South Dakota

Kristi Noem faces confirmation hearing for homeland security post: Live updates

Published

1 year ago

January 17, 2025

Kristi Noem faces confirmation hearing for homeland security post: Live updates

WASHINGTON − A Senate committee will hear today from Kristi Noem, President-elect Donald Trump’s choice to run the Department of Homeland Security, an agency that will be central to fulfilling his campaign promise to perform mass deportations of unauthorized immigrants.

Noem, the Republican governor of South Dakota, was on Trump’s vice-presidential shortlist before he named her to run the sprawling, $108 billion DHS. She was a member of Congress during Trump’s first administration and is an outspoken advocate for border security and tax cuts.

Trump is expected to formally nominate Noem shortly after taking office Jan. 20.

Noem is the only prospective Trump cabinet member with a hearing on Friday. Senate committees have so far heard from nine top appointments, including Pete Hegseth (Defense), Pam Bondi (Justice), Scott Bessent (Treasury), Marco Rubio (State), and John Ratcliffe (CIA). All appear headed for confirmation.

Kristi Noem defends killing dog for bad behavior in new memoir

Governor Kristi Noem, a Trump vice presidential candidate, landed in controversy for killing her former dog. Rivals seized the moment to share photos with their respective pets.

Sen. Peters asked Noem about countering militants who’ve been “radicalized here in the U.S. with the intent of terrorizing our communities.” She agreed that “homegrown terrorism is on the rise,” while cautioning that Americans’ civil liberties must be protected.

But Noem also shifted focus back to the southern border and said 382 “known terrorists” had been allowed to cross into the U.S. from Mexico. According to DHS, 382 people whose names appear on a terrorist watch list were arrested trying to cross the border between 2021 adn 2024, up from 11 between 2017 and 2020.

Noem cites familiarity with FEMA from SD disasters

In her opening statement, Noem said she worked with the Federal Emergency Management Agency on 12 natural disasters in her state so she would be familiar leading the Department of Homeland security responding to “floods, tornados, blizzards, wildfires, a derecho, and even a global pandemic.”

“As Secretary, I will enhance our emergency preparedness and strengthen FEMA’s capabilities,” Noem said. “We will ensure that no community is left behind and that life-saving services like electricity and water are quickly restored.”

−Bart Jansen

Noem calls border security ‘a top priority’

Noem said securing the country’s borders against illegal trafficking and immigration will be a top priority.

“Border security must remain a top priority,” Noem said. “As a nation, we have the right and responsibility to secure our borders against those who would do us harm.”

She said the country “must create a fair and lawful immigration system that is efficient and effective.”

−Bart Jansen

Thune praises Noem’s ‘absolute toughness’ to lead DHS

Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., introduced Noem, his state’s governor, by saying her “absolute toughness” is required to lead the Department of Homeland Security and toughen security along the southern border.

Thune argued Noem’s “tremendous persistence and energy” would enable her to combat the “chaos on the southern border” and fight drug trafficking.

“I think she brings things to this job that are absolutely essential,” Thune said.

The Dakotas are well represented at the top of Washington this year. In addition to Thune’s leadership at the Senate and Noem’s expected confirmation at Homeland Security, President-elect Donald Trump has named former North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum to lead the Interior Department.

−Bart Jansen

Peters: DHS needs ‘strong, stable and principled leadership’

Sen. Gary Peters, D-Mich., the comittee’s top Democrat, said Noem would “need strong, stable and principled leadership” to oversee the sprawling Department of Homeland Security with 240,000 workers and an annual budget of more than $100 billion.

He urged her to focus on the northern border in addition to the southern border, while working to streamline the immigration system and asylum process.

Peters said she must also protect the country from attacks like ones recently in New Orleans and Las Vegas on New Year’s Day, and cyber attacks from China and other foreign adversaries.

−Bart Jansen

Committee Chairman Rand Paul, R-Ky., opens Kristi Noem’s hearing with a litany of complaints about the department she may soon command, saying DHS has been distracted from its core duties of protecting the U.S. by intruding on the constitutional rights of Americans and policing their speech.

