Democrats Call for Perjury Investigation into Outgoing Homeland Security Secretary

Two senior Democratic lawmakers have formally requested the Justice Department investigate outgoing Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem for perjury, alleging she “repeatedly misled” Congress in what they described as a “brazen” attempt to evade accountability.

Senator Dick Durbin and Representative Jamie Raskin submitted the referral on Monday in a letter to Attorney General Pam Bondi, claiming Noem made “demonstrably false statements” during congressional testimony after “months of evading our Committees’ requests to testify in routine oversight hearings.”

The allegations center primarily on Noem’s statements regarding a controversial $220 million advertising campaign that prominently featured her on horseback in front of Mount Rushmore. During Senate testimony in early March, Noem claimed President Donald Trump was aware of the planned expenditure and that contracts were awarded through a competitive bidding process.

Both assertions have since been called into question. President Trump later told Reuters he had no prior knowledge of the campaign spending, contradicting Noem’s testimony. Additionally, reporting suggests the contracts were awarded to a select group of firms with connections to Noem and one of her top advisers, rather than through an open competitive process.

“Even if Secretary Noem was the one telling the truth about the President’s knowledge, and she may well have been, she flatly misrepresented that the contract had been subject to a competitive bid,” the lawmakers wrote in their referral.

The Democratic legislators also challenged Noem’s congressional testimony regarding DHS compliance with court orders and detention standards. They cited court rulings showing Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) violated hundreds of judicial orders in Minnesota alone over just a few months.

Further undermining Noem’s claims about detention standards, the lawmakers pointed to internal audits and widespread allegations documenting unsanitary and inhumane conditions in immigrant detention facilities. These centers are reportedly on track to record their worst year for in-custody deaths in more than two decades, raising significant human rights concerns.

The Department of Homeland Security’s internal watchdog is already investigating the contracting process behind the $220 million advertising campaign. The office previously alleged that DHS leadership has “systematically obstructed” its oversight work throughout the past year, suggesting a pattern of resistance to accountability within the department.

Noem, who has been removed from her position at DHS, will formally leave the department at the end of the month. She has been reassigned to a diplomatic post overseeing the Shield of the Americas initiative, a key Trump administration border security program.

Despite her impending departure from DHS, Noem may face continued scrutiny, particularly if Democrats regain control of Congress in future elections. The lawmakers noted in their letter that “the statute of limitations for perjury and for knowingly and willfully making false statements to Congress is five years,” though they expressed skepticism about the current Justice Department’s willingness to pursue the case.

“While we have low expectations that you will pursue this matter given your partisan weaponization of the Department of Justice,” they wrote, the legal window for prosecution would remain open well beyond the current administration.

The Trump administration has previously pursued high-profile perjury allegations against former officials, most notably former FBI Director James Comey, who was charged with lying to Congress in 2020. That case was ultimately dismissed, though the Justice Department has appealed the decision.

The administration has shown reluctance to bring strong oversight against immigration officials, declining to launch a civil rights investigation after an ICE agent fatally shot Minneapolis protester and U.S. citizen Nicole Good in January. In that incident, agents reportedly prevented state officials from accessing evidence at the shooting scene and participating in a complete investigation.

The Independent has contacted both the Department of Homeland Security and the Justice Department for comment on the perjury allegations, but no response had been received at the time of publication.