Kristi Noem has been answering a lot of questions from politicians this week, but she managed to avoid a really awkward one on Wednesday afternoon.
Rumors have abounded for years that the Department of Homeland Security secretary has been having an affair with Homeland Security aide Corey Lewandowski despite both of them being married to others.
The two have denied the rumors since at least 2021, but the alleged relationship has come under scrutiny in recent weeks after The Wall Street Journal reported that the two have been seen flying together in a luxury jet with a private cabin.
Despite that level of public attention, Noem seemed surprised when California Democrat Rep. Sydney Kamlager-Dove bluntly asked her about the rumors during a Wednesday hearing of the House Judiciary Committee.
And, no, Kamlager-Dove didn’t mince words at all.
“So, Secretary Noem, at any time during your tenure, as director of Department of Homeland Security, have you had sexual relations with Corey Lewandowski?” she asked.
Noem didn’t answer Kamlager-Dove directly and instead addressed Rep. Jim Jordan (R-Ohio).
“Mr. Chairman, I am shocked we’re going down and peddling tabloid garbage in this committee today,” Noem said to Jordan before addressing Kamlager-Dove.
“And ma’am, the one thing that I would tell you is he is a special government employee who works for the White House, there are thousands of them in the federal government. And as an adviser, [he] has no authority to be making any decisions,” she continued.
While the two continued to speak over each other, Kamlager-Dove conceded it was OK for Noem “to be offended by the question,” but pointed out the secretary “should be able to answer the question clearly and without any hesitation if someone is asking if you or any federal official is sleeping with their subordinate.”
“That should be the easiest question ― you should be wanting to answer that question,” Kamlager-Dove added.
Noem kept muttering the question was “absolute garbage,” while Kamlager-Dove continued to say the matter was about Noem’s “judgment and decision making. “It is about the 260,000 employees that work under you that want to make sure you are giving information and making decisions clearly,” she said.
Kamlager-Dove emphasized that since Noem’s job is protecting the country, her judgment “can be the difference between life and death.” “It is about conflict of interest. It is about national security risk,” she said.
“Why then, is the question, have you made Corey Lewandowski your de facto chief of staff, who possesses an unchecked level of power at DHS?” Kamlager-Dove asked Noem.
Noem never answered Kamlager-Dove’s question regarding the sexual allegations, but the congresswoman attempted to read a series of headlines about the rumored affair that she wanted in the official record.
Jordan objected to each one.
According to Mediaite, Noem’s husband was sitting right behind her during the hearing.
You can see the complete exchange below.
Rep. Jared Moskowitz (D-Fla.) in another exchange followed up on Kamlager-Dove’s question, where Noem finally responded, “This has been something that I’ve refuted for years and I continue to do that,” according to CBS News.
