The spectacular fall of Kristi Noem, the face of Trump's war on immigration - EL PAÍS
Key Takeaways
- EL País reports that South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem’s rapid political fall has weakened a prominent surrogate for Donald Trump’s hardline border agenda.
- Noem championed state deployments to the Texas border and amplified “invasion” rhetoric; her influence may wane, but the GOP’s enforcement-first strategy remains intact.
- Immigration enforcement is federal; state measures like Texas’s Operation Lone Star and SB 4 have faced ongoing court challenges and have limited legal scope.
- For migrants, asylum seekers, and employers, there is no immediate change to USCIS (U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services) or CBP (U.S. Customs and Border Protection) processes.
- People traveling through Texas should expect continued aggressive state policing in some areas, while federal visa and asylum rules remain unchanged.
A sudden fall for a hardline messenger
It has been reported that Governor Kristi Noem—once touted as a potential running mate and a leading voice for former President Donald Trump’s border crackdown—has seen her political stock plunge after a string of controversies, including a damaging anecdote in her forthcoming memoir. EL País frames Noem as the public face of Trump-era immigration hardliners: she repeatedly visited the southern border, echoed “invasion” language, and sent South Dakota National Guard troops to support Texas’s Operation Lone Star. One 2021 deployment drew fire after it was reportedly underwritten by a private donor through a state foundation, raising ethical concerns over pay‑to‑deploy optics. Noem’s diminished standing may remove a high-visibility messenger, but it does not alter the policy direction favored by Trump allies, who continue to push for sharper enforcement at and between ports of entry.
What governors can—and cannot—do on immigration
Under the U.S. Constitution, immigration is primarily a federal responsibility. States can cooperate with federal agencies—such as ICE (U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement)—through programs like 287(g), which allow certain local officers to perform limited federal functions after training. But governors cannot create their own immigration systems. Texas’s Operation Lone Star relies largely on state trespass and smuggling laws to police border areas and has spawned high-profile measures such as SB 4, a law that would authorize state officers to arrest people suspected of illegal entry. SB 4 has been tied up in litigation, with implementation repeatedly paused and narrowed by federal courts. National Guard units that governors dispatch typically assist with surveillance and support; they do not conduct federal immigration arrests, which remain the province of CBP and ICE.
What this means if you’re navigating the system now
For visa applicants, families, employers, and asylum seekers, Noem’s political slide does not change federal rules, filing fees, or processing times at USCIS, nor does it alter CBP’s inspection and processing at ports of entry. The practical impact is largely localized: in parts of Texas, migrants may continue to face state-level arrests for trespass or vehicle stops associated with Operation Lone Star, while the legality of broader state immigration enforcement remains contested in court. Asylum seekers should expect federal screening and court processes to proceed as before, and employers should continue standard I‑9 and E‑Verify compliance. The headline takeaway: rhetoric and political fortunes may shift, but the mechanics of U.S. immigration still run through federal law and agencies—watch the courts, not the campaign trail, for any immediate changes.
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