Homeland Security Kristi Noem got $80K from dark money group, but hid it from federal disclosure forms
When
Kristi Noem
was chosen by US President Donald Trump to be the head of
Homeland Security
, people started to look more closely at her finances. But new tax records show that she made a colossal amount of money in secret from a
dark money
nonprofit as the former governor of South Dakota and never reported it on federal disclosure forms. This situation raises a lot of ethical questions.
She secretly accepted a cut of the money she raised for a nonprofit that supports her political career in 2023, while she was serving as governor of South Dakota. According to experts, she most likely violated ethical standards by failing to disclose this income on her federal disclosure forms.
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Why wasn't the $80K disclosed publicly?
The nonprofit transferred funds to a personal business of Noem's that had just been founded in Delaware, in what experts called a very unusual arrangement. That year, the $80,000 payment was a substantial increase over her approximately $130,000 government salary, as per a report by ProPublica.
The $80,000 payment was then not made public by Noem. The original source of the funding is still unknown because the nonprofit is a so-called dark money organization, which is exempt from disclosing the identities of its donors, as per a report by ProPublica.
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Noem was required to publish a thorough accounting of her assets and revenue streams starting in 2023 after President Donald Trump appointed her as his secretary of the Department of Homeland Security.
ProPublica was informed by experts that Noem's personal embezzlement of funds from political donors was concerning. The
American Resolve Policy Fund
, a nonprofit organization, claimed in a filing that the $80,000 was a payment for fundraising. According to the group, Noem generated hundreds of thousands of dollars.
Could this break any ethics or state laws?
It is unremarkable for a politician to solicit funds for nonprofits and other organizations that advance their campaigns or objectives. Experts indicated that it is atypical for a politician to retain a portion of the funds for personal use.
'If contributors to these nonprofits not only influence an elected official's political prospects but also directly furnish their income, that is unprecedented and troubling,' stated Daniel Weiner, a former Federal Election Commission attorney who currently directs the Brennan Center's campaign finance initiatives.
Lee Schoenbeck, a seasoned Republican politician and lawyer who served as the state Senate's leader until recently, speculated that Noem's outside income might have violated South Dakota law. The governor and other high-ranking officials are required by law to dedicate themselves entirely to their official duties.
Details of the payment were found by ProPublica in the American Resolve Policy Fund's annual tax form. The American Resolve Policy Fund is a part of a network of political organizations that support Noem and her agenda.
What has Noem's lawyer said in her defense?
Trevor Stanley, Noem's attorney, stated that the Office of Government Ethics had examined and approved her financial information pertaining to this organization and that Noem complied with the law in both letter and spirit. Follow-up inquiries concerning whether the ethics office knew about the $80,000 payment and whether Noem fully disclosed all of her income on easily accessible public documents were not answered by Stanley.
What else has Kristi Noem come under fire for financially?
Noem has come under fire for using public funds to pay for travel to Houston, Canada, and Paris. Despite being one of Trump's least wealthy Cabinet members, her personal spending patterns have drawn notice.
FAQs
What's up with Noem's $80,000 payment?
She obtained it from a nonprofit involved in political fundraising but did not include it in required federal
financial disclosure forms
. According to experts, this most likely violates ethical standards.
Did Kristi Noem admit to owning the LLC that received payment?
Yes, but only for her Cabinet confirmation. Until then, the LLC, which she formed while still governor, had never been made public.
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