House Republicans voted to impeach the outgoing Homemand Security secretary, Alejandro Mayorkas, last February but the Senate, then under Democratic control, killed both impeachment articles.

South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem may not have to answer for her dead hunting dog Cricket at her confirmation hearing Wednesday. But President-elect Donald Trump’s pick to head the Department of Homeland Security will likely face tough questions about how she intends to run one of the nation’s largest and most sensitive federal agencies.

If confirmed by the Senate, Noem would be at the center of Trump’s effort to make good on campaign promises to shut down the border, prevent illegal immigrants from crossing from Mexico and Canada, and stop the flood of lethal fentanyl into the U.S.

As overseer of DHS’s Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency, Noem would play a critical role in Trump’s much-touted plans to deport potentially tens of millions of people living without authorization in the U.S.

Noem made headlines last year for writing in her 2024 autobiography “No Going Back” that she shot her 14-month-old wirehaired pointer because it was “untrainable,” attacked livestock and tried to bite her. The backlash may have cost her a shot at the vice-presidency.

−Josh Meyer

Who is Kristi Noem?

Prior to starting her government career, Noem worked on her family’s farm in rural South Dakota. She served in the state legislature for four years, and was elected to Congress in 2010, during the midterm election under then-President Barack Obama when the Tea Party movement swept the nation.

Noem won the governor’s race in 2018 on a small-government platform. She is an outspoken advocate of border security and has sent three different cohorts of the South Dakota National Guard to serve on the Texas-Mexico border for Operation Lone Star.

−Erin Mansfield

What is the Department of Homeland Security?

The Department of Homeland Security is the umbrella agency for 22 departments and about 260,000 employees. Its departments handle border security, immigration detention, citizenship processing, airport security, and natural disasters, among other things.

President Joe Biden’s current secretary, Alejandro Mayorkas, has been a frequent target of Republican criticism for the administration’s handling of unlawful crossings at the U.S.-Mexico border.

−Erin Mansfield

Will Kristi Noem be confirmed?

While some of Trump’s nominees have faced controversy or bowed out of the confirmation process, Noem has been well received.

Sen. Rand Paul, the Kentucky Republican who heads the committee that will hold her hearing, told a podcast in December, “My first order of business will be getting her confirmed, and I plan on trying to do that either the day of the inauguration, or that week.”

−Erin Mansfield

What time is Kristi Noem’s confirmation hearing?

The hearing with the Senate Homeland Security and Government Affairs Committee starts at 9 a.m. It will be held in the Senate Dirksen Building, room SD-342, in Washington, D.C. USA TODAY will post a livestream link here when it becomes available.

−Erin Mansfield

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4 hours ago

February 27, 2026

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SD Lottery Millionaire for Life winning numbers for Feb. 26, 2026

Published

16 hours ago

February 27, 2026

Press Room

The South Dakota Lottery offers multiple draw games for those aiming to win big.

Here’s a look at Feb. 26, 2026, results for each game:

Winning Millionaire for Life numbers from Feb. 26 drawing

03-14-22-50-57, Bonus: 04

Check Millionaire for Life payouts and previous drawings here.

Feeling lucky? Explore the latest lottery news & results

Are you a winner? Here’s how to claim your prize

Prizes of $100 or less: Can be claimed at any South Dakota Lottery retailer.
Prizes of $101 or more: Must be claimed from the Lottery. By mail, send a claim form and a signed winning ticket to the Lottery at 711 E. Wells Avenue, Pierre, SD 57501.
Any jackpot-winning ticket for Dakota Cash or Lotto America, top prize-winning ticket for Lucky for Life, or for the second prizes for Powerball and Mega Millions must be presented in person at a Lottery office. A jackpot-winning Powerball or Mega Millions ticket must be presented in person at the Lottery office in Pierre.

When are the South Dakota Lottery drawings held?

Powerball: 9:59 p.m. CT on Monday, Wednesday, and Saturday.
Mega Millions: 10 p.m. CT on Tuesday and Friday.
Lucky for Life: 9:38 p.m. CT daily.
Lotto America: 9:15 p.m. CT on Monday, Wednesday and Saturday.
Dakota Cash: 9 p.m. CT on Wednesday and Saturday.
Millionaire for Life: 10:15 p.m. CT daily.

