The anti-immigration offensive planned by Donald Trump emerged as a major theme in a U.S. Senate confirmation hearing with South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem, his pick for Homeland Security secretary and a Republican who reflects his hardline views.
Noem, who will lead the 260,000-employee department after Trump takes office on Monday, said she will work to reinstate the Republican’s “Remain in Mexico” program, which forced non-Mexican immigrants to wait in the Latin American country while they pursue cases. asylum in the United States.
He also said he would immediately end a Biden legal entry program based on a application known as CBP Onewhich has allowed hundreds of thousands of migrants to enter legally since 2023.
“If I am confirmed and have the opportunity to be secretary, CBP One will be closed on day one,” Noem told the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee. “There are several of these programs that must
be eliminated.”
Trump is expected to take a series of executive actions immediately after taking office to deter illegal immigration and increase deportations.
Argues aggressive measures are needed after high levels of illegal immigration under President Joe Biden, although the number of migrants caught
Crossing has declined sharply in recent months as the Democrat toughened his approach.
If confirmed, Noem, 53, will be in charge of the department that oversees border security, deportations and immigration legal procedures, as well as emergency response, cybersecurity and the Coast Guard and the United States Secret Service. .
He will accept the position with little national security experience.
As governor of South Dakota, she was closer to the U.S. border with Canada than with Mexico. But in recent years it has deployed dozens of South Dakota National Guard troops to help the Republican-led state of Texas with border security, including a controversial 2021 deployment funded by a Republican billionaire.
“We have the right and responsibility to protect our borders against those who would harm us,” he told the committee. “And we must create a fair and legal immigration system that is efficient and effective and reflects our values.”
If confirmed, she could become embroiled in a debate among Trump allies over whether legal immigration should be restricted.
Noem’s family ranch, Racota Valley Ranch Partnership in Hazel, South Dakota, has applied for 59 H-2A visas for seasonal agricultural workers since 2015, according to
data from the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services not previously reported.
U.S. government records from 2024 list Rock Arnold, Noem’s brother, as the owner of the company that made the request. Noem’s office and Rock Arnold did not respond to requests for comment.
A spokesperson for Noem told Associated Press in 2021 that he no longer had a financial stake in Racota Valley.
Immigrants, both those in the United States legally and illegally, make up a large portion of the country’s agricultural workforce. but some
Conservatives say guest worker visas undermine Americans’ wages and slow technological adaptation.
Billionaire Elon Musk publicly clashed with some Trump supporters last month over his support of the H-1B temporary visa program for high-skilled workers.
Noem faced criticism in April when she wrote in her memoir that she had shot and killed an “untrainable” dog she “hated” on her family’s farm. Some
Trump advisers said they believed the former president had lost popularity with Noem at a time when she had been a potential vice presidential candidate.
The committee includes several Democrats who have at times sided with Republicans on immigration enforcement, including Sens. John Fetterman and Rubén Gallego.
While most Department of Homeland Security secretaries since its founding in 2002 have had experience with its mission, some took over from other positions, including governorships.
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