Latest news with #KristiL.Noem
Toronto Sun
16-05-2025
- Politics
- Toronto Sun
U.S. considering reality show in which immigrants compete for citizenship
Published May 16, 2025 • 2 minute read Homeland Security Secretary Kristi L. Noem. Photo by Marvin Joseph / The Washington Post The Department of Homeland Security is vetting a pitch for a reality television show in which immigrants would compete against one another for U.S. citizenship. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. THIS CONTENT IS RESERVED FOR SUBSCRIBERS ONLY Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Unlimited online access to articles from across Canada with one account. Get exclusive access to the Toronto Sun ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment on. Enjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalists. Support local journalists and the next generation of journalists. Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword. SUBSCRIBE TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Unlimited online access to articles from across Canada with one account. Get exclusive access to the Toronto Sun ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment on. Enjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalists. Support local journalists and the next generation of journalists. Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword. REGISTER / SIGN IN TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account. Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments. Enjoy additional articles per month. Get email updates from your favourite authors. THIS ARTICLE IS FREE TO READ REGISTER TO UNLOCK. Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments Enjoy additional articles per month Get email updates from your favourite authors Don't have an account? Create Account The proposed reality show, first reported by the Daily Mail , 'is in the very beginning stages of that vetting process and has not received approval or denial by staff,' DHS spokeswoman Tricia McLaughlin told The Washington Post in an email. McLaughlin added that Homeland Security Secretary Kristi L. Noem has not reviewed the proposal. The reality competition series was pitched by Rob Worsoff, a Canadian-born writer and producer who was behind A&E's Duck Dynasty and Bravo's Millionaire Matchmaker . Worsoff, who could not be reached for comment Friday, told the Wall Street Journal that he has not had direct contact with Noem but has had positive feedback from the federal agency and is in preliminary discussions with networks. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. 'This isn't The Hunger Games for immigrants,' Worsoff told the newspaper, referring to the dystopian fictional novel by Suzanne Collins, in which contestants fight to the death for survival. 'This is not, 'Hey, if you lose, we are shipping you out on a boat out of the country.'' Instead, according to a pitch deck obtained by the Daily Mail , each episode of the proposed show would feature a 'heritage challenge,' an 'elimination challenge,' a 'town hall meeting' and a 'final vote.' Twelve immigrant contestants would arrive on a boat at Ellis Island and travel around the United States in a train called 'The American' – also the proposed name of the show – to learn about the nation's history. Along the way, contestants would compete in supposedly quintessentially American challenges like mining for gold in San Francisco, logrolling in Wisconsin, and assembling the chassis for a Model T Ford in Detroit, according to the Daily Mail . The final episode would feature one 'winner' being sworn in as an American citizen on the steps of the U.S. Capitol in Washington, according to the pitch. The proposal also listed actors Sofia Vergara, Ryan Reynolds or Mila Kunis as potential hosts for the show, as they are naturalized citizens of the United States. Reynolds was never consulted about the show, according to a person with knowledge of the situation who spoke on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss his projects. Celebrity Toronto & GTA Columnists Toronto & GTA Toronto Maple Leafs
Yomiuri Shimbun
15-05-2025
- Politics
- Yomiuri Shimbun
Trump Wants a New Plane. Now, So Does Homeland Security Secretary Noem.
