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During the Shield of the Americas summit in Florida on Saturday, outgoing Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Kristi Noem thanked President Donald Trump for appointing her to a newly created role after she was ousted from overseeing the agency.
Noem, who is moving to the newly created position of special envoy for the Shield of the Americas, showed no ill feelings toward the president and said she was proud of her work at DHS, arguing the department had secured the border and eliminated public safety threats.
“I do want to thank the president for creating this and for giving me the honor and the opportunity to serve as a special envoy to this region, to the Western Hemisphere,” Noem said during the summit at Trump National Doral outside Miami.
“This Shield of the Americas will be a powerful example to the rest of the world about what’s possible.”
Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem delivers remarks during a working lunch at the Shield of the Americas summit, Saturday, at Trump National Doral near Miami. (Rebecca Blackwell / Pool / AFP via Getty Images)
Trump announced this week that Noem would shift into the new role after cutting short her tenure at DHS.
Noem was removed as the nation’s immigration chief after a turbulent stretch marked by internal clashes and two contentious congressional hearings where even some Republicans pressed her over leadership missteps, including the ad campaign, which she claimed the president had signed off on.
Noem framed the initiative as an effort to expand border security cooperation beyond the United States.
“The way that we cooperate on our shared ideals of freedom and of democracy and safety and security will be a shining light to all of those who wish to be more like all of us,” she said.
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Trump removed Noem as the nation’s DHS chief this week after a turbulent stretch. (Julia Demaree Nikhinson/AP Photo)
Noem, who previously served in Congress and as South Dakota governor before leading DHS, defended her record overseeing immigration enforcement during the past year.
“In the last year, as secretary of Homeland Security, we have focused on securing our border,” she said. “We have transformed our country from one that was being invaded by enemies, millions of them that were coming in unvetted, that we didn’t know who was there and who wished to harm us.”
“We’ve secured that border,” she continued. “We’ve focused on removing public safety threats, and over 3 million people have been deported or removed from our country in the last year.”
Noem argued that stronger border enforcement has allowed the administration to pivot toward economic and diplomatic engagement with neighboring nations.
DHS Secretary Kristi Noem testifies before the Senate Judiciary Committee on Capitol Hill. (Graeme Sloan/Getty Images)
“Secure borders has changed everything for our country,” she said. “Now that America is secure and our borders are secure, we want to focus on our neighbors and to help our neighbors with their borders and challenges that they have so that they may have the security that we enjoy.”
Trump announced on Truth Social that Sen. Markwayne Mullin, R-Okla., will replace her effective March 31, while Noem shifts to the newly created envoy role.
Members of Trump’s Cabinet, including Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Secretary of War Pete Hegseth, Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick and United States Trade Representative Jamieson Greer attended Saturday’s summit.
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Leaders from other nations included Argentina’s Javier Milei, El Salvador’s Nayib Bukele Ortez, Bolivia’s Rodrigo Paz Pereira, Costa Rica’s Rodrigo Chaves Robles, Panama’s José Raúl Mulino Quintero, and Trinidad and Tobago’s Kamla Persad-Bissessar, Chile’s Jose Antonio Kast, the Dominican Republic’s Luis Rodolfo Abinader Corona, Ecuador’s Daniel Roy Gilchrist Noboa Azín, Guyana’s Mohamed Irfaan Ali, Honduras’ Nasry “Tito” Asfura and Paraguay’s Santiago Peña.
Notably missing were the leaders of Venezuela, Delcy Rodríguez, and Mexico, Claudia Sheinbaum Pardo.
Fox News Digital’s Alec Schemmel contributed to this report.
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