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South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem (R) moved one step closer to leading the Department of Homeland Security when the Senate voted Friday to advance her to a final confirmation vote.
Senators voted 61-39 to break a filibuster on Noem’s nomination Friday evening.
Noem’s confirmation would set in motion the final piece of President Trump’s national security team.
The House quickly approved Marco Rubio to lead the State Department after Trump’s inauguration on Monday and finally confirmed CIA Director John Ratcliffe and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth on Thursday and Friday, respectively .
Republicans see Noem as integral to carrying out Trump’s immigration plans, which include deporting large swaths of immigrants who entered the country illegally and ending numerous legal avenues to enter the country.
“It’s going to secure the border,” Rep. John Barrasso (R-Wyo.) said Friday.
He also praised her as an “excellent and well qualified choice”.
“Gov. Noem understands what it takes to deal with the border crisis,” he continued. “As he told his audience, he will ensure that our Border Patrol agents and our Immigration and Customs Enforcement team have all the tools, the resources and support they need to carry out their mission effectively and efficiently.”
Noem was on a confirmation path after the Senate Committee on Security and Governmental Affairs approved it on a 13-2 count on Monday
He earned praise from the top Democrat overseeing his review.
“During his confirmation hearing, I pressed Governor Noem to put aside partisan ideologies and stick to the facts when it comes to the threats our communities face, whether we’re talking about securing our borders, foreign terrorism and domestic, or even increasingly devastating,” said Sen. Gary Peters (D-Mich.), the top Democrat on the Senate Homeland Affairs Committee. and the government, after a vote to support it.
“Given his openness to working bipartisanly to address these and other threats to our national security, I voted to advance his nomination out of committee and send it to the Senate floor for consideration.” .
If there is no deal with Democrats to speed up final passage, Noem will be confirmed on Sunday morning as part of a rare weekend session to hammer out Trump’s cabinet picks.
Barrasso said Noem’s nomination makes little sense, pointing to the committee’s vote and Peters’ support.
“Will Sen. Schumer needlessly slow down a confirmation vote that his top Democrat supports just to filibuster President Trump?” he asked
If confirmed, Noem would oversee a department key to carrying out Trump’s immigration agenda, including border security and domestic enforcement.
The acting secretary has already moved to give the two expanded powers to remove migrants, including those allowed into the country on a temporary basis under President Biden.
Noem would also be responsible for overseeing TSA agents performing screening at airports, as well as the federal emergency management agency, which has been stretched thin by a series of back-to-back natural disasters.
After Noem, the upper house will immediately deal with two confirmations: Scott Bessent to become secretary of the Treasury and former President Sean Duffy (R-Wis.) to lead the Department of Transportation.
