The Department of Homeland Security has gone silent on South Park after the show’s latest episode brutally mocked Secretary Kristi Noem—despite previously using the show to hype its recruitment efforts.
Noem, 53, was depicted as a glammed-up ICE agent who loved posing for photos, killing puppies, using botox, and arresting anyone who appears Hispanic.
DHS has not addressed the shocking portrayal since it aired Wednesday. Reached for comment on Thursday, a spokesperson shared a day-old statement that it first released before the episode aired.
“We want to thank South Park for drawing attention to ICE law enforcement recruitment: We are calling on patriotic Americans to help us remove murderers, gang members, pedophiles, and other violent criminals from our country,” the statement said. “Benefits available to new ICE recruits include an up to $50,000 signing bonus, student loan forgiveness, and retirement benefits.”
Asked a second time if it had any reaction to Wednesday’s full episode, DHS did not respond to an email from the Daily Beast.
The department—and those associated with it, like ICE—has been equally quiet on social media regarding South Park. That is a reversal from earlier this week, when DHS seized on episode teasers as a way to promote its need to hire thousands more ICE agents.
“Wait, so we ARE relevant?” the official South Park X account replied, adding the hashtag, “#eatabagofd--s.”
Noem’s character first appears in the episode during an ICE orientation video, in which she admits to putting her puppy down “by shooting it in the face.” That was a clear nod to Noem admitting in a real-world memoir that she shot her puppy, Cricket, dead for not being disciplined enough. Her South Park character fatally shoots dogs throughout Wednesday’s episode.
Among other remarks from Noem’s character was an order for ICE agents to “only detain the brown ones!”
Other MAGA figures targeted by South Park were President Donald Trump, portrayed as having a micropenis; JD Vance, depicted as a manbaby obeying Trump’s every command; and Charlie Kirk, whose podcast style—and hair—was embodied by the Cartman character.
A recurring joke in the episode was Noem’s face, which became droopy—and, in some instances, fell off entirely—if she spoke for too long without being fixed up by her makeup crew, which was always a stone’s throw away.
The real-world Noem has been busy pushing for more Americans to join ICE. The department is so desperate for agents, it recently removed its requirement of a college degree and offered new recruits an eye-popping $50,000 signing bonus.
That alone was not enough, apparently. Noem said Wednesday that ICE was removing its age ceiling—previously 39—to encourage older millennials and Gen Xers to apply. It also dropped its previously required age of 21, allowing teens to join without any previous experience in law enforcement.
