Big Take Podcast

The $240 Million Ad Campaign That Helped Lead to Kristi Noem’s Firing

On today’s Big Take podcast: an investigation into the Department of Homeland Security’s ad blitz.

Kristi Noem speaks during a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing in Washington on March 3.Photographer: Graeme Sloan/Bloomberg

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By David Fox and Sarah Holder

March 7, 2026 at 1:10 AM UTC

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President Donald Trump fired Kristi Noem from her role as head of the Department of Homeland Security on Thursday. One of the reasons for Noem’s removal involved her oversight of a $240 million DHS ad campaign, starring herself.