President Donald Trump responded to the bombshell reveal of pictures showing the husband of former Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem cross-dressing and exchanging risqué messages and photos with several women, saying he feels “badly for the family” if the story is confirmed.
“They confirmed it?” Trump asked, speaking to The Daily Mail, the outlet that broke the story. “Wow, well, I feel badly for the family if that’s the case, that’s too bad. I haven’t seen anything. I don’t know anything about it. That’s too bad, but I just know nothing about it.”
The bizarre story about Noem’s husband Byron Noem and his apparent cross-dressing habits broke on Tuesday morning, with national security experts saying it could have left Noem susceptible to blackmail while she was in the cabinet. A representative for Noem told the New York Post that she and her family had been “blindsided” and “devastated” by the story that broke earlier that day, and asked for “prayers and privacy” as they navigated the situation.
The story alleged that Byron Noem had exchanged risqué messages and photos with several women — including a number in which he could be seen wearing women’s clothing and with what appear to be balloons stuffed in his shirt. Several outlets referred to the fetish as “bimbofication,” which usually involves role-playing and dressing up to exaggerate physical characteristics that one might associate with a “bimbo.”
Secret double life of Kristi Noem’s crossdressing husband Bryon: The pouting ‘busty bimbo’ photos and trove of explicit messages https://t.co/4GvCcfPK9j
— Daily Mail (@DailyMail) March 31, 2026
Byron Noem, according to the reports, used a different name when engaging with others in the fetish community — but the fact that Noem’s face could be clearly seen in a number of the photos raised questions about whether his activities could still have created a potential national security risk. If he was identified, it would have left his wife open to a potential blackmail situation.
“Damaging information like this can be a tantalizing lead for a hostile intelligence service,” former CIA officer Marc Polymeropoulos told The Daily Mail. “They approach the person and say, if you work with us we won’t expose this, and if you don’t, we will. That’s espionage 101.”
Byron Noem denied ever sharing any sensitive information. Financial records reviewed by the outlet show he transferred tens of thousands of dollars to the women he was in contact with.
Kristi Noem was removed from the cabinet weeks ago, and has been replaced by former U.S. senator Markwayne Mullin, who was confirmed and sworn in earlier this month. Her final months were plagued by scandal, including questions over a $200 million advertising contract.
Noem remains in the administration, as Trump appointed her Special Envoy for the Shield of the Americas when he removed her from the cabinet position.
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