Tom Brenner/For The Washington Post Homeland Security Secretary Kristi L. Noem testifies before the House Appropriations subcommittee on homeland security on May 6. President Donald Trump is not the only one in his administration seeking a new plane. The Department of Homeland Security is planning on a new Gulfstream V, an agency official confirmed Wednesday, after the anticipated acquisition spilled into public view during a congressional oversight hearing. Rep. Lauren Underwood (D-Illinois) questioned the spending plan during a House Appropriations Committee hearing on the U.S. Coast Guard and in a social media post, contending that the aircraft would be primarily used by Homeland Security Secretary Kristi L. Noem. Underwood said the funding, which she placed at $50 million, would be taken from the budget of the Coast Guard, which is overseen by the DHS. 'She already has a Gulfstream 5, by the way, but she wants a new one paid for with your taxpayer dollars,' Underwood wrote on X. Referring to the Coast Guard, Underwood added: 'We should be investing in our national security and improving the lives of our Coasties – not wasting taxpayer dollars on luxury travel and political stunts.' At the hearing, Underwood asked Adm. Kevin Lunday, acting Coast Guard commandant, whether he had received any communication from his DHS superiors about a new plane for Noem. He did not directly answer the question, saying that the Coast Guard has two long-range military command and control aircraft. Lunday described the Coast Guard's aircraft fleet as aging and said Noem's plane is 'approaching obsolescence.' Such aircraft are necessary for top DHS and Coast Guard officials, he said, to ensure reliable communications and travel plans. Tricia McLaughlin, an assistant DHS secretary, defended the planned Gulfstream acquisition, saying the agency's aircraft are 'well beyond their service life and safe operational usage.' In a statement, she said the current Gulfstream is more than 20 years old, making it 'well beyond operational usage hours for a corporate aircraft.' The Coast Guard has generally kept two Gulfstream jets in service for use both by admirals and senior civilian officials at DHS. Its older executive jet, a C-37A, is based on the Gulfstream V model and began flying with the Coast Guard in 2002, according to government records. The military service ordered a new executive jet, the Gulfstream 550, in 2020 at a cost of about $66 million and began using it two years later, officials said at the time. It's designated a C-37B. The request for a new executive jet comes after years of the Coast Guard raising concerns about the age of its search-and-rescue planes, helicopters, and other equipment. Many of them were first put into use in the 1980s and 1990s, the independent Government Accountability Office found last year. The disclosure of the DHS's interest in a new jet comes as Trump has been advocating for a pair of new aircraft to act as Air Force One, the designation given to specially equipped and fortified jets that ferry the president. Trump has been seeking a new model from Boeing since his first term, but production delays have set back the expected delivery time, prompting criticism from the president. This week, Trump has faced criticism from Democrats for saying he plans to accept a $400 million Boeing 747-8 as a gift from the government of Qatar. During a visit to the Middle East, the president said he would use the plane for a 'couple of years' while he waits for a pair of Boeing planes to be completed. Ethics experts have raised concerns that such a donation from a foreign government would be unconstitutional, violating the emoluments clause, which forbids U.S. officials to accept gifts or other things of value from foreign officials without congressional approval.
Washington Post
23-04-2025
- Politics
- Washington Post
Senator probes CBP nominee's alleged interference in migrant death investigation
A leading Senate Democrat said in a letter Wednesday that he is seeking records to determine if President Donald Trump's nominee to lead U.S. Customs and Border Protection improperly intervened in the criminal probe into the 2010 death of an undocumented immigrant in federal custody. In a letter to Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi L. Noem, Sen. Ron Wyden (D-Oregon) said nominee Rodney Scott was a top Border Patrol official in the San Diego sector when agents battered Anastasio Hernandez Rojas with batons and shocked him with a taser, leaving him unconscious and bloody. His subsequent death led to investigations that shadowed CBP for years and are likely to undergo fresh scrutiny as Scott's Senate confirmation hearing approaches.
Washington Post
18-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Washington Post
At the Ralph Lauren show, even the designer had shed his flag sweater
NEW YORK — The meaning, not to mention the cost, of American fashion is suddenly a matter of great debate. For a century, preppy and Western were the staples with which we all endlessly played. But now, economic and political uncertainty have freighted these styles with new meaning. While Beyoncé is preparing to launch a tour for her country album, 'Cowboy Carter,' Homeland Security Secretary Kristi L. Noem has embraced polos and cowboy boots a part of her Border Patrol uniform. The tradwife, represented with winking and absurdist aspiration by former model Nara Smith and with more sincerity by Hannah Neeleman, also known online as Ballerina Farm, comes with its own wardrobe — milkmaid-style dresses and cotton slips from Doen. Is this an out-of-touch Marie Antoinette cosplaying as a farm gal in the Petit Trianon at Versailles or an honest desire among many women to ditch the grinding life of blazers and Zoom-ready tops?
Washington Post
17-04-2025
- Politics
- Washington Post
DHS demands records of Harvard's foreign students, threatens enrollment
Homeland Security Secretary Kristi L. Noem on Wednesday demanded that Harvard University submit records before next month on foreign students alleged to have engaged in 'illegal and violent activities,' or face losing its Student and Exchange Visitor Program (SEVP) certification, which allows U.S. universities to admit international students. The threat comes as scores of international students and scholars have learned that their visas were abruptly revoked, leaving college officials scrambling to understand what is happening. More than 1 million international students attend colleges in the United States every year, contributing nearly $44 billion to the economy, The Washington Post previously reported.
