Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem’s carefully curated tough-as-nails persona is taking a serious hit after her agency’s bungled response to the deadly Texas floods over the July 4 holiday weekend.
The floods, which tragically claimed 137 lives, sparked outrage over what many say was a completely avoidable delay in emergency response. The head of FEMA’s urban search-and-rescue division, Ken Pagurek, didn’t just criticize from the sidelines — he resigned in protest, placing the blame squarely on Noem’s “restructuring” and budget cuts that, in his view, crippled the agency’s ability to act quickly.
And it wasn’t just federal officials upset behind the scenes. According to text messages obtained by local outlet KSAT, even Texas officials working the disaster on the ground weren’t thrilled to see her. As bodies were being pulled from the Guadalupe River, Noem arrived for a press conference on July 5, and the reaction from local officials was scathing.
After her media appearance, a local government staffer texted Kerrville City Manager Dalton Rice, who had appeared standing behind Noem on camera, jokingly asking, “Just saw you met Homeland Barbi, how is she?!?!?!” Rice shot back, “Beahahaha basically homeland Barbie.”
That nickname isn’t exactly new. The Daily Beast first dubbed Noem “ICE Barbie” for her heavily staged photo ops, often posing in full tactical gear alongside border enforcement officers or in front of detained migrants. Now, critics are using it to question not just her image but her leadership when it really counts.
Her handling of the Texas disaster has been slammed from all sides. Under her leadership, FEMA reportedly laid off hundreds of contractors at emergency call centers just before the floods hit. The fallout was clear: a New York Times investigation revealed FEMA failed to respond to nearly two-thirds of distress calls from flood victims.
To make matters worse, a new rule Noem put in place requires that all grants and contracts over $100,000 be personally signed off by the secretary — a change that reportedly delayed the deployment of critical search-and-rescue teams by a staggering 72 hours.
The Houston Chronicle didn’t mince words in a fiery editorial, calling her response “heartless” and comparing her to Michael Brown, the infamous FEMA director during Hurricane Katrina. “Leaving disaster victims on hold isn’t governmental efficiency,” the editorial board wrote. “It’s heartless.”
As questions continue to swirl, media inquiries to local emergency officials have been brushed off. Kerrville County’s Joint Information Center told KSAT via email that “all personnel are still involved in Emergency Operations Center functions and are unavailable for an interview.”
For a public figure who built her image on being ready for anything, this moment is shaping up to be a harsh reality check. While the floodwaters may be receding, the backlash around Noem’s role in the crisis is only rising.