Trump ousts Noem, taps Senate ally to lead DHS

What happened

President Donald Trump on Thursday fired Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem and said he would seek to replace her with Sen. Markwayne Mullin (R-Okla.), a close ally and supporter of Trump’s mass deportation campaign. Noem’s abrupt ouster was the first Cabinet-level sacking of Trump’s second term, and follows months of mounting criticism over her spending of taxpayer money on ads and luxury jets, her handling of ICE’s violent immigration crackdown in Minnesota and her personal conduct.