In the midst of controversy after controversy surrounding the Trump administration, President Donald Trump has officially ousted two prominent Cabinet members. While the initial news may have spurred cheers of joy or sighs of relief from those exhausted by the Trump administration’s actions, this isn’t exactly good news considering that he fired women. 

Two high-ranking women got fired to be replaced by other devout Trump loyalists, who will be just as bad at aiding the American people, if not worse. 

Trump fired his Attorney General Pam Bondi on April 2, four weeks after Kristi Noem was removed from her position as Secretary of Homeland Security.

Trump has not specified why Bondi was fired, but many have credited it to her poor handling of the Jeffrey Epstein files. 

Similarly, Noem’s ousting has been attributed to a number of things, despite Trump’s lack of clarity. She was the face of Homeland Security’s $220 million ad campaign in which she encouraged illegal immigrants to voluntarily self-deport, which was apparently not approved by Trump, although she claims it was.

She also received criticism for her role in immigration crackdowns following the deaths of Renee Good and Alex Pretti at the hands of ICE officers. 

Both women did several deplorable or unprofessional things during their time as secretaries, but whether or not Noem and Bondi deserved the axe isn’t the question — it’s why them? 

It’s unlikely a coincidence that the two secretaries fired were women. Although Noem and Bondi allied themselves with Trump, they are still part of a group that’s less valuable to the right. Women’s mistakes and weaknesses are much more amplified and condemnable than men’s, particularly among people who view women as inherently less capable. 

The Trump administration is filled with incompetence, inexperience and mistakes regardless of gender. 

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, a military veteran and former Fox News host, never held political office before his appointment. Robert F. Kennedy Jr., whose former medical experience amounted to “anti-vaccine conspiracist,” is our current health and human services secretary. 

Linda McMahon, co-founder of World Wrestling Entertainment, was appointed as secretary of education despite having very limited experience in education.

Many of Trump’s Cabinet members share a similar background with him in non-political fame, with television personality, sports or reality TV backgrounds. This isn’t to say someone with those backgrounds cannot act as a capable and effective politician, but it does make Trump’s Cabinet feel like a cast of characters predestined for drama and, as we’ve seen, major mess-ups. 

Some of the biggest mistakes — or intentional, potentially criminal actions — have been by men in Trump’s Cabinet.

Hegseth, for example, in March of 2025, used the messaging app Signal to share confidential information about attacks in Yemen to a group chat that included the editor-in-chief of T  he Atlantic — violating rules about handling sensitive information and risking putting troops in danger. 

Late last year, Hegseth also received criticism for his strikes on suspected drug boats in the Caribbean Sea, particularly because of his orders to kill all passengers after one incident left two survivors clinging to the boat before a second strike was ordered. At least 83 people died in a series of over 20 airstrikes. 

Democrats in the House of Representatives have filed articles of impeachment against Hegseth, but Trump has taken no action yet to remove him. This suggests that, for whatever reason, Hegseth’s actions are not deplorable in the eyes of the President, yet Bondi and Noem’s are. 

What’s more likely is that Trump knows they all severely messed up, but Bondi and Noem are the ones who he wanted to face consequences. Trump used Noem and Bondi as human shields against the backlash, letting the two women take the blame for his corruption and empty campaign promises. 

Noem and Bondi seemed set up for failure, almost as if they were appointed to positions where Trump anticipated his greatest controversy and unsuccess. 

Both of Trump’s campaigns have been heavily focused on deporting undocumented people, with Trump’s promise in 2024 being to deport 1 million immigrants in his first year. Not only was this goal cruel and nightmarish for the economy, but it has also proved to be an unachievable feat. 

There’s a lack of public data on the numbers, but DHS itself reported 605,000 deportations in December since Trump’s inauguration. It’s no wonder Noem’s solution was an ad campaign demanding — or begging — people to self-deport to meet Trump’s impossible demands. 

Another part of Trump’s campaign focus was releasing the Epstein files, which may have helped get him into office, but once he was there, his true intentions to hide his presence in the files became clear. Bondi was left to justify why the administration was holding back on the release and try to defend Trump’s image, obviously making a fool of herself in the process. She also didn’t fulfill Trump’s impossible and illegal wishes of prosecuting his political enemies. 

It’s bittersweet to see Bondi making the private-jet-flight of shame back to Florida, because while she’s facing the consequences of her actions, it’s only because Trump threw her under the bus to protect himself and his image. 

It may be satisfying, but this isn’t a sign of improvement for the presidential administration. Bondi’s replacement — likely to be EPA administrator and Trump loyalist Lee Zeldin — isn’t going to release the full Epstein files and speak with complete clarity and honesty; he’s going to bend to Trump’s will. A more competent attorney general won’t be who’s better for the American people; it’s who’s better at doing Trump’s dirty work.

The same goes for Noem. Her replacement, Markwayne Mullin, a 2020 election denier who voted against certifying election results, will continue the crackdown against immigrants. He will also aid in escalating the war with Iran, which he has backed during his short time as secretary of homeland security. 

Perhaps Trump will go on to fire more Cabinet members, including men, but it doesn’t change the fact that two women were the first to get the boot. 

This is not a defense of Bondi or Noem, but a reflection on the Trump administration’s standards and goals. Women are expendable to them, and not just the women in Trump’s cabinet. 

MAGA women can ally themselves with the right, thinking it will provide them with protection and prosperity, but at the end of the day, the modern political right is for the benefit of the white man. Conservatives have expressed their desire to “keep women in the kitchen,” and working women in government aren’t an exception to this, just because they push the right rhetoric. They might have been granted a place, but it doesn’t mean they are truly respected. 

The women in our government, and women everywhere, are not valued the same as men. In a country that’s set on upholding the patriarchy, women will always be the first to fall. 

Makenna is a junior in LAS

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