by CAITLYN FROLO | The National News Desk
Tue, February 17, 2026 at 12:28 PM
Patricia McLaughlin Official Portrait at DHS Headquarters (Photo by Mikaela McGee)
WASHINGTON (TNND) — Department of Homeland Security Assistant Secretary for Public Affairs Tricia McLaughlin is leaving the administration.
Politico first reported McLaughlin’s plans to depart the Trump team next week, citing DHS officials.
McLaughlin is one of the administration’s top defenders of President Donald Trump’s immigration policies, serving as a spokesperson for DHS Secretary Kristi Noem.
The sources told the outlet McLaughlin plans to inform her coworkers on Tuesday of next week’s departure.
Her departure comes as DHS deals with a funding lapse amid a partial government shutdown, as Democrats debate Republicans over Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) reforms.
Politico reports that McLaughlin started making plans to leave the administration in December, but delayed her departure after the fatal shooting of Renee Good and Alex Pretti in Minneapolis.
As for who will replace McLaughlin, Axios reports that Lauren Bis, a deputy of McLaughlin’s, will be promoted to Assistant Secretary of Public Affairs.
McLaughlin is from Ohio and previously served as political communications director for Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine and as a senior adviser on Vivek Ramaswamy’s 2024 Republican presidential campaign, the DHS website reads.
She also served in the first Trump administration at the Treasury Department under then-Secretary Steven Mnuchin as Acting Deputy Assistant Secretary focused on economic sanctions. She also served at the State Department as Chief of Staff for Nuclear Arms Control.
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