Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem fired back at hostile Democrats Thursday during the U.S. House Homeland Security Committee’s annual “Worldwide Threats to the Homeland” hearing.
Rep. Shri Thanedar, D-MI, and other Democrats called for her to resign. Noem said she wasn’t going anywhere and thanked him for the endorsement.
In her opening remarks, Noem highlighted the success of self-deportations and historic drops in illegal border crossings.
“Under President Trump’s leadership, DHS is securing our borders, we’re restoring the rule of law, and we’re protecting the homeland,” Noem said. “We have sent a strong message to criminal illegal aliens that we will find you, we will arrest you, and we will deport you.”
It didn’t take long for the political theater to erupt inside the Cannon House Office Building in Washington, D.C., with Democrats scolding Noem and pressing her to resign.
A protestor disrupted the proceedings as Noem was introducing her family and had to be escorted out. But then came the political grandstanding, interruptions and insensitive comments made by several Democrats on the committee.
Thanedar, who lives in Detroit, accused Noem of incompetence and lying, The Daily Wire reported. He also filed articles of impeachment against President Donald Trump in April and against War Secretary Pete Hegseth just days prior to Thursday’s hearing
Thanedar said, “I am sick of your lies. The American people are sick of these lies. The American people demand truth.”
Noem responded: “America is very happy that, finally, they have a president in the White House that gets up every day to keep them safe.”
He then asked, “If you’re not fired, will you resign?”
Noem answered, “Sir, I will consider your asking me to resign as an endorsement of my work. Thank you very much.”
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security reposted a clip of the exchange from The White House’s Rapid Response 47 X account, adding, “Your boos mean nothing to us. We’ve seen what makes you cheer.”
Your boos mean nothing to us. We’ve seen what makes you cheer. https://t.co/xktxVhBYFL
— Homeland Security (@DHSgov) December 11, 2025
Another Democrat, ranking member Rep. Bennie Thompson of Mississippi, also called on Noem to resign while showing his own incompetence. He claimed, without any evidence, that she was engaged in corruption and malfeasance.
Thompson called the Nov. 26 targeted attack of two National Guard members near the White House an “unfortunate accident.” The shooting by an Afghan national killed U.S. Army Specialist Sarah Beckstrom and critically injured U.S. Air Force Staff Sgt. Andrew Wolfe.
“You think that was an unfortunate accident?” Noem fired back, noticeably surprised by his downplaying of the attack on U.S. military members. “That was a terrorist attack. He shot our national guardsmen in the head.”
🚨 Rep. Bennie Thompson refers to the terrorist attack against two National Guardsmen in DC as an "unfortunate accident."
Sec. Noem: "Unfortunate accident? It was a terroist attack. They shot our Guardsmen in the head." pic.twitter.com/34YtPrVteF
— Greg Price (@greg_price11) December 11, 2025
Thompson directed the chairman to let him ask a question. He amended his comment, saying “I’ll get it straight,” to then describe the shooting as an unfortunate “situation.”
The exchange quickly caught fire on social media accounts, with DHS’s X account posting the clip and calling it “DISGUSTING.” DHS tagged Thompson and said, “The Afghan nationals who entered the United States under Operation Allies Welcome were unvetted. @Sec_Noem and DHS will find out who they really are.”
Politico noted “The misstatement stifled the momentum in what had been fiery questioning from Thompson to the three officials about the administration’s view of the threats the United States is facing.”
Noem shared photos and a nearly seven-minute clip from the hearing on her social media, adding, “Under the leadership of @POTUS Trump, the Department of Homeland Security is eradicating transnational organized crime, stopping deadly drugs from being funneled into our communities, ending illegal immigration, returning sanity to our immigration system, and defending our critical infrastructure against cyber-attacks. The American people depend on DHS to always remain vigilant, agile, and responsive. We will never yield, never waver, and never back down.”
Under the leadership of @POTUS Trump, the Department of Homeland Security is eradicating transnational organized crime, stopping deadly drugs from being funneled into our communities, ending illegal immigration, returning sanity to our immigration system, and defending our… pic.twitter.com/dBiaJJtsSn
— Secretary Kristi Noem (@Sec_Noem) December 11, 2025
GOP lawmakers expressed general satisfaction with the administration’s approach to immigration enforcement and homeland security broadly.
“The border is secure, the flow of drugs is slowing, and violent criminals are being taken off the streets. America is once again a symbol of global strength,” said House Homeland Security Chair Andrew Garbarino, R-New York.
“Please go back to your agencies and thank the men and women that are serving every day and helping to keep this country safe,” said Rep. Tony Gonzalez (R-Texas), who represents a district along the U.S.-Mexico border.
Democrats played partisan politics and used the hearing to confront Noem about claims that she gave a $220 million contract to a firm tied to the spouse of DHS Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin, per another Politico report.
They slammed DHS for a lack of transparency with Congress. Thompson claimed that it had been difficult to secure DHS officials as witnesses for hearings.
The committee members also pressed Noem on reports that federal agents have violated the civil rights and due process of illegal immigrants and U.S. citizens alike.
Noem defended the conduct of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers. She countered that violent political rhetoric, largely by Democrats, had unfairly villainized federal law enforcement and led to a surge of violent attacks against them and their families, Politico reported.
It was clear from the hearing that Democrats were upset with Noem for her effective leadership in seeing border security reestablished and our nation’s immigration laws enforced.
Noem testified at the hearing alongside Joseph Kent, director of the National Counterterrorism Center, and Michael Glasheen, operations director of the FBI’s National Security Branch.
Glasheen called the anti-fascist movement Antifa the biggest domestic terrorism threat to the U.S. Glasheen said Antifa was the agency’s “primary concern” and “the most immediate violent threat that we’re facing.”
President Trump designated the group as a domestic terrorist organization. Thompson pushed back on that as well, saying the bureau failed to “prove” it merits the label, The Hill reported.
The hearing ran for nearly four hours and is available here. Witness testimony can be found here.
The exchanges between Noem and Congressional lawmakers prompted the Michigan Republican Party to call out Democratic legislators from the state in a social media post.
