Kristi Noem accused of creating fake State Department press release after envoy role ended

Former US Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem has been accused of posting an unauthorised State Department press release using fabricated department letterhead to explain her departure as President Donald Trump's special envoy for the Shield of the Americas initiative.

Noem shared a statement on X on October 16, saying her special envoy position had always been intended as a six-month appointment and that she would remain at the State Department as a senior adviser. However, people familiar with her role told Politico that the statement had not been authorized by department leadership.

"This was not a press release put out by the State Department. Noem went rogue and created a fake letterhead to post on X," one person familiar with the matter told Politico, according to a post on X.

CBS News reporter also cited a State Department official as confirming that the statement Noem posted on her official envoy account and personal X account used fabricated department letterhead and was not an authorized press release.

The controversy follows confirmation that Noem was no longer serving as the administration's special envoy for the Shield of the Americas, a regional initiative focused on security cooperation with countries in Latin America and the Caribbean.

A State Department official told CBS News that Noem's envoy status had expired in September and that she was now a senior adviser to Deputy Secretary of State Christopher Landau. She would continue working on the initiative's portfolio, the official said.

Noem was appointed special envoy in March after Trump removed her as Homeland Security secretary and selected Republican Senator Markwayne Mullin of Oklahoma to replace her. Her new assignment shifted her from leading the department responsible for immigration enforcement and border security to working on the administration's regional security agenda.

The Shield of the Americas initiative brings together the US and countries across the Western Hemisphere to coordinate on security, economic cooperation and efforts to combat drug cartels.

Noem's removal from the Cabinet followed mounting scrutiny of her leadership at the Department of Homeland Security, including questions from lawmakers about immigration enforcement operations, disaster relief and a taxpayer-funded advertising campaign promoting the administration's deportation policies.

The $220 million campaign became a major point of contention during congressional scrutiny of her tenure, according to The Associated Press.

The latest controversy centers on whether Noem presented an unauthorized statement as an official State Department communication.