This results page was generated automatically using information from TinBu and a template written and reviewed by a South Dakota editor. You can send feedback using this form.

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South Dakota

SNAP soda ban headed to desk of South Dakota governor, who’s concerned about costs

Published

1 day ago

February 26, 2026

Press Room

SNAP soda ban headed to desk of South Dakota governor, who’s concerned about costs

State Sen. Sydney Davis, R-Burbank, speaks in the South Dakota Senate at the Capitol in Pierre on Feb. 10, 2026. Davis is sponsoring a bill that would ban the use of SNAP benefits for soda purchases. (Photo by Makenzie Huber/South Dakota Searchlight)

By: John Hult

PIERRE, S.D. (South Dakota Searchlight) – The question of whether South Dakota moves to ban the use of government food assistance for sugary drinks is in the hands of Republican Gov. Larry Rhoden, who has signaled his opposition to the bill all through the 2026 legislative session.

The state Senate voted 27-6 on Wednesday to endorse House Bill 1056, after the House passed it earlier 58-11. Assuming the same levels of support, both margins are wide enough to overcome a Rhoden veto, should he choose to issue one.

The bill directs the Department of Social Services to ask for a federal waiver to allow the state to bar the use of Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits for the purchase of soft drinks.

SNAP is a federal program, managed by the state, through which people with low incomes get a monthly allowance for food through a debit-like card that can be used at most stores to buy nearly any consumable grocery item save alcohol and prepared foods.

Representatives from Rhoden’s office testified against the bill in House and Senate committees, arguing that the administrative costs would be too high. A fiscal note attached to the bill between its passage in the House and its appearance on the Senate’s Wednesday calendar estimated that implementation would cost $310,000 through the first two years. Those costs would come from hiring an extra employee and contracting for software to track sales, file reports and help retailers determine which drinks are banned.

Backers see long-term savings to the state, though. A high percentage of SNAP recipients are also on Medicaid, a taxpayer-funded health insurance program open to disabled and income-eligible people.

On Wednesday, Burbank Republican Sen. Sydney Davis noted the connection between excess soda consumption and health problems like obesity, diabetes and tooth decay. Medicaid dental costs alone add up $51 million a year, she said.

Mitchell Republican Sen. Paul Miskimins, a retired dentist, told the body he once counted 32 cavities and seven abscesses in the mouths of 2-year-old twin boys who were covered by Medicaid.

He attributed the tooth decay to sugary beverages.

“I don’t know if that first visit was more traumatic on the boys or on my dental staff and myself,” said Miskimins.

Tamara Grove, R-Lower Brule, was the lone senator to speak in opposition on the Senate floor. She argued that some stores might stop accepting SNAP payments due to the administrative burden of sorting barred products from the rest of their inventories, and pointed out that the bill wouldn’t do a thing to prevent SNAP recipients from loading up on sugary foods like ice cream or snack cakes.

“It gives this look as if there’s going to be this big, huge change in the way that people buy products, but it’s really not going to be,” Grove said.

Some surrounding states, including Nebraska, have moved to ask for a waiver to ban soda sales through SNAP. Such waivers are now an option, as President Donald Trump’s administration is willing to consider granting them. Former President Joe Biden’s administration was not.

Rep. Taylor Rehfeldt, the South Dakota bill’s prime sponsor, got a letter last week from Trump administration officials expressing support for her proposal.

In response, Rhoden spokeswoman Josie Harms told South Dakota Searchlight that the governor “has always been supportive of the Trump Administration’s efforts to Make America Healthy Again,” using a reference to the policy agenda branding used by U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.

“We have met directly with his Administration on this issue, and at no point has our opposition been directed at President Trump or his efforts to reform SNAP,” Harms said. “Our focus has always been on ensuring the implementation of SNAP reform works effectively for our state.”

Harms said Wednesday that Rhoden would answer questions about the bill at a Thursday press conference.

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