem entirely — denying her the chance to address the growing outrage over DHS actions in Minneapolis.
Trump also ended the session abruptly and, in an unusually rare move for the 47th president, declined to take questions from the White House press corps.
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“There have been a ton of headlines generated around Minneapolis, what’s happening there, especially with the president changing his leadership there on the ground,” Collins said on air after the meeting. “That did not come up at all during this Cabinet meeting, and we were there for over an hour and a half.”
“Not once was Minneapolis brought up, and obviously no questions were brought up to the president because he did not take questions, despite talking during the Cabinet meeting about how he believes they are the most transparent administration ever,” she added.
Noem and Border Patrol Commander Gregory Bovino have faced intense scrutiny since statements made shortly after Pretti’s death on Jan. 24, when they labeled the 37-year-old ICU nurse a “domestic terrorist.”
“This individual who came with weapons and ammunition to stop a law enforcement operation of federal law enforcement officers committed an act of domestic terrorism,” Noem said while speaking with reporters just hours after Pretti was shot and killed. “That’s the facts.”
Video footage later appeared to contradict key elements of that claim, showing Pretti holding a cell phone, not a gun, and indicating Border Patrol agents disarmed him before he was shot at close range.
Calls for Noem’s impeachment have come from both Republicans and Democrats. Still, when asked on Jan. 27 whether Noem would be stepping down, Trump replied simply: “No.”
At the same time, Trump has moved to sideline both Noem and Bovino from the Minneapolis operation. In a Jan. 26 Truth Social post, he announced he was sending his “border czar,” Tom Homan, to serve as his new on-the-ground point person in the city.
“I am sending Tom Homan to Minnesota tonight,” Trump, 79, wrote. “He has not been involved in that area, but knows and likes many of the people there. Tom is tough but fair, and will report directly to me.”
The following day, The Atlantic reported that Bovino would return to his Border Patrol post in El Centro, Calif., where he is Commander Op At Large of that sector.
CBS News also reported on Jan. 27 that Noem is unlikely to lose her Cabinet role outright, but is expected to shift attention away from Minneapolis and toward “securing the southern border and other priorities.”
On Jan. 27, Axios reported that Noem was mounting a defense as scrutiny grew — and was privately placing blame for DHS missteps on Trump and his deputy chief of staff, Stephen Miller.
“Everything I’ve done, I’ve done at the direction of the president and Stephen,” Noem reportedly said, according to a person who relayed the quote to Axios.
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