Continuing to position himself as a major voice of congressional opposition to what he characterizes as the illegal overreach of the executive branch in the second Donald Trump administration, Sen. Chris Murphy (D-CT) castigated Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, saying she had repeatedly broken the oath she swore when she agreed to serve a nation governed by the Constitution.
Murphy’s criticism was so stark that he prefaced it by asserting “I say this with seriousness and respect” — lest anyone think the Senator’s laundry list of accusations against Noem was mere political rhetoric rather than a for-the-record accounting.
“Your department is out of control,” Murphy said. “You are spending like you don’t have a budget…you are ignoring the immigration laws of this nation and implementing a brand new immigration system that you have invented, that has little relation to the statutes that you are required — that you are commanded — to follow, as spelled out in your oath of office.”
Secretary Noem, your department is out of control.
You are spending money you don’t have. You are violating spending laws daily. You are making up your own immigration law. You are disappearing people just because they oppose your President. pic.twitter.com/JvvlA1hrz4
— Chris Murphy
(@ChrisMurphyCT) May 8, 2025
Accusing Noem of violating the rights of immigrants who reside in the U.S., Murphy said “your agency acts as if laws don’t matter, as if the election gave you some mandate to violate the constitution and the laws passed by this congress. It did not give you that mandate.”
Pitting the rule of law against the whims of fiat, Murphy said to Noem: “You act as if your disagreement with the law — or even the public’s disagreement with the law — is relevant and gives you the ability to create your own law. It does not give you that ability.”
Asked by an X user about the validity of Murphy’s accusations, Elon Musk‘s GROK AI — which, trained on X, leans toward MAGA opinion — hedged its critique when evaluating the charges the Senator levels at Noem and DHS.
GROK responded, in part:
“Senator Murphy’s claims about Secretary Noem and DHS mix factual concerns with political rhetoric. There’s evidence of budget pressures at DHS, like a $200 million ad campaign, but no clear reports confirm overspending or daily law violations under Noem. Immigration policy changes exist, yet the claim of ‘making up laws’ seems exaggerated, as policies align with DHS’s mandate.”
Even GROK didn’t dismiss the Senator’s claims as pure politics: Murphy’s “factual concerns” are acknowledged and the exorbitant cost of the DHS ad campaign cost is acknowledged.
Even Murphy’s charge that Noem is “making up laws” is not flagged by GROK as incorrect, but instead GROK claims the charge “seems exaggerated.” GROK also contends that Noem’s policies are acceptable as they “align with DHS’s mandate” — the same mandate Murphy asserts Noem does not have where it contravenes the law.
Murphy has many supporters in the comments, and plenty of critics too. Many argue that Noem and Trump do own a mandate that gives DHS the ability to remove undocumented migrants without due process, even if the late super-conservative Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia clearly stated otherwise. (Scalia: due process is owed to anyone “present in the United States.”
For Republicans who claim to love the Constitution:
Even the late Justice Scalia made it clear—immigrants have fundamental rights under the Constitution, including due process. “Persons,” not just citizens.
— Christopher Webb (@cwebbonline.com) April 18, 2025 at 10:18 PM