Throwback Pics Of Kristi Noem's Biker Babe Cosplay Actually Fit Her So Well
Just a brief glance through Kristi Noem's most inappropriate cosplay outfits makes it clear that the former Homeland Security Secretary likes to get gussied up in a costume. Whether she's donning a cowboy look or dressing up as a prison warden, she looks unnatural — like a kid on Halloween. But there is one cosplay outfit that looked unexpectedly right on Noem: her biker babe ensemble.
When Noem attended the 2024 Sturgis Motorcycle Rally, she made sure to dress on theme, with a collection of outfits that included leather jackets, Harley-Davidson tees, and sexy hoop earrings. It totally worked. Maybe that's because her ombre-dyed extensions or her heavy glam makeup perfectly suited the rally aesthetic. Either way, she looked like she belonged. "Kristi [Noem] actually looks like she could be a biker chick," commented one Instagram user. "That ain't a bad thing. She's just like one of us normies."
Kristi Noem has a knack for taking the hot girl schtick too far
Perhaps the biker babe look seems so right on Kristi Noem because the MAGA star has, in recent years, embraced looking hot as part of her professional image. She even earned the nickname "ICE Barbie" for her stylized spin on border control uniforms. Noem has also embraced Mar-A-Lago face, the plastic surgery trend featuring exaggerated features and thick makeup that's popular with many conservatives. In doing so, she has transformed herself into a walking, talking marketing campaign for President Donald Trump's domestic policies.
Like many of the women in President Donald Trump's inner circle, Noem seems like she might be playing up her feminine side as a strategic move. "I read it as a sign of physical submission to Donald Trump, a statement of fealty to him and the idea that the surface of a policy is the only thing that matters," art history professor Anne Higonnet told Mother Jones in 2025. It's no accident that so many powerful women in the Trump administration have leaned into traditional gender expression.
But there are signs even some Republicans are souring on Noem's poster girl persona. Conservative pundit and former Fox anchor Megyn Kelly argued that the glamour undermined the department's mission after Noem released a video of herself posing with guns and ICE offers before a raid. "She's doing it with 25 pounds of hair, only to be outdone by her 30 pounds of makeup and false eyelashes," said Kelly during an episode of her podcast "The Megyn Kelly Show." "There's no false eyelashes on an ICE raid!" [timestamp 07:36].