By Victoria Albert

Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem has for months been the headline-grabbing, TV-ready face of President Trump's mass deportation campaign.

She has aimed to burnish her personal stardom at every turn, staging aggressive crackdowns and sidelining officials who suggested a more cautious approach. Simmering criticism of her tactics exploded during the immigration enforcement surge in Minneapolis, jeopardizing her relationship with the president and her grip on the department.

Here are the key findings from Wall Street Journal reporters Michelle Hackman, Josh Dawsey and Tarini Parti's investigation into the Homeland Security chief.

A close relationship with Corey Lewandowski

Noem, who had little experience in immigration policy before becoming secretary, got the job in part because of a quiet lobbying effort by Corey Lewandowski, who helped the former South Dakota governor build her national profile.

Noem's close relationship with her top adviser has raised concerns.

Trump's first campaign manager in the 2016 election, Lewandowski had initially wanted to serve formally as Noem's chief of staff. The president rejected the idea due to reports of a romantic relationship between the two, which he has continued to bring up, officials say.

Lewandowski and Noem, who are both married, have publicly denied reports of an affair, but people said they do little to hide their relationship inside the department.

A Homeland Security spokeswoman said the department "doesn't waste time with salacious, baseless gossip."

Boxing out rivals

Noem and Lewandowski have worked to curry favor with Trump and sideline rivals, including U.S. Customs and Border Protection Commissioner Rodney Scott and border czar Tom Homan.

Officials at DHS said they believe Lewandowski and Noem see DHS as a steppingstone to an even bigger perch.

The pair have fired or demoted roughly 80% of the career ICE field leadership that was in place when they started.

The DHS spokeswoman said all officials are on the same page and in agreement on the president's immigration crackdown.

Damage control

After the fatal shooting of Alex Pretti in Minneapolis intensified criticism of Noem, she and Lewandowski moved quickly to solidify their relationship with Trump. The pair successfully requested an Oval Office meeting with the president two days after the shooting. Her team scheduled press conferences on other matters, including airport security and the border wall.

Lewandowski also reached out to Trump pollster Tony Fabrizio to cut an ad to help Noem, according to two people familiar with the episode. Fabrizio ignored the entreaty, the people said. The Homeland Security spokeswoman said Lewandowski's text to Fabrizio was about "messaging."

Some in Trump's inner circle have tried to persuade him to fire Noem, according to administration officials. But Trump has said he has no plans to dismiss her.

The agency spokeswoman told the Journal that Noem serves at the pleasure of the president and called her efforts "a roaring success."

A $70 million jet

Noem and Lewandowski have recently been traveling in a luxury 737 MAX jet, with a private cabin in back, according to people familiar with the matter. Homeland Security is leasing the plane but is in the process of acquiring it for roughly $70 million. The purchase would be double the cost of each of seven other commercial planes the department is also buying at the pair's direction to carry out deportations.

The Homeland Security spokeswoman said the plane was used for both deportations and cabinet-level travel. She said it was cheaper than military aircraft for deportations and saved American taxpayers hundreds of millions of dollars.

A missing blanket

Noem and Lewandowski frequently berate senior-level staff within DHS and give polygraph tests to employees they don't trust.

In one instance, Lewandowski fired a U.S. Coast Guard pilot after Noem's blanket was left behind on a plane, according to people familiar with the incident. The pilot was told to take a commercial flight back, but was eventually reinstated because no one else was available to fly them home. The Homeland Security spokeswoman didn't address the episode but said the secretary has "made personnel decisions to deliver excellence."

Write to Victoria Albert at victoria.albert@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

February 13, 2026 18:03 ET (23:03 GMT)

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