Kristi Noem says deportation operation decisions are hers amid case over flights to El Salvador

WASHINGTON — Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said that deportation operations are her decision and denied defying a court order to halt deportation flights to El Salvador earlier this year, attacking “radical decisions” from “activist judges.”

Asked on NBC News’ “Meet the Press” whether she made the call to continue the flights, Noem referenced ongoing legal proceedings and said she would “let them continue to play through that process.”

“The decisions that are made on deportations, where flights go and when they go, are my decision at the Department of Homeland Security, and we will continue to do the right thing and ensure that dangerous criminals are removed,” Noem added.

For Subscribers

FOR SUBSCRIBERSViolence, transphobia and couple’s competing abuse claims preceded a deadly confrontation in a California park

FOR SUBSCRIBERSFrom clean energy warrior to ‘wall of shame,’ James Talarico reverses on a fossil fuel money pledge

FOR SUBSCRIBERSCongressional staff planned official trip with luxury stops in Italy and France weeks before election

FOR SUBSCRIBERSA harrowing ordeal aboard an Israel-bound plane

FOR SUBSCRIBERSOpenAI CEO Sam Altman to skip congressional hearing on rogue AI agents

FOR SUBSCRIBERSKey DOJ lawyers departed Trump ‘grand conspiracy’ probe amid pressure to produce, source says

FOR SUBSCRIBERSTrump’s new AI chatbot often links to a site launched under Clinton 26 years ago

FOR SUBSCRIBERSAt MAHA summit, industry CEOs the movement once vilified take the stage

FOR SUBSCRIBERSThis Paralympian has two goals: Win medals and give away $500,000 to her teammates

FOR SUBSCRIBERSCornell rape allegation spotlights stringent New York state laws that have long drawn criticism

FOR SUBSCRIBERSThe debate over AI’s future rages on both coasts

FOR SUBSCRIBERSDecades-old march dispute reignites in Northern Ireland, threatening political crisis

FOR SUBSCRIBERSMore oil is getting out of the Middle East. Why is it still so expensive?

FOR SUBSCRIBERSThe complicated bargain between ‘looksmaxxing’ influencer Clavicular and the women in his orbit

FOR SUBSCRIBERSSenators unveil bipartisan bill to deliver essential newborn supply kits to new moms

Asked whether she defied the court’s order, Noem said “no” and criticized “activist judges” and “radical decisions.”

In a court filing last week, Justice Department officials said Noem was the Trump administration official who, earlier this year, did not comply with a federal judge’s order to stop the deportation of Venezuelan men whom the administration alleges are members of the Tren de Aragua gang to El Salvador.

For Subscribers

FOR SUBSCRIBERSViolence, transphobia and couple’s competing abuse claims preceded a deadly confrontation in a California park

FOR SUBSCRIBERSFrom clean energy warrior to ‘wall of shame,’ James Talarico reverses on a fossil fuel money pledge

FOR SUBSCRIBERSCongressional staff planned official trip with luxury stops in Italy and France weeks before election

FOR SUBSCRIBERSA harrowing ordeal aboard an Israel-bound plane

FOR SUBSCRIBERSOpenAI CEO Sam Altman to skip congressional hearing on rogue AI agents

FOR SUBSCRIBERSKey DOJ lawyers departed Trump ‘grand conspiracy’ probe amid pressure to produce, source says

FOR SUBSCRIBERSTrump’s new AI chatbot often links to a site launched under Clinton 26 years ago

FOR SUBSCRIBERSAt MAHA summit, industry CEOs the movement once vilified take the stage

FOR SUBSCRIBERSThis Paralympian has two goals: Win medals and give away $500,000 to her teammates

FOR SUBSCRIBERSCornell rape allegation spotlights stringent New York state laws that have long drawn criticism

FOR SUBSCRIBERSThe debate over AI’s future rages on both coasts

FOR SUBSCRIBERSDecades-old march dispute reignites in Northern Ireland, threatening political crisis

FOR SUBSCRIBERSMore oil is getting out of the Middle East. Why is it still so expensive?

FOR SUBSCRIBERSThe complicated bargain between ‘looksmaxxing’ influencer Clavicular and the women in his orbit

FOR SUBSCRIBERSSenators unveil bipartisan bill to deliver essential newborn supply kits to new moms

Last week’s filing referenced a March order by U.S. District Judge James Boasberg to return the men to the United States and a subsequent order for the Trump administration to stop removing alleged members of the Tren de Aragua gang from the U.S. under the Alien Enemies Act.

The filing said that the orders were conveyed to the acting general counsel for the Department of Homeland Security, who then conveyed the order to Noem. Only after that did Noem decide that detainees under the AEA who had already been removed from the U.S. could continue their journey to El Salvador.

The administration has also faced criticism for its handing of the case of Kilmar Abrego Garcia, a man who was wrongfully deported to an El Salvador prison but later sent back to the U.S. Abrego’s lawyers have denied the administration’s allegation that he is a gang member.