Trump Cabinet Pick For Homeland Security, Kristi Noem, Begins Senate Confirmation Hearings

Kristi Noem, President-elect Donald Trump's pick to lead the Department of Homeland Security, is set to begin the confirmation process on Friday. Noem will appear before the Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs.

What To Know: Noem has served as the Republican governor of South Dakota since 2019 and is a former member of the U.S. House of Representatives. She is known for her hardline views on border control and immigration and has dispatched the South Dakota National Guard to the U.S.-Mexico border multiple times. 

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If confirmed as Secretary of Homeland Security, Noem will oversee more than 260,000 federal employees at the Coast Guard, the U.S. Secret Service, Transportation Security Administration, U.S. Customs and Border Protection and the Federal Emergency Management Administration. 

Noem will likely face questions regarding potential mass deportations and ending birthright citizenship, which she has previously supported. 

Fox News obtained a copy of Noem's prepared opening remarks for her Senate hearing on Friday. 

“Securing our homeland is a serious, sacred trust that must be relentlessly pursued and can never be taken for granted. Being safe within our borders is an American right, yet Americans feel less safe than they have in decades. For the first time in 30 years, more than 40% of Americans are afraid to walk alone at night within a mile of their home,” Noem is expected to tell the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee. 

Stocks To Watch: Stocks in the defense and security sectors are on watch as Noem begins her Senate confirmation hearings. 

Booz Allen Hamilton Holding Corp. BAH provides management consulting services to the U.S. government in the areas of defense, intelligence and civil markets and could be affected by a change in DHS leadership. 

The Invesco Aerospace & Defense ETF PPA focuses on companies involved in the development, manufacturing, operations and support of U.S. defense, homeland security and aerospace operations. 

Cybersecurity is also a factor in homeland security and movements in the sector can be tracked through the First Trust NASDAQ Cybersecurity ETF CIBR.  

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