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Kristi Noem Confronted About Rumored Fling Playing White Knight While Husband Looks On

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Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Kristi Noem was confronted on Wednesday about her top adviser, Corey Lewandowski, reportedly firing a pilot on her behalf as rumors of an alleged affair continued to circulate.

Democratic Maryland Rep. Jamie Raskin confronted Noem during the House Judiciary Committee’s “Oversight of the Department of Homeland Security” hearing about a Wall Street Journal (WSJ) report that alleged Lewandowski fired a Coast Guard pilot after Noem’s blanket was left behind on a government jet. Noem’s husband, Bryon, sat quietly while Raskin mentioned Lewandowski, with whom she is rumored to have had an extramarital relationship.

“Apparently, when your special blanket, your blankie was left on one of the government jets and not transported over the new one, your special government employee, Corey Lewandowski, chivalrously stepped forward to fire the pilot mid-air. A 2003 Coast Guard graduate and distinguished U.S. Coast Guard Commander in Air Station, Washington D.C.,” Raskin said. “But then he had to be rehired immediately because there was no one else who could fly the two of you on the rest of the journey back home.”

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Reports of an alleged extramarital relationship between Noem and Lewandowski have long circulated in political circles, which caused President Donald Trump to reject Lewandowski’s request to become Noem’s chief of staff, The WSJ reported. Trump reportedly knew about the relationship and repeatedly brought it up to associates.

A reporter asked Trump about the alleged relationship on Air Force One in February; Trump responded by saying he had no knowledge of the rumors and would “find out about it.”

Photos released by the Daily Mail showed Lewandowski going back and forth between his apartment and Noem’s, which was located across the street. The DHS secretary moved to a government-owned waterfront house on a military base in Washington, D.C., where Lewandowski reportedly spends much of his time, according to The WSJ.

While Noem and Lewandowski have both denied rumors of an affair, people have said they have done little to hide their alleged relationship.

Noem, who had little immigration enforcement experience, got the job as DHS secretary in part because of Lewandowski, according to The WSJ. He initially suggested to Trump that she be his next vice president, and later lobbied for her to receive her role at DHS.

Noem and Lewandowski both frequently fired staff and forced many of them to take polygraph tests if they did not trust them, The WSJ reported. They collectively attempted to regain Trump’s trust after Noem faced scrutiny from fellow administration officials over her handling of the shootings of Renee Good and Alex Pretti in Minnesota.

A week after Pretti’s shooting in January, Noem and Lewandowski were seen sitting together at the wedding of Dan Scavino, a longtime political adviser to Trump, according to The WSJ.

Noem has three children with Bryon and Lewandowski has four children with his wife, Alison Hardy. Bryon is the founder of Noem Insurance, a crop insurance agency.