Newly obtained records show a Texas city official mocked Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem during the deadly July 4 floods that devastated Kerrville and surrounding areas, raising fresh concerns about the seriousness of the local response.
Text messages reviewed by KSAT reveal Kerrville City Manager Dalton Rice referring to Noem as “Homeland Barbie” in a private conversation with a city employee, just hours before a major press conference on July 5.
“Just saw you met Homeland Barbie. How is she?” the employee wrote.
“Basically Homeland Barbie,” Rice replied, adding a string of laughing emojis.
The nickname, often used online to mock Noem’s polished image since becoming DHS Secretary under President Trump, has now become a flashpoint amid broader criticism of the government’s handling of the disaster.
Secretary Noem, alongside President Trump, visited Kerrville on July 11 and defended the federal response. She said over 700 FEMA workers were deployed within hours, with Coast Guard assistance arriving the same day.
However, critics say that response came too late. Senator Chris Murphy (D-Conn.) accused the Trump administration of gutting FEMA’s emergency staffing and called the federal response “politicized and delayed.”
Adding to the scrutiny, a Trump-era reorganization under the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) eliminated a key emergency liaison at the National Weather Service just months before the floods hit.
Meanwhile, at the state level, officials are facing questions for long resisting the installation of a warning siren system along the Guadalupe River, where the flash flooding proved deadliest.
The flooding claimed at least 137 lives statewide—108 in Kerr County alone—including 27 campers and staff from Camp Mystic, a historic Christian girls’ camp in Hunt. Authorities are now investigating whether the camp received and responded properly to emergency warnings before the tragedy.
Despite defending her department, Noem continues to face pushback. A CNN report accusing her of delaying the DHS response was dismissed by Noem as “absolutely trash,” and she’s called out Democratic critics for turning a tragedy into “a political game.”
Still, the fallout in Kerrville continues to grow. Residents have called for greater transparency, better emergency systems, and accountability from both local and federal officials.
Kerrville City Manager Dalton Rice and other officials did not respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment.
