Kristi Noem had Coast Guard pilot fired for leaving her blanket on a plane: report
Outgoing Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem will reportedly leave behind a major mass of pending contracts when she exits the agency, according to Axios, the result of a system she paradoxically implemented to cut down on "waste."
President Donald Trump announced last week that he would be removing Noem from her position at DHS at the end of March, amid reports that he was furious with her for claiming he had signed off on a controversial $220 million ad campaign. Oklahoma Sen. Markwayne Mullin was nominated to replace her, while she will be moved to a role within the "Shield of the Americas" defense program.
In a report from Wednesday morning, Axios revealed that Noem will be leaving behind "dozens of pending contracts on her desk" by the time she leaves DHS. This pile-up resulted from her demand as secretary that all contracts valued at $100,000 or more be personally reviewed and approved by her. Even before her pending departure, this new system had caused major delays and disruptions for contractors and vendors.
"The impact of Noem's policy can be seen in delayed DHS payments to vendors, causing disruptions now being compounded by the shutdown," Axios explained. "Dozens of ICE facilities currently holding detainees have contract extensions waiting for Noem's signature and are awaiting payments, two sources familiar with the agreements told Axios. An agreement with Camp East Montana, an immigration facility in Texas that ICE data indicate held almost 3,000 people a day in mid-February, expired at the end of February."
"From everything that I've heard, it's still a giant s—— show up there," an anonymous source with knowledge of the situation told Axios. "
Beyond just the contracts, this demand for personal approval has caused an overall delay in DHS's ability to pursue Trump's key goals, including his mass deportation promises and his much-desired southern border wall. The allocation of disaster relief by FEMA has also been slowed down considerably, leaving some concerned about the government's ability to respond to natural disasters.
"The ramifications of her tenure are going to be felt for years and years and years and years," the same source added. "We're not really going to know exactly how bad it is until we have a major hurricane that unfortunately impacts someplace in the United States."
"There's a mountain of backed-up contracts and invoices on her desk that the new guy will just have to deal with," another anonymous source said.
Corey Lewandowski, Noem's "special government employee" and de facto chief of staff, defended her system and claimed that it saved the department $15 billion, though he declined to confirm whether or not he would recommend that Mullin continue approving contracts in the same manner.