Kristi Noem & Corey Lewandowski's Bad Behavior Isn't Going To Help Their Soured Reputations

It appears that Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem's questionable behavior is slowly catching up to her. Noem and her rumored affair partner Corey Lewandowski were pulled into President Donald Trump's Oval Office in September 2025 to get a stern talking to after they reportedly lashed out at employees. According to New York Magazine, Trump was displeased with the behavior of the pair, but, "He was particularly mad at Corey," per an inside source. Apparently Lewandowski has a bit of a mean streak and "can't get along with anybody."

The month before being pulled aside by Trump, both Noem and Lewandowski reportedly yelled at staffers following a spate of bad press about their department. "They were screaming," an unnamed Department of Homeland Security employee told New York Magazine, saying that, "I think people were really shocked and taken aback," by the animosity. Another source also claimed that "multiple F-bombs" came from the secretary of Homeland Security in the heat of the moment, emphasizing some of the non-ignorable rumors about Noem and her personality.

But it's not just Trump and DHS staffers noticing that Noem and Lewandowski are fumbling their positions — what supposedly set them off in the first place was reports about how they're running things in Trump's second administration.

When Kristi Noem took over as Homeland Security secretary, she made some work-related choices that raised eyebrows. Noem reportedly gunked up the works by causing delays in approvals for payments within DHS. The former governor also supposedly dragged her feet to approve aid for Texas in the wake of devastating floods in July 2025, according to The Daily Beast. The New York Magazine report said some claims of contract approvals taking longer than normal were denied by workers at the Department of Homeland Security, but it's still bad press. Something else that also could have triggered the bad attitude might have been Noem's embarrassing portrayal in an August 2025 episode of "South Park." To add insult to injury, Noem's partner-in-crime, Corey Lewandowski, also hasn't been able to skirt scandal.

When Lewandowski tried to initially serve as chief of staff for Noem, the move was blocked in part due to the affair rumors swirling around Noem and Lewandowski. While the two have consistently denied the rumors and are still married to their respective partners, it is what an employee at FEMA told New York Magazine, the "worst-kept secret in D.C." Lewandowski has also been pushing the limits of his unpaid Special Government Employee position, which is supposed to be temporary but he shows no signs of leaving. Of course, Lewandowski may not want to leave his living situation, which sees him enjoying close quarters with Noem. However, if he and Noem continue to berate employees and share in messy scandals, they both might hear, "You're fired!"