The US Department of Homeland Security’s top spokesperson Tricia McLaughlin is leaving the Trump Administration. Photo / US Department of Homeland Security
The United States Department of Homeland Security’s top spokesperson is leaving the Trump Administration, officials said today, a departure that comes amid falling public approval ratings for the President’s mass deportation agenda.
Tricia McLaughlin, whose regular Fox News appearances made her a face of the Administration’s hardline immigration agenda, is leaving just over a year into Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem’s tenure leading the agency.
The move comes after DHS and the White House have scrambled to tamp down public outrage over the killings of two US citizens by federal immigration agents in Minneapolis last month.
McLaughlin informed colleagues today of her departure.
She had begun planning to leave in December but extended her stay to help the Administration deal with the fallout of the fatal shootings of Renee Good and Alex Pretti in Minneapolis, according to people briefed on her exit. Politico first reported McLaughlin’s departure.
Confirming McLaughlin’s decision in a post on X, Noem cited her “exceptional dedication, tenacity, and professionalism” and said she “has played an instrumental role in advancing our mission to secure the homeland and keep Americans safe”.
In a statement, McLaughlin thanked Noem and US President Donald Trump, saying she is “immensely proud of the team we built and the historic accomplishments achieved by this Administration and the Department of Homeland Security”.
McLaughlin said she will be replaced by her deputy, Lauren Bis, and DHS’ public affairs team is adding Katie Zacharia, a Fox News contributor.
Noem’s chief spokeswoman built a reputation as a fierce defender of the Administration’s handling of immigration and of the secretary’s leadership, frequently sparring with reporters on social media and appearing on cable news programmes.
But her forceful pronouncements have drawn criticism from Democrats and immigrant rights groups, who point to incidents in which statements she made were later contradicted in court or in video footage recorded by witnesses.
McLaughlin joined other Administration officials in quickly declaring that Good had committed “an act of domestic terrorism” before she was shot to death by an immigration officer.
McLaughlin also said a Venezuelan immigrant had “mercilessly beat” a federal law enforcement officer in Minneapolis. The charges against that man were dropped after the US Attorney in Minneapolis said that “newly discovered evidence” was “materially inconsistent with the allegations” the officers had made.
In those and other incidents, McLaughlin quickly made statements supporting actions by officers before investigations had transpired - something that Democrats and some Republicans have also criticised Noem for doing.
Christopher Parente, a lawyer for Marimar Martinez, a US citizen shot multiple times by a Border Patrol agent in Chicago in the last northern autumn, asked a federal judge for permission to release body-camera footage and other evidence that he said was necessary to demonstrate that McLaughlin and other senior Administration officials had falsely accused Martinez of being a domestic terrorist and of doxing federal agents.
Martinez was indicted on federal charges of assault and attempted murder of a federal employee with a deadly or dangerous weapon after the shooting.
But a federal judge dismissed the case in November after prosecutors in the Northern District of Illinois requested that the charges be dropped. Prosecutors didn’t state a reason for the dismissal, although lawyers for the defendant criticised the weakness of the Government’s case from the start.
“We are pleased with this resignation,” Parente told the Washington Post when asked about McLaughlin’s departure.
“Unless Pinocchio is applying for the position, we believe her replacement will be a great improvement and hopefully work to start repairing the credibility of DHS.”
Under McLaughlin, critics say, the DHS public affairs office has produced a skewed view of immigration enforcement.
Officials have refused to publish detailed reports of how many immigrants have been arrested and deported. The agency’s messaging has mainly publicised the arrests of immigrants who commit crimes, even though public records show that a majority of migrants who have been detained do not have criminal records.
McLaughlin also has repeatedly attacked federal judges who have ruled against the Administration, calling them “unhinged”, “deranged” and “disgusting and immoral”. In some cases, she has accused judges of endangering immigration agents or the public through their rulings.
David Lapan, a DHS spokesman in Trump’s first administration, said he hopes McLaughlin’s replacement “stays away from the belligerent, attacking approach that she took”.
“The mis- and disinformation that comes out hurts the trust and credibility of the organisation, and they can’t afford to have that continue,” Lapan said.
McLaughlin’s combative approach won public praise from Trump last month.
“Great job by wonderful TRICIA MCLAUGHLIN, DHS Assistant Secretary, on the Sean Hannity Show,” Trump posted on social media. “Many Illegals from around our Nation charged with serious crimes this week. Tricia really knows her ‘STUFF!’”
Democrats have criticised DHS’ posts on social media for disparaging immigrants and posting paintings that depict scenes of a predominantly White America.
One post featured an Immigration and Customs Enforcement recruitment promotion that stated, “We’ll Have Our Home Again”, a phrase that has been associated with a song embraced by white nationalists.
McLaughlin defended that promotion, telling the Post in a statement last month: “The fact that people would like to cherry pick something of white nationalism with the same title to make a connection to DHS law enforcement is disgusting”.
McLaughlin was still posting on X today - disputing an NBC News report of growing tensions between DHS leadership and Coast Guard officials over Noem’s use of the military branch’s resources, which she oversees.
The Post has also reported on the strained relationship between DHS and the Coast Guard, including Noem’s decision to spend US$200 million on new Coast Guard jets for use by senior DHS officials and her move into military housing typically reserved for the Coast Guard commandant.
Before her tenure at DHS, McLaughlin was a senior adviser and communications director for Vivek Ramaswamy’s 2024 presidential campaign.
She joins other senior DHS officials who have left the department in recent weeks, including Madison Sheahan, who last month stepped down from her role as Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s deputy director to mount a campaign against Democratic Representative Marcy Kaptur in Ohio.
- Maria Sacchetti contributed to this report.
Sign up to Herald Premium Editor’s Picks, delivered straight to your inbox every Friday. Editor-in-Chief Murray Kirkness picks the week’s best features, interviews and investigations. Sign up for Herald Premium here.