Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem on Monday:

REPORTER: We have currently missiles raining down on the U.S. force in Qatar. What is your biggest concern when it comes to safety for Americans? DHS SECRETARY KRISTI NOEM:Well, the President of the United States is making some very important decisions right now. My responsibility is to secure the homeland and to do all I can to make sure that we’re identifying threats that may be here, what we can do to get in front of them before anything could happen to the population that live here in the United States, but also to work with governors and law enforcement to make sure that they recognize potential threats or suspicious activities. We have not seen any currently, but I do know that I’m going to leave here and go get some intelligence briefings and need to get into a secure area for some new information, so I’ll know more later. REPORTER: [inaudible] NOEM: We did see, during the Biden administration, thousands of people came into our country over an open border that came from the Middle East. We have always been aware of the fact that some of these folks that may have come into our country could have potentially been radicalized, and so that is why we continue every day to go out and identify individuals that could be a threat to our homeland, and we’ll continue to work to do that. We recognize that as tensions escalate, that means that there could be more potential for threats here at home. And so that’s why we’re at an elevated threat right now and we’ll continue to stay diligent. REPORTER: What about events like July 4? Is there a particular concern? NOEM: You know, there’s been concern since I took this job. We have incredible threats to this country from many nations that are enemies to the United States of America. You know, it’s not just Iran, it’s North Korea, Russia, China-consistently, every single day, are trying to threaten our way of life. So my job is to do all that I can to protect our country before something bad does happen. REPORTER: When we talk about sleeper cells, a lot of the past, like in terms of hits on the president and other U.S. officials, those have been carried out-at least according to prosecutors-by individuals hired here, not sleeper cells. Is there a concern of something different? NOEM: We’ve seen some from overseas and some that have been here, maybe gone overseas for a short period of time, become radicalized and come back, or individuals that are right here in the United States. So we have to watch for all of it and be diligent on all of it, and we’ll continue to do so. REPORTER: What do we know right now in regards to those sleeper cells? How is DHS tracking and following and seeking information? NOEM: I can’t necessarily share that with you, but I will tell you that we are continuing to evaluate every single thread and to proactively go after them before they do anything or take any activity. REPORTER: Are we changing security policies at ports of entry since Saturday? NOEM: I can’t talk about that. REPORTER: [inaudible] NOEM: What I would tell the people that live in this country is to be grateful that they woke up this morning in the United States of America. We-because we woke up here-are more blessed than 99% of the people in the world because we live in a country where freedom and liberty is embraced. And that’s what our president was protecting by going after specific nuclear sites in Iran. That was something that was non-negotiable, and he did not do anything except take out the potential for that nuclear weapon to be utilized. This country is leading the world and has been for many years and will continue to do so as long as we still have strong leadership like President Trump’s in the White House. I believe that the president worked aggressively to make sure that we are safer, and we will be into the future as well. REPORTER: Are you aware of any threat that was issued to Trump while he was overseas by Iran? NOEM: Thank you guys so much.

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