John Fetterman is already backing Donald Trump’s pick to replace Kristi Noem as DHS secretary

U.S. Sen. John Fetterman promised to back President Donald Trump’s pick to succeed Kristi Noem within minutes of her abrupt firing as secretary of homeland security.

Trump has tapped U.S. Sen. Markwayne Mullin (R., Okla.) to lead the Department of Homeland Security, which oversees Immigration and Customs Enforcement, the Border Patrol, and the two agencies’ increasingly unpopular operations in carrying out Trump’s deportation agenda.

Mullin’s nomination must be confirmed by the Senate.

“I’m not sure how many fellow Democrats will vote to support our colleague [Sen. Mullin] as the next DHS Secretary, but I am AYE,” Fetterman said in a post on X, which also noted his membership on the committee that oversees the department.

Mullin and Fetterman (D., Pa.) were both elected to the Senate in 2022. The Oklahoma Republican had served in the U.S. House for a decade before joining the upper chamber. Mullin told reporters he had already received a text message from Fetterman after Trump’s announcement.

“You guys know John and I are friends. … We’re going to try to earn everybody’s vote,” Mullin said when asked whether other Democrats would vote for him.

The sudden change in leadership at DHS follows growing outrage over ICE’s tactics and questions about Noem’s leadership, both of which escalated nationally after federal agents shot and killed U.S. citizens Renee Nicole Good and Alex Pretti in January in Minneapolis.

Immigration has gone from one of Trump’s strongest polling issues to a potential drag on his party in the forthcoming midterms. More than half of Pennsylvania voters disapprove of ICE’s enforcement methods, according to a poll from Franklin and Marshall College released Thursday.

Fetterman and other senators who had voted for Noem’s confirmation called for her to be fired after Pretti’s killing. She also faced criticism from both sides of the aisle at a recent oversight hearing before the Senate that examined a controversial $220 million ad campaign she approved, among other topics.

“Americans have died,“ Fetterman said in a direct plea to Trump in January. ”She is betraying DHS’s core mission and trashing your border security legacy."

U.S. Sen. Dave McCormick (R., Pa.) said on Thursday that he supports Mullin’s nomination.

It is unclear whether other Democratic senators will give the green light to Mullin’s nomination, but many on Thursday were quick to celebrate Noem’s departure as she transitions into a newly created role in the Trump administration called “the Special Envoy for the Shield of the Americas.”

U.S. Sen. Andy Kim (D., N.J.), who also voted for Noem’s confirmation in January 2025 before calling for her to be fired a year later, said Thursday on X that her firing “Will be the most popular decision of [Trump’s] presidency.”

But he cautioned that Noem’s termination is “only the start of getting rid of the deep rot of corruption in the Trump administration,” and that other officials, including Trump adviser Stephen Miller and Tom Homan, the border czar, should be held accountable for immigration agents’ conduct.

The leadership change comes as Pennsylvania and New Jersey officials are pushing back on DHS’s plans to convert warehouses in the states into detention centers.

Kim and U.S. Sen. Cory Booker (D., N.J.) have offered legislation to prohibit such moves and Gov. Josh Shapiro has floated possible legal action over DHS’s purchase of two warehouses in Pennsylvania.

Democratic House members from the region echoed Kim’s sentiment that more change is needed than just the leadership of the department.

Lawmakers are still debating future funding for DHS, with Democrats demanding reforms to immigration enforcement before they will approve more money for the department.

“Change the lousy policies, not just the person,” U.S. Rep. Dwight Evans (D., Philadelphia) wrote on X.

“We still need real accountability at DHS, including meaningful reforms to ICE so agents are not terrorizing Americans,” U.S. Rep. Brendan Boyle (D., Philadelphia) said on X.

Boyle criticized Fetterman for immediately pledging to support Mullin, saying in another post that the Pennsylvania senator is “Trump’s favorite Democrat for a good reason.“

U.S. Rep. Chrissy Houlahan (D., Chester) congratulated Trump in a statement Thursday for “taking this long overdue action” in firing Noem.

“I sincerely hope Mr. Mullin or whomever is eventually confirmed will be prepared to reform ICE and to work with the Congress to rein in its most destructive practices,” she said.

U.S. Rep. Ryan Mackenzie (R., Lehigh), who represents a key swing district, said he looks forward to “seeing a greater emphasis on transparency” under Mullin.

He stopped short of criticizing Noem and said in the last year DHS “made critical progress towards securing the border once and for all.”

One of the reforms Democrats have called for is a prohibition on ICE agents wearing masks. U.S. Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick (R., Bucks), a former FBI agent, is one of the few Republicans supporting that proposal as a way to restore trust with the agency.

His office underlined that a new leader should focus on rebuilding the department’s reputation with the American people.

“The Department of Homeland Security carries one of the most important missions in government — protecting the American people. That mission requires the public’s trust, and Congressman Fitzpatrick believes a leadership change was needed to help restore confidence in the department," Fitzpatrick spokesperson Casey-Lee Waldron said in a statement.

“He hopes Senator Mullin will work to rebuild that trust and strengthen DHS moving forward.”