In the midst of a tense standoff between congressional Democrats and the White House over Homeland Security funding, President Donald Trump has opted to replace controversial Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem. The president made the announcement in a Truth Social post Thursday evening, nominating Senator Markwayne Mullin (R-Okla.) as Noem’s replacement.

“A MAGA Warrior, and former undefeated professional MMA fighter, Markwayne truly gets along well with people, and knows the Wisdom and Courage required to Advance our America First Agenda,” Trump stated, touting Mullin’s congressional record and vocal support for the president’s agenda. “Markwayne will work tirelessly to Keep our Border Secure, Stop Migrant Crime, Murderers, and other Criminals from illegally entering our Country, End the Scourge of Illegal Drugs and, MAKE AMERICA SAFE AGAIN. Markwayne will make a spectacular Secretary of Homeland Security.”

“The current Secretary, Kristi Noem, who has served us well, and has had numerous and spectacular results (especially on the Border!), will be moving to be Special Envoy for The Shield of the Americas,” the president continued. “The Shield of the Americas” is a new Western Hemisphere security initiative the president intends to unveil in greater detail Saturday. He added, “I thank Kristi for her service at ‘Homeland.’”

Following the announcement, Mullin told reporters that he immediately called both his wife and his father to share the good news. “It’s just really humbling when you stop and think about it. A little kid from Westville, Oklahoma, gets to serve in the president’s Cabinet. That’s pretty neat,” he shared. The senator added that he intends to contact Noem but had not spoken to her prior to the announcement. “Our families are very close, and this happened very quick, so we’re going to go have a conversation with her in just a second.”

In comments to The Washington Stand, Jessica Vaughan, director of Policy Studies at the Center for Immigration Studies, said, “It has been rumored for months that Kristi Noem was going to be pushed out, and it seems like most of the immigration team is fine with that.” She explained that the past several months in particular have seen “a lot of tension among the top leaders of immigration agencies, not so much about the goals, but more about supporting personnel, tactics, optics and style.” Vaughan opined that, going forward, “I think we will see more traditional and subdued public engagement for the agency and less drama. Let’s hope that the new secretary nominee shares Noem’s full commitment to the mission and also can work more effectively with the other members of the immigration team.”

Mullin is slated to take over the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) on March 31. The agency, however, is currently the subject of a funding battle between congressional Democrats and the White House. Noem’s tenure at DHS has been characterized by headline-snagging optics, including the use of aggressive crowd control tactics by Customs and Border Protection (CBP) and U.S. Border Patrol (USBP) agents and the deaths of U.S. citizens Renee Good and Alex Pretti, who were shot and killed when interfering with immigration operations in Minneapolis in January. Good was shot and killed by an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agent whom she struck with her car after using her vehicle to obstruct ICE operations. Pretti was shot repeatedly by CBP and USBP agents when he interfered with crowd control operations while carrying a loaded gun. Although he did not draw his weapon, Noem quickly labeled Pretti a “domestic terrorist” who intended to “massacre” federal agents, even before an investigation into the incident had been launched. In response to the shootings and Noem’s management of the department, congressional Democrats refused to agree to fund DHS, allowing several DHS agencies to become inactive. Numerous Democrats demanded Noem either resign or be fired.

Democrats have touted Noem’s removal as Homeland Security secretary as a win. One of the Trump administration’s most vocal opponents, Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-Md.), stated in an interview, “There’s a little bit of exhilaration and satisfaction that we were able to move things in this way. Of course, none of it brings back Renee Good or Alex Pretti.” He claimed that Noem’s leadership of DHS has “done profound damage that we still need to be working on.”

House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) castigated Noem as an “unqualified, corrupt political hack” who “presided over the cold-blooded killings of American citizens like Nicole Good and Alex Pretti. She’s gotta be put on ice permanently.” He also vowed to fight for the removal of Attorney General Pam Bondi and White House Deputy Chief of Staff and Homeland Security Advisor Stephen Miller, credited as the architect of the Trump administration’s immigration policy, whom Jeffries described as a “cold-blooder liar.”

While Democrats are united in celebrating Noem’s ouster, there appears to be less consensus on her replacement. Senator Peter Welch (D-Vt.) suggested that Mullin will be easily confirmed by his Senate colleagues. “Markwayne Mullin is competent and he’s honest. So, those are two good things that Kristi Noem did not have,” Welch said in an interview. “He’s respected, he’s honest, and he’s competent. … The issue, I think, with Markwayne, is going to be much more about the policy and what he is going to be offering us as we look ahead, rather than his personal qualities, because people respect Markwayne.”

Senator Andy Kim (D-N.J.), on the other hand, asserted that he will not vote to confirm Mullin as DHS chief. “This is a referendum upon the Trump administration, what they have done when it comes to immigration,” Kim said. “We’re currently in a shutdown with DHS. The White House has clearly signaled that they don’t want to move forward on the types of reforms that are needed to be able to push forward on,” he added. The senator claimed that no matter who holds the Homeland Security secretary title, Miller is “the person really running the show here.”

Democrats were not the only ones to take issue with Noem’s steering of DHS. Republicans, Trump loyalists, immigration hardliners, and even DHS insiders voiced discontent with various aspects of Noem’s tenure, including low deportation numbers and bombastic optics. Citing DHS insiders and administration officials, The Daily Caller reported that Noem engaged in “constant feuding with the heads of other agencies, including CBP and ICE,” and that DHS employees were often disheartened or discouraged by her public relations strategies and crisis responses. Insiders said that Noem was informed a week ago that she would be replaced. “Anyone who’s close to the situation at all could see this coming,” one unnamed source said. Another added, “It wasn’t a matter of if, it was a matter of when.”

Notably, following the deaths of Good and Pretti and Noem’s public response to the crises, Trump opted not to send the Homeland Security secretary to Minneapolis but turned instead to Border Czar Tom Homan for damage control. Homan, who has served with USBP and previously ran ICE before being named Border Czar, has seemingly taken issue with Noem’s management of DHS, in particular her emphasis on P.R. “I didn’t come to Minnesota for photo ops or headlines,” Homan said upon arriving in Minneapolis, a comment seen as a veiled swipe at Noem. “I came looking for solutions.”