Kristi Noem has sparked public outrage after she asked for netizens’ help in choosing her official portrait. The Secretary of Homeland Security’s plea came in the midst of the tragic Texas floods. Noem was harshly criticised for her social media activity that came as the death toll rose to 109.
The 53-year-old took to Instagram to post pictures of three different portraits of herself. “Which one do you like for the official Governor’s portrait to hang in the South Dakota State Capitol? Thank you, David Uhl!” she wrote in the caption accompanying the photos.
View this post on Instagram
All the portraits showed Noem in western clothes along with cowboy boots and a hat. In all three portraits, the Secretary of Homeland Security sat atop a horse. Her Instagram post did nothing but enrage people due to her insensitivity.
“Maybe the one with the flood, and you doing nothing about it, and maybe a kid floating by?” one user suggested. Another quipped while writing how Noem looked like a romane novel heroine in the portraits called “Moron Marlboro.”
“I’m not kidding; amid deporting children and doing nothing to help Texas, Kristi Noem asked her Instagram followers to help choose her Official South Dakota Governor’s Portrait,” another user wrote on X.
Kristi Noem is disgraceful
— kittypawpaw 🧢 (@kittypawpaw) July 8, 2025
“The disconnect between the way she sees herself and the way the rest of the world sees her is textbook narcissism,” a user wrote in the comments section. A second user called her “disgraceful.” Several other people called Noem out for being a “narcissist.”
“These are ridiculous looking,” one commented. While another netizen noted how the person in the portrait didn’t resemble Noem at all. Many netizens also speculated about how the person in the portrait looked more like actress Jeniffer Aniston than Kristi Noem. “Why are they portraits of Jennifer Aniston?” one wrote.
The public outrage could be considered justifiable in the light of what is currently happening in Texas. The flash flood has resulted in over 100 deaths, and over 160 people are still missing.
The flood hit the state on the 4th of July weekend, severely affecting a summer camp hosting children. Multiple children who were staying at Camp Mystic are still reported missing. Several children, as well as counselors and managers, have been declared dead by the authorities.
BREAKING: 20 children are missing in the Texas Hill Country flash flood.
Praying for the best.
This is not a time to be defunding weather research and NOAA. pic.twitter.com/VpUpnAylKk
— Brian Krassenstein (@krassenstein) July 4, 2025
The camp in question is famous for being a summer getaway for former First Ladies and their children, according to Politico. Weather reports confirm that Texas saw over 10 inches of rain over the weekend.
Noem’s approach to the sensitive situation became another reason for netizens to criticise her. During a cabinet meeting, the 57-year-old noted that the responsibility for disaster management lies completely with the state government. “We, as a federal government, don’t manage these disasters — the state does,” Noem noted.
