Top congressional Democrats are preparing a criminal referral to the Justice Department, accusing former Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem of misleading Congress.
The referral, expected to be signed by Sen. Dick Durbin (D-IL) and Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-MD), asks federal prosecutors to determine whether Noem knowingly made false statements under oath during testimony about a $220 million taxpayer-funded advertising campaign promoting the administration’s immigration policies.
Democrats say at least four statements in Noem’s testimony “appear to violate criminal statutes prohibiting perjury and knowingly making false statements to Congress.”
One flashpoint: whether Donald Trump knew about the pricey advertising campaign.
During the hearing, Sen. John Kennedy (R-LA) pressed Noem on the issue, asking if the President was aware of the ads?
“Yes,” Noem replied.
But in a subsequent Reuters interview, Trump said something very different:
“I never knew anything about it.”
The referral is also expected to challenge Noem’s account of how the contracts were awarded and her claims that immigration detention facilities were meeting federal standards.
Democrats argue that ICE internal audits documenting failures in medical care contradict those assurances.
The Department of Homeland Security is already pushing back.
“Any claim that Secretary Noem committed perjury is categorically false,” a DHS spokesperson said.
Even if the referral is filed, the Justice Department is under no obligation to act on it.
The move comes just days after Trump removed Noem from her Cabinet post, reassigning her as a special envoy while nominating Sen. Markwayne Mullin (R-OK) to run DHS.
In announcing the move on Truth Social, Trump praised Mullin as “highly respected” and said Noem “has served us well.”
READ NEXT: Republican Senator Pushes Back On FCC Threats Over Iran War Coverage
And democrats wonder why .this new batch of democrats hate the so much?if they don’t quit saying the American want this, I’m going to blow a gasket! Except for a John Fetterman, our country is in a major, major jam because of them. Just look at thr red states vs. the blue states! And what greasehead Gavin Newsom has done with ‘That Third World Country” formerly known as California. California state gasoline taxes are almost 50% of a gallon of gas! Here’s to conservatism! All, democrats look you straight in the face make stuff up on the fly! Soooooo, glad I live in Texas!