Senator Seeks Perjury Probe Into Fired DHS Chief Noem

Sen. Richard Blumenthal isn't letting Kristi Noem's firing be the end of the story. The Connecticut Democrat says he'll push for a perjury probe into the now-ousted secretary of the Department of Homeland Security, alleging she lied under oath this week about the power wielded by top adviser Corey Lewandowski, reports the New York Times. Noem testified in a Tuesday hearing that Lewandowski had no role in approving DHS contracts. Blumenthal says departmental records show otherwise, alleging Lewandowski personally signed off on deals, and that staff treated his sign-off as a go-ahead to spend.

Blumenthal, the top Democrat on the Senate's Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations, wants that panel to dig in, arguing that Noem's dismissal "doesn't absolve her" or keep her safe from potential legal exposure. With Republicans running the Senate, he can't compel witnesses or documents without GOP backing from subcommittee leader Ron Johnson, but he can still hold public sessions, fire off information requests, and invite whistleblowers to come forward. "The law requires and Congress expects witnesses to provide complete and truthful testimony," Mr. Blumenthal wrote in a Wednesday letter to Noem. "There are criminal penalties for knowingly and willfully making materially false statements or representations to Congress."

Democratic Sen. Cory Booker also grilled Noem during this week's hearings and accused her of perjuring herself, including on her claims that American citizens aren't being detained in the Trump administration's mass deportation efforts, reports the New Republic. "You are not speaking truthfully under oath," Booker said on Tuesday during Noem's testimony, bringing up the case of a US citizen and aspiring Marine held for 70 hours despite showing authorities his passport.

Noem, a Trump ally, was fired two days after testifying under sharp bipartisan queries that also touched on a border security ad blitz featuring her; Trump told Reuters he hadn't approved it and "never knew anything about it." The Global Project for Hate and Extremism details other things Noem said during her two days of testimony on Capitol Hill that it doesn't think are accurate or truthful.