Ruben Gallego Takes Aim At Kristi Noem Over Report About DHS Wanting To Buy a Luxury Jet: 'Paid For With Your Tax Dollars'

Sen. Ruben Gallego took aim at Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem over a report claiming that agency leadership wants to buy a luxury jet to conduct deportations.

"Americans are barely making ends meet and Kristi Noem wants another luxury jet paid for with your tax dollars," Gallego said in a social media publication.

The report in question details that the agency is seeking approval to purchase a Boeing 737 Max 8 outfitted with luxury amenities, claiming it will use them on deportation flights as well as cabinet travel.

NBC News noted that the jet includes a bedroom with a queen bed, showers, a kitchen, four large flat-screen televisions and a bar. ICE has asked the White House Office of Management and Budget to approve the $70 million purchase after the department began leasing the plane.

A DHS spokesperson told the outlet that at least one bedroom "is currently being converted for seating to prepare the aircraft to meet the demands of its deportation mission set," adding that the aircraft would serve "dual missions — both as ICE deportation flights and for cabinet level travel."

The spokesperson said the plane would be "40% cheaper than what the military aircraft flies for ICE deportation flights," which they said could save taxpayers hundreds of millions of dollars.

The jet can carry up to 18 passengers and sleep 14, according to marketing materials. Most deportation flights transport 50 to 100 detainees along with medical and security personnel. One DHS official involved in the purchase request described the idea of using the aircraft for deportations as "far-fetched," adding, "but that's what they're claiming."

The request comes amid broader internal tensions over DHS priorities regarding deportation flights. According to a separate NBC News report, relations between Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem and Coast Guard leadership have deteriorated as officials say Noem ordered the return of a Coast Guard C-130 aircraft from a Pacific search-and-rescue mission so it could conduct a deportation flight, though a DHS spokesperson said the plane "never left the search."

Coast Guard officials said deportation assignments have increased sharply, placing strain on aviation resources. "It puts so much stress on the Wing," one official said. A former Coast Guard official described a broader shift, saying that "the primary mission was search-and-rescue and now the number one stated mission of the Coast Guard is border security."

DHS disputed aspects of that reporting, calling claims that migrant transport was prioritized over rescue missions "ridiculous" and describing criticism as a "politicized deep state effort to undermine" the administration's immigration enforcement agenda.