Administration Hegseth on Noem’s ouster: ‘We all serve at the pleasure of the president’ by Sophie Brams - 03/05/26 7:29 PM ET by Sophie Brams - 03/05/26 7:29 PM ET Share ✕ LinkedIn LinkedIn Email Email NOW PLAYING Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said Thursday that Kristi Noem did an “excellent job” at the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), hours after President Trump announced he had tapped Sen. Markwayne Mullin (R-Okla.) to replace her as the department’s secretary. “We all serve at the pleasure of the president,” Hegseth told reporters during a briefing on the ongoing operation in Iran. “I’m sure Markwayne Mullin will do a fantastic job. He’s been a friend of mine for a long time, but Kristi did a great job setting us up for success,” he continued. Hegseth added that he had “no concerns” about future security at home under Mullin’s leadership. Noem’s exit marked the first major Cabinet shake-up of Trump’s second administration, coming as DHS remains shut down amid a funding fight centered on the handling of immigration enforcement. In a Thursday post on Truth Social, Trump said Noem had served her role well and would be shifting to the role of special envoy for “The Shield of the Americas,” a new initiative for the Western Hemisphere. “Thank you @POTUS Trump for appointing me as the Special Envoy for the Shield of the Americas. @SecRubio and @SecWar are incredible leaders and I look forward to working with them closely to dismantle cartels that have poured drugs into our nation and killed our children and grandchildren,” Noem  wrote in a Thursday post  on the social platform X. Hegseth was not the only Cabinet official to publicly comment on Noem’s firing. Secretary of State Marco Rubio wrote in a post on X that Noem had “achieved incredible results” during her tenure and would be a “tremendous asset” in her new role with The Shield of the Americas. Others who worked closely alongside her, including former Border Patrol commander-at-large Gregory Bovino, also praised her tenure. “She is the best secretary I ever worked for, period,” Bovino, who was in charge of Operation Metro Surge in Minnesota until late January, told The Associated Press . “The others weren’t even close. Noem is the ultimate patriot.” Sources told The Hill that Trump had considered firing Noem after the fatal shootings of two protesters by federal officers in Minneapolis in January, but he held off because he didn’t want to appear as giving in to Democrats’ demands for her resignation. Her firing also came after Trump told Reuters he did not recall giving his blessing to Noem for a $220 million ad campaign, a comment that comes after Sen. John Kennedy (R-La.) also told reporters the president was “not a happy camper.” “I never knew anything about it,” Trump said in a phone ⁠interview on Thursday. Updated at 8:21 p.m. EDT Add as preferred source on Google Tags Donald Trump John Kennedy Kristi Noem Marco Rubio Markwayne Mullin Pete Hegseth Copyright 2026 Nexstar Media Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. Share ✕ LinkedIn LinkedIn Email Email More Administration News See All Administration Teamsters leader who nearly brawled with Mullin praises DHS nomination by Sophie Brams 2 hours ago Administration  /  2 hours ago