Gov. Noem's DHS confirmation hearing delayed
Noem will appear before Senate committee at the end of the week
The U.S. Senate committee responsible for confirming Governor Kristi Noem’s appointment as the secretary of Homeland Security has postponed her confirmation hearing.
The Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs rescheduled Noem’s appearance Tuesday evening, which was originally set for the following morning. The governor will now appear before the committee on Friday, Jan. 17, at 9 a.m. ET.
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According to Politico, the delay may be related to a holdup in the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s (FBI) processing of her paperwork.
"Gov. Noem has expeditiously completed all her paperwork, but we are waiting for the FBI to complete their portion," a source told the outlet.
Noem’s rescheduled appearance, just three days before President-elect Donald Trump’s inauguration on Jan. 20, still keeps her on track for a potentially swift confirmation. Trump officials have indicated that Noem is one of several key nominees they hope to fast-track, along with other high-ranking department heads. Secretary of Defense nominee Pete Hegseth, for instance, made his first appearance before a Senate committee on Tuesday, the first of Trump’s nominees to do so.
The news came just hours after Noem delivered her annual state of the state address to a joint session of the South Dakota Legislature. In her speech, she discussed her likely appointment to the DHS post, and re-emphasized the need for urgent action to secure the porous U.S.-Mexico border.
“The situation at our southern border is nothing short of an invasion,” Noem said. “Over the last four years, America’s border security has been purposely weakened and ignored.”
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Hmmm, what difference does FBI paperwork make? If it mirrors the background check on Hegseth, they won't bother talking to anyone critical of Noem. I predict there will be one round of questions--there will be a number of letters of support submitted to the record without objection; there may be a few letters submitted that are critical of her attempts to secure an appraiser's license for her daughter or of her slow response to emergencies in SD, for example, a month to ask for a disaster declaration when the Republican Governor of Iowa got it done in one day.
Some might question her deployment of the state national guard to Texas, where they sat around and did nothing according to those deployed; Or maybe there will be questions about her failure to deploy the National Guard to assist in getting roads cleared when folks were burning furniture for heat to survive a bad blizzard. Others may note that she's banned from all the state's reservations for her unsubstantiated claims that the cartels are using the reservations to distribute drugs. Someone will likely bring up her shooting her dog and goat.
Bottom line I think the hearing is delayed because they worry she's not going to perform well in front of the committee. I'd suggest they imply that she's a DEI hire, I mean she doesn't have anywhere near the experience of the fire chief in LA which Republicans have decried as a DEI hire. Clearly she's only nominated because of DEI. Or maybe ask her how she feels about Pete Hegseth's public statements that women aren't fit to serve in the military. How is she, as a woman, not going to be a distraction to the secret service or to FEMA. I'm sure they'll say the same thing--her lack of any relevant experience is actually a strength! Remember when they said the same thing about Pete Buttigieg that his lack of transportation experience was a strength . . . I might have that wrong come to think of it. I think the rhetoric was that his lack of experience was disqualifying.
Maybe they should ask her about how she would plan to stop a Texan born terrorist who plowed into pedestrians in Louisiana. Oh, I forget that was the fault of Anne Kirkpatrick, another DEI hire. Or ask her how she might stop an active member of the military from blowing up a truck outside of Trump Tower in Vegas. Or what she thinks of the intelligence communities' conclusion that the greatest threat to our country are white supremacist militia groups--not roving bands of migrant criminals.
It will likely be entertaining, but end of the day, this Senate will approve of anyone Trump nominates, regardless of their complete lack of qualifications. Without Thune in her corner, her performance in front of the committee might raise concerns but they won't matter at the end of the day. My prediction? She'll fade into the background while men like Tom Homan tell her what to do--she'll be happy with that role (she'll have plenty of time to babysit those grandchildren), and it will reinforce how putting women in positions of authority is just a bad idea. Remember when Noem was head of DHS, shaking head, that was a disaster.