Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem criticized California Governor Gavin Newsom on Monday after his office posted a message on social media that she described as a “really menacing” warning, as reported by The New York Post.

Noem said the post alarmed her family and friends just days after the death of conservative activist Charlie Kirk.

Over the weekend, Newsom’s office posted: “Kristi Noem is going to have a bad day today. You’re welcome, America.” Noem said the cryptic message caused immediate concern.

“It was cryptic and it was really menacing,” Noem told Fox News’ Hannity.

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"It immediately panicked my family and friends. Within, I would say, a couple of minutes of that being posted I started to get text messages and phone calls. Family, my kids saying, ‘Are you okay, Mom? Are you fine?’ They know the threats that I’ve had.”

Noem said her family has been aware of ongoing threats since she began implementing immigration policies under the Trump administration. She added that threats had previously come from “cartels and criminals,” which made the post from Newsom’s office even more alarming.

Image Credit: © Megan Smith / USA TODAY NETWORK
California Gov. Gavin Newsom speaks to media in the spin room before the ABC News Presidential Debate.

“So you know, this is a day and age where we’ve always known that words matter, but there’s been real consequences that we have realized that have happened to incredible people like Charlie [Kirk] that we’ll have to live with forever, and I hope we all learn from that,” Noem said.

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She continued by urging public officials to focus on civil discourse instead of inflammatory online statements. “I hope we all learn that it’s time to start listening to each other, having civil discourse, and stop ridiculous, irresponsible posts like Governor Newsom put out there.”

In response to the post, U.S. Attorney for the Central District of California Bill Essayli said his office has referred the matter to the Secret Service. “We have zero tolerance for direct or implicit threats against government officials,” Essayli said in a statement on X.

“I’ve referred this matter to @SecretService and requested a full threat assessment.”

The situation highlights increasing tensions among political figures following Kirk’s assassination and underscores growing concerns about threats against federal officials. Neither Newsom nor his office has issued further comment regarding the post.

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