Dept. of Homeland Security Official Admits on Hidden Camera Plans to Defy Kristi Noem’s Leadership

James O’Keefe has done it again.

His team has captured video evidence of a DHS official openly touting a department-wide plan to buck the leadership if incoming DHS Secretary Kristi Noem.

While there have been rumors and expectations for pushback against President Trump’s cabinet level nominees, this may be the first time a staffer at one of the departments has been caught openly bragging about a concerted effort to work against the Trump administration from within a department.

O’Keefe initially teased that he had the video to be released on January 29th:

We have a top DHS official ON TAPE revealing plans by DHS employees to defy Trump-appointed Kristi Noem’s orders.

cc: @DHSgov, @KristiNoem – thoughts?

— James O'Keefe (@JamesOKeefeIII) January 29, 2025

But sure enough, he made good on his promise to release the footage.

It’s everything you would hope wouldn’t happen, but expected to be happening.

ICYMI: GS-14 @DHSgov official Brandon Wright admitted the department will defy Trump-appointed Secretary @KristiNoem’s “marching orders,” revealing tactics to sidestep directives they don’t agree with: “The secretaries can set priorities, but they can't actually tell us what to… https://t.co/bxqbTYwE1C pic.twitter.com/KPWJIQKNxL

— James O'Keefe (@JamesOKeefeIII) February 4, 2025

Here’s the full screen player for backup and easier viewing:

ICYMI: GS-14 @DHSgov official Brandon Wright admitted the department will defy Trump-appointed Secretary @KristiNoem’s “marching orders,” revealing tactics to sidestep directives they don’t agree with: “The secretaries can set priorities, but they can’t actually tell us what to… https://t.co/bxqbTYwE1C pic.twitter.com/KPWJIQKNxL

— James O’Keefe (@JamesOKeefeIII) February 4, 2025

According to a post by O’Keefe on Instagram, the man is currently set to be terminated after being put on leave and investigated.

Here’s the full text of O’Keefe’s IG post, including the statement by DHS pertaining to the individual’s termination.

“We Don’t Let Them Get in Our Way”: GS-14 @dhsgov Official Admits Department Will Defy Trump Appointed Secretary @kristinoem’s “Marching Orders,” Reveals Tactics to ‘Interpret Priorities We Don’t Agree With’

“The truth is, we don’t let them [political appointees] get in our way,” admits Brandon Wright, Platform Services Manager for the Department of Homeland Security, on hidden camera, to an undercover O’Keefe Media Group Journalist. Drawing an analogy to a septic tank, Wright described the multi-layered bureaucracy within DHS: “There’s a lot of layers, like [in] government… By the time the actual marching orders get to me and below, we can filter it in a way that steadies the ship.”

“If we don’t agree with those priorities,” he said, noting executing orders often involves deceptively construing priorities set by political appointees to make them more practical and less disruptive, adding, “there’s a lot of room for interpretation.”

When discussing Kristi Noem’s role as the Trump-appointed DHS Secretary, Wright didn’t mince words on his opinions over Noem’s qualifications for the position. “Kristi Noem doesn’t know… She doesn’t know her ass,” he remarked, adding, “The Department of Homeland Security could fall on her f*cking head, and she wouldn’t recognize what it is.”

Wright also admitted his personal dislike of her leadership style, adding, “To say that I am not excited about this would be the most epic understatement.”

The Department of Homeland Security provided the following statement to O’Keefe Media Group:
“Secretary Noem has not seen the video in its entirety. This type of behavior will not be tolerated. This person has been placed on leave and is under investigation.” The senior official also said, “The termination of the official is imminent.”

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Here’s the full length video captured by O’Keefe with the individual, Brandon Wright, bragging about the department’s plan to buck the tide.

Elon Musk’s comment is telling considering all that he is currently witnessing behind the curtain the government paywalls:

“This is happening throughout the government.”

Here’s the full video O’Keefe shared on Instagram; for some reason, the video shared to X.com is having trouble loading…

 

View this post on Instagram

 

A post shared by James O’Keefe (@jamesokeefeiii)

Wright was the Platform Services Manager for DHS, according to a story in the Latin Times about O’Keefe’s undercover video:

A Department of Homeland Security (DHS) official is in hot water after being filmed by an undercover journalist chastising newly-appointed secretary Kristi Noem and saying the agency can defy her approach to policy if they disagree with her.

The official in question is Brandon Wright, Platform Services Manager for DHS, who was recorded by the James O’Keefe Media Group. He told the journalist that “we don’t let them (secretaries) get in our way.” “Kristi Noem? I f—ing hate her,” he said.

“If we don’t agree with those priorities, there is a lot of room for interpretation, in terms of how we interpret what those priorities are,” Wright added. He then said Noem “doesn’t know her a–,” and that the “Department of Homeland Security could fall on her f—ing head and she wouldn’t recognize what it is.” “To say that I an not excited about this would be the most epic understatement.”

DHS reacted to the video, with a senior official telling the outlet that even though Noem has not seen the full video, the “behavior will not be tolerated.” “This person has been placed on leave and is under investigation. The senior official says the termination of the official is imminent,” the statement added.

Noem has said that she will largely focus on border security in her post. “We must secure our borders against illegal trafficking and immigration. We must safeguard our critical infrastructure to make sure that we’re protected against cyberattacks, respond to natural disasters and also terrorism,” Noem said during her confirmation hearing.

Already in her post, she announced last week that DHS will end its grant funding to non-governmental organizations (NGOs) she says are using federal funds to aid illegal migration into the U.S. In an interview on Fox News, Noem said the move is part of the broader crackdown by the Donald Trump administration and the reversal of policies set by its predecessor, Joe Biden.

Noem said the decision comes after a review of the federal aid directed to NGOs. “Today we are announcing that we have stopped all grant funding that’s being abused by NGOs to facilitate illegal immigration into this country,” she said.

While pushback from within the ranks is normal, the concern with such sweeping changes is that there will be so much systemic resistance to President Trump’s stated goals that it will render his plans ineffective.

That said, there are apparently sources coming out of the woodwork ready to spill the beans on far left-leaning holdouts just like Wright.