Kristi Noem is back in headlines after she was caught trying to hide from cameras.
The former Homeland Security secretary has largely stayed out of the public eye. It’s a stark contrast to her high-profile role in the Trump administration.
She appeared to be on a downward spiral after losing her gig in March. And now new photos have the public speculating about what she’s been up to.
Her firing came days after a brutal hearing before the Senate Judiciary Committee and House Judiciary Committee regarding DHS funding, ICE, and rumors tied to her subordinate, Corey Lewandowski.
Noem was demoted to special envoy in the Trump administration.
The bedroom rumors tying Noem and Lewandowski, 52, resurfaced after the duo was spotted having a midday bite to eat.
Whispers about the ex-governor of South Dakota having an inappropriate relationship with Lewandowski began in 2021.
He reportedly accompanied Noem on immigration enforcement raids in 2025 as part of his role as a special unpaid adviser. He was given the boot from Homeland Security, which confirmed his departure shortly after her.
But it seems the two have not exactly parted ways.
TMZ’s latest footage captured the woman dubbed “ICE Barbie” and Lewandowski together in Minnesota on Tuesday afternoon.
The pair were seen biking along the shores of Lake Minnetonka and dining outside The Grocer’s Table café in Wayzata.
Noem wore short shorts, a plaid shirt, and a hat that partially covered her face with her hair tucked underneath.
Lewandowski wore a black shirt, khaki pants, and sunglasses. Once he noticed the cameras, he quickly turned his head in the opposite direction.
Once they both noticed cameras watching nearby, Noem and Lewandowski got up from the table and walked inside the restaurant. The duo were later seen relishing their companionship at the CōV restaurant.
The meet-up in Minnesota came after Noem faced an intense interrogation, where she called a “government employee.”
Five months ago, Noem scrambled to explain her working relationship with Lewandowski and rumors about a blanket that was found after they were on the plane.
months ago, but the new clips of them seemingly on vacation together in the upscale Minneapolis suburb tell a different story.
Womp Womp…
But they are only colleagues!
Great job, TMZ!
Lewandowski’s reaction at the table = PRICELESS!
I think he saw y’all pedalling away, as well!
The online mockery of Noem continued when another snarky commenter joked, “She would ‘never’ succumb to being tabloid garbage!”
Noem also faced backlash over her handling of two high-profile fatal shootings by DHS officers in Minneapolis in January.
“Minnesotans were pissed, she needs to get the hell out,” one Noem critic said. Another outraged individual declared, “Gross! Get them the Hell out of our state!!”
Lewandowski also came under fire, as some remembered his wife, Alison Hardy Lewandowski, and their four children.
“What about Cory’s wife?” one person on X wondered. Someone else pointed out, “People tend to forget Lewandowski is married with … children.”
Rumors of an affair between Noem and her Homeland Security adviser intensified after a Wall Street Journal report. It alleged that she fired a Coast Guard pilot over a forgotten blanket on a luxury plane.
During the two-day hearing, Noem was confronted with a photo of a private jet’s bedroom.
With her husband, Byron Noem, seated nearby, Kristi fired back, “I am shocked we’re going down and peddling tabloid garbage in this committee.”
Rep. Sydney Kamlager-Dove directly asked: “Secretary Noem, have you had sexual relations with Corey Lewandowski?”
Multiple scandals have consumed Noem since her firing, including controversy surrounding her marriage to Bryon Noem.
Kristi and Bryon married in 1992 and share three adult children, Kassidy, Kennedy, and Booker. Then, in April 2026, the Daily Mail published secret images of Bryon, 56, that shocked the political world.
Another political shocker came after Noem’s 77-year-old mother, Corinne Arnold, dropped a bombshell.
Three months later, Arnold told the British outlet that her daughter and Bryon were planning to get divorced.
Noem’s assignment as the Trump administration’s special envoy for The Shield of the Americas has kept her in Washington, while Lewandowski returned to the self-named Washington public affairs firm he founded.
