PIERRE, S.D. – The U.S. Senate committee responsible for confirming Governor Kristi Noem’s appointment as the secretary of Homeland Security has postponed her confirmation hearing.
The Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs rescheduled Noem’s appearance Tuesday evening, which was originally set for the following morning. The governor will now appear before the committee on Friday, Jan. 17, at 9 a.m. ET.
According to Politico, the delay may be related to a holdup in the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s (FBI) processing of her paperwork.
“Gov. Noem has expeditiously completed all her paperwork, but we are waiting for the FBI to complete their portion,” a source told the outlet.
Noem’s rescheduled appearance, just three days before President-elect Donald Trump’s inauguration on Jan. 20, still keeps her on track for a swift confirmation. Trump officials have indicated that Noem is one of several key nominees they hope to fast-track, along with other high-ranking department heads. Secretary of Defense nominee Pete Hegseth, for instance, made his first appearance before a Senate committee on Tuesday, the first of Trump’s nominees to do so.
The news comes just hours after Noem delivered her annual state of the state address to a joint session of the South Dakota State Legislature. In her speech, she discussed her likely appointment to the DHS post, and re-emphasized the need for urgent action to secure the porous U.S.-Mexico border.
“The situation at our southern border is nothing short of an invasion,” Noem said. “Over the last four years, America’s border security has been purposely weakened and ignored.”
