Noem's use of Coast Guard resources strains her relationship with the military branch, sources say [View all]

Source: NBC News

Feb. 17, 2026, 5:00 AM EST


WASHINGTON — Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem’s relationship with U.S. Coast Guard officials has become strained throughout her first year leading the department, according to two U.S. officials, a Coast Guard official and a former Coast Guard official.

The tensions between Noem and the only branch of the U.S. military overseen by DHS stem from some early decisions she made that rankled Coast Guard officials, including a verbal directive to shift Coast Guard resources from a search and rescue mission to find a missing service member, the sources said. Noem’s leadership at DHS has created a specific split in the Coast Guard. Many rank-and-file members are motivated by her approach, in which she showcases their work by joining them on operations and visiting their ships.

Some more senior officials, however, see that approach as taking away from the Coast Guard’s traditional missions. The dynamic with more senior officials has only worsened in recent months as Noem oversaw a tenfold increase in the use of the Coast Guard's aircraft for immigrant deportations, which has strained its limited resources, the sources said. The increase was captured in data compiled by ICE Flight Monitor, a nonprofit group that tracks deportation flights. “It puts so much stress on the wing,” the Coast Guard official said, referring to the branch’s aviation units.

Noem’s focus on meeting the Trump administration’s deportation quotas appears poised to further impact Coast Guard operations in the coming months, according to new guidance recently issued to Coast Guard Air Station Sacramento this year. Based on DHS priorities, the air station, which is among those responsible for a majority of deportation flights, has designated its first priority to be the transport of detained immigrants on its C-27 aircraft within the U.S., according to multiple U.S. officials familiar with the orders.

Read more: https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/immigration/noems-use-coast-guard-resources-strains-relationship-military-branch-s-rcna258904