Performative DHS Secretary, and self-proclaimed slayer of puppies, Kristi Noem, is accused of fast-tracking a project to repair a dock near the home of Trump stooge and her reported boyfriend Corey Lewandowski in Naples, Florida.
The records show that Noem quickly expedited more than $11 million of federal money to rebuild a historic pier in Naples, Florida, after she was contacted by a major financial supporter last month. The pier is a tourist attraction in the wealthy Gulf Coast enclave and was badly damaged by Hurricane Ian in 2022.
Frustrated city officials had been laboring for months, without success, to get disaster assistance. But just two weeks after the donor stepped in, they were celebrating their sudden change of fortune. "We are now at warp speed with FEMA," one city official wrote in an email. A FEMA representative wrote: "Per leadership instruction, pushing project immediately."
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Noem's top adviser, Corey Lewandowski, also appears to own a home in Naples near the city's pier, according to property tax records. Lewandowski is an unpaid staffer at DHS serving as Noem's de facto chief of staff. (Media reports have alleged the two are romantically involved, which they have both denied.) Lewandowski told ProPublica that he was not involved in the pier decision and that he was not in Naples during Noem's visit.
RawStory
The pier project had been stalled for months as cities hit by Hurricane Ian begged for help. But according to ProPublica, the funds only moved quickly after a wealthy donor with ties to Noem intervened. Days later, DHS approved a multimillion-dollar rebuild for the tourist landmark, leapfrogging other communities still waiting for relief.
The optics are terrible: a Trump Administration cabinet member directing taxpayer dollars to a luxury Gulf Coast enclave while ordinary storm victims are still patching their roofs and hauling debris. This appears more like political patronage and self-dealing than disaster relief.
Previously:
• Former official: Noem 'likely to become the warden of the police state'
• The hilarious but sad life of Kristi Noem (video)
• Kristi Noem finds free waterfront housing by pulling rank on Coast Guard
• Kristi Noem says videotaping ICE agents is an act of 'violence'
• Kristi Noem discovers antisemitism exists, but only in immigrant Twitter feeds
