Mary Trump Reacts to Noem Privacy Plea on Husband's Reported Cross-Dressing
By: Adeola Adeosun (Newsweek)
S E E D E D C O N T E N T
Mary Trump, the estranged niece of President Donald Trump, is pushing back sharply after former Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Kristi Noem requested privacy following a bombshell report alleging her husband cross-dresses—calling the request hypocritical given Noem's record on civil liberties.
Why It Matters
The controversy surrounding the spouse of a recently ousted Trump Cabinet member who oversaw sensitive national security operations has raised questions among critics about potential blackmail exposure and security clearance standards.
Mary Trump has been a consistent and vocal critic of her uncle since his first term, and her sharp rebuke of a former top administration official underscores the ongoing scrutiny surrounding the president's Cabinet and those who serve in it.
The scandal adds another layer of damage to an administration already facing questions over the conduct and judgment of its senior officials, and reignites debate over whether public figures who curtailed the rights of others are entitled to the same protections they denied to Americans under their watch.
What To Know
The Daily Mail reported on Tuesday that Bryon Noem—Kristi Noem's husband of more than 30 years—allegedly exchanged hundreds of messages with online fetish models from the "bimbofication" scene, in which adult performers augment their appearance to create an exaggerated, hyper-feminine look.
In one photo obtained by the Mail, Bryon appears wearing a flesh-colored top with balloons inside to simulate breasts, along with pink shorts. He also allegedly sent at least $25,000 to online acquaintances via Cash App and PayPal.
Bryon Noem briefly broke his silence Tuesday in response to interview requests from The New York Times, saying only: "I will at some point. Today is not the day. I appreciate your heart." He did not deny the allegations.
A representative for Kristi Noem told the New York Post the family was "blindsided" by the reports and is asking for "privacy and prayers." Kristi and Bryon Noem have been married since 1992 and have three children together. The couple attended the same high school and began dating when she was a junior and he was a college freshman, according to People.
Mary Trump responded Saturday in a video posted to X, targeting Noem's privacy request directly. She pointed to Noem's record overseeing aggressive immigration enforcement, her $220 million self-promotional ad campaign funded by taxpayers, and her public labeling of Alex Pretti and Renee Good—two U.S. citizens fatally shot by federal agents during immigration operations in Minneapolis in January—as "domestic terrorists." Mary Trump was unsparing in her assessment.
"On Tuesday former Department of Homeland Security Secretary and puppy murderer, Kristi Noem was given some upsetting news," she said. "Kristi wants privacy? F*** you, Kristi, though. You don't deserve it. You want compassion? No way. That woman, who is now claiming that she deserves, what she has denied to tens of thousands, hundreds of thousands, if not millions of people, wants her rights respected. F*** that. This is who we're talking about."
Mary Trump concluded: "Yeah, that cosplaying woman. We spent $220 million of our taxpayer dollars on an ad campaign, featuring herself, is asking for privacy. Her cosplay photoshoot looks like she was making a DHS calendar that we paid for."
The revelations arrive as Noem remains embroiled in multiple controversies stemming from her DHS tenure, including an inspector general investigation into whether Republican operative Corey Lewandowski improperly influenced departmental contracts and bipartisan congressional backlash over a $70 million luxury jet procurement. Trump later fired Noem making her the first Cabinet member dismissed from his second-term team. She has since been appointed Special Envoy for the Shield of the Americas.
Trump announced Oklahoma Republican Senator Markwayne Mullin would replace Noem. The Senate later confirmed him in a 54-45 vote.
What People Are Saying
President Donald Trump told The Daily Mail: "They confirmed it? Wow, well, I feel badly for the family if that's the case, that's too bad. I haven't seen anything. I don't know anything about it. That's too bad, but I just know nothing about it."
Far-right activist Laura Loomer wrote on X earlier this week: "Kristi Noem said her family is blindsided by revelations her husband is a cross dresser and gay. That isn't true. She knew all about her husband which is why she lives with Corey Lewandowski in the DC area. That's why her husband never divorced her. It was their arrangement. Literally everyone in the admin has known this forever. I'm shocked it didn't come out earlier. They can divorce and move on and live their lives without keeping secrets."
Nancy Turbak, a former Democratic state senator from South Dakota, told The New York Times: "I am sorry that Bryon is now the subject of so much attention himself, and for any embarrassment he's experiencing. He never asked for the public life in the first place, and I know him to be a kind and decent man. I wish he were not going through this."
U.S. counterintelligence expert Jack Barskytold The Daily Mail earlier this week: "It's astounding that somebody whose spouse is at that level has that kind of bad judgment."
Newsweek's reporters and editors used Martyn, our AI assistant, to help produce this story. Learn more about Martyn.Request Reprint & LicensingSubmit CorrectionView Editorial & AI GuidelinesAdd Newsweek as a preferred source on Google to see more of our trusted coverage when you search.
Tags
Who is online
124 visitors
How the mighty have fallen.
When you're out and proud you can't be blackmailed.
As far as Kristi Noem is concerned, Mary Trump is right. Hegseth said it: "No mercy".
As for the husband, I hope, for his sake, that he quickly fades into obscurity.
This story is beyond 'redemption.' These people are beneath contempt. A cross-dresser without any compassion for Others. . . what a betrayal. I suppose now he will want to 'switch' sides. . . or, go out and profess his love for his "people" - he should be forsaken. Casted aside, shunned, by his fellow cross-dressers and the homosexual community as judgement.
I just watched a news story about a transsexual Naval Commander having served twenty years who was denied the rank of Captain and worse compelled to retire or be 'tossed out' and this man wants mercy? Four thousand transsexuals in the military may be removed from active service to their country they support, are out in, and will lose their career prosperity. . .and, he wants to 'save' himself over and beyond any compassion for his OWN!
Moreover, where are the MAGA "Sadists" that should be raking him over the figurative coals with their contempt for what they have learned (and some knew prior to this)?! Where are the NT MAGAs'. . . Where are their condemnations of him and Kristi?!!!
meh bfd, kristi's been acting like she's had a dick for over a decade. hopefully lindsey graham got his number ...
I am sending thoughts and prayers - to all the people she has terrorized, and to her two slaughtered pets.