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White House officials are reportedly weary of Noem’s unpaid adviser, former Trump campaign manager Corey Lewandowski
Andrew Feinbergin Washington, D.C.Friday 21 November 2025 17:38 GMTComments
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President Donald Trump’s cabinet could see changes in the second year of his administration as some White House officials are reportedly discussing whether at least two of his department heads could exit following the first anniversary of his second inauguration in January.
Trump’s cabinet has been remarkably stable this year compared to the tumultuous revolving door that characterized his first year in the White House during his first term in office, with administration officials privately conceding that stability was a primary goal of the Trump team’s efforts during the presidential transition last year.
But according to a report from CNN, the president’s team could see at least one departure from the top of a cabinet-level department once the administration enters its second year.
The cable news network reported on Friday that one of the top officials who could soon be on the chopping block is Kristi Noem, the ex-South Dakota governor who Trump tapped to lead the Department of Homeland Security after she dropped off his vice presidential shortlist in part due to backlash over her admission that she’d once shot and killed her family’s pet dog because it was not easily trainable.
According to White House officials who spoke to The Independent on condition of anonymity, the president remains happy with Noem’s performance as she has led the department charged with carrying out his anti-immigration, mass deportation agenda. But behind the scenes, White House officials have chafed at the outsized influence that has been wielded by a Trumpworld mainstay, Corey Lewandowski, within the department.
open image in galleryWhite House officials have chafed at the outsized influence that has been wielded by Corey Lewandowski at Homeland Security, CNN reports. (Getty)In public, Trump has offered effusive praise for his Homeland Security secretary, and Noem has in turn been an enthusiastic operator in service of the president’s agenda, often appearing in slickly-produced videos meant to glorify the administration's deportation program and demonize the immigrant populations it has targeted.
But Lewandowski is the cause of concern, surces told CNN. The pugilistic ex-New Hampshire police officer turned political consultant — who briefly managed Trump’s 2016 campaign — is officially a senior adviser to Noem who came on as a temporary, unpaid “special government employee” only permitted to work 130 days in a 365-day period. It’s the same status held by Tesla and SpaceX founder Elon Musk during his brief time running the White House’s Department of Government Efficiency cost-cutting effort.
A DHS spokesperson told CNN that Lewandowski has 40 days remaining in the one-year period that started when Trump’s term began. That clock will reset on Jan. 20, giving him 130 more days to work in his unpaid role.
But top administration aides have become concerned about Noem’s close relationship with Lewandowski — the two are often seen together and both have previously denied allegations of being in a romantic or sexual relationship — and of the power he has amassed at the department despite his unpaid role.
A person close to the administration told CNN that while Trump “likes” Noem, it “has been brought to his attention that [Lewandowski] is a problem.”
open image in galleryCNN reports that DHS Secretary Kristi Noem is one of the top officials who could soon be on the chopping block despite Trump being happy with her. (Getty)The person added that DHS “is being mismanaged” because of Lewandowski, who has had his fingers in decisions to fire career experts or put them on administrative leave while reportedly developing a reputation for berating officials who he sees as slow-walking the Trump agenda.
A DHS spokesperson confirmed the practice, telling CNN in a statement that the unpaid adviser “certainly has reputation of reprimanding officials who impede or slow down the administration and undermine the will of the American people.”
Lewandowski also reportedly left Trump irritated after a September Oval Office meeting at which he’d accompanied Noem to discuss management of the department.
People familiar with the meeting described it as tense and contentious.
But White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt denied any cabinet shakeup was under consideration in a statement attacking the television network for its reporting.
“The cabinet is not changing no matter how much CNN wishes that it would because it thrives off drama,” she said.
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