Kristi Noem's Eyeliner Fail Was Full-On Kimberly Guilfoyle Cosplay (& Not In A Good Way)

Kristi Noem appears to have a penchant for cosplay, and her confusing costumes often end up distracting from her message. As Governor of South Dakota, Noem role-played her way through a series of professions in their "Freedom Works Here" TV campaign. As Secretary of Homeland Security, Noem's gotten roasted for donning a cowboy hat on TV and getting glammed up for an ICE raid. In June 2025, Noem decided to channel her efforts in a slightly different direction when she went to work, sporting over-the-top, Kimberly Guilfoyle-style eyeliner.

Typically, Noem's makeup fails are centered around her base layer, with cakey foundation being her top mistake. In this photo, however, Noem's eyeliner is massively overdone, with a thick line that makes her eyelid look incredibly small. The long wings don't help, and they seem uncomfortably close to the tips of Noem's eyebrows. Since Noem's eyes are downcast, her lower lids are partially obscured. However, looking at the corner of her left eye, it appears that there's a thick swipe of liner underneath her eyes, too.

While Noem's excessive liner is a definite makeup error, she has succeeded in her homage to Guilfoyle's aesthetic. The shady "Republican makeup" trend is often described as being similar to more ubiquitous 2016 beauty ideals. Guilfoyle's makeup style has completely changed over the years, and by 2016, she was all about fully-lined eyes. Like Noem, her eyeliner application has gotten even more heavy-handed since then and rapidly expanded up towards her brows.

Like Kimberly Guilfoyle, Kristi Noem's eyeliner has been gradually getting bigger and bolder. For instance, a September 2024 Instagram pic of Noem shows her with eyes closed, revealing a too-thick line of eyeliner. Luckily, she doesn't appear to be wearing false eyelashes, so the overall look isn't as over the top.

In 2025, beyond the unflattering comparisons with Guilfoyle, Noem's sporting excessive eyeliner at odd times. In February 2025, Noem posted a picture where she was cuddling a new grandchild. Noem's outsized hoop earrings, false eyelashes, and prominent winged liner seemed out of place with her comfy sweatshirt and messy updo. However, the most incongruous place where Noem rocked her Guilfoyle tribute was at a children's birthday party. Noem frequently shares updates about her granddaughter, Addie, and in July 2025, she posted a pic from the girl's unicorn-themed celebration. Once again, the Homeland Security Secretary's hair was piled high in a disastrous hairdo, and her eyeliner clashed with her cardboard unicorn headband.

Instead of getting her inspo from Guilfoyle, Noem would be better off emulating Ivanka Trump's less-intense approach to eyeliner. "You're not supposed to use entire tube of eye liner all at once," joked one poster on X, formerly Twitter, critiquing Guilfoyle's heavy-handed application. On TikTok, Maggie Burnett posted an eyeliner tutorial specifically intended for Noem, where she suggested Noem opt for a gentler angle on her wings. "You may want to just stick with, like, something more subtle," Burnett advised.