Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem had struggled to compete with protesters and sirens blaring during a theatrical press conference decorated with drug props.
Noem was at the southern border in California Thursday to tout the Trump administration’s efforts on border security and drug seizures.
“President Trump has cut off the flow of trafficking down at the southern border, and just of fentanyl, we’ve seen a decrease of 5 percent drop in fentanyl coming into this country. The vault that we’ve toured today holds 188,218 pounds of seized illicit drugs,” Noem said over the sound of sirens.
The loud sirens were audible before Noem took the podium at the Otay Mesa Detention Center. The volume of the sirens did not change once the secretary began speaking.
Also noticeable were the dozens of cardboard boxes labeled “evidence” stacked behind Noem and the evidence bags of drugs piled on top of the boxes and at Noem’s feet.
Noem has to contend with the chants of protesters outside the facility. NBC San Diego captured a photo of a group of demonstrators at the detention center holding signs shortly before the press conference. One protester on the street was holding an upside-down American flag, a symbol of political dissent.
One Reddit user announced Noem’s travel plans “for those who ask about protests.”
The person said there would be a protest at Otay Mesa Detention Center, adding, “what better way to tell” Noem “that she is awful and a stain in history.”
The Independent has reached out to the Homeland Security Department for comment.
This is a developing story…
