Here's what nobody's talking about: When a government official brings social media personalities instead of journalists to document official business, what does that say about transparency?
On Tuesday, Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem made her way to the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) detention center located in Portland, Oregon. What she witnessed firsthand was a modest gathering of demonstrators outside the building—a scene that bears absolutely no resemblance to the dramatic "siege" narrative that former President Donald Trump has been pushing.
In recent weeks, Noem's department has been ramping up its aggressive social media presence, posting increasingly combative videos showing federal agents executing immigration enforcement operations and deploying teargas against people protesting their actions. For this particular Portland visit, the secretary brought along three conservative social media influencers—Benny Johnson, Nick Sortor, and David Media—who rode in her official motorcade straight from the airport to the ICE building.
Before Noem's arrival, Portland's police force took action to secure the area, clearing the street directly in front of the ICE office situated in the city's south waterfront district. A small handful of protesters were kept at a safe distance from the facility, including one individual dressed in a chicken costume and another wearing a baby shark outfit—hardly the image of threatening militants.
From a protest encampment positioned down the street, a country-style tune echoed through the air with lyrics proclaiming, "Trump is in the Epstein files, yes he is." One demonstrator called out to a government videographer who was recording footage from the rooftop, asking pointedly: "Did we rename the Department of Homeland Security the ministry of propaganda?"
But here's where it gets controversial...
While reporters from traditional, nonpartisan news organizations were forced to remain behind police barricades outside the facility, the partisan influencers traveling with Noem's team enjoyed exclusive access inside. They proceeded to share social media content showing the secretary leading federal officers in a prayer session, delivering what appeared to be a motivational speech to boost morale, and instructing a member of the Oregon National Guard to "Get ready."
Noem has repeatedly amplified the president's characterization of the protesters—a small group numbering in the dozens who have been demonstrating outside the ICE facility since June, including one person who regularly wears an inflatable frog costume—as "terrorists" conducting a "siege" on the office. According to this narrative, deploying federal military forces becomes not just justified, but absolutely necessary.
However, this past Saturday, a federal judge presiding in Portland issued a ruling that blocked Trump's attempt to federalize Oregon's National Guard. Judge Karin Immergut determined that the president's assertions claiming the predominantly peaceful city was "burning to the ground" were completely "untethered to the facts"—meaning they had no basis in reality.
Just one day after that initial ruling, Judge Immergut—who, interestingly enough, was originally nominated to her position by Trump himself—expanded her order even further. She blocked National Guard troops from any state jurisdiction from being deployed to Portland. This additional action became necessary after Trump attempted to circumvent her first order by trying to send California National Guard members, who had previously been federalized during protests in Los Angeles, to Oregon instead.
And this is the part most people miss...
Ever since Trump began drawing national attention to the small but persistent protest happening outside the ICE facility and making demonstrably false statements that Portland is "war ravaged," an increasing number of his supporters have been showing up at the location. This includes various MAGA influencers who have traveled there specifically to confront the demonstrators face-to-face.
Several of these confrontations have escalated into physical altercations, including scuffles and outright fistfights, which have resulted in arrests by Portland police officers. Sortor himself was among those taken into custody after he attempted to forcibly push his way through a protest encampment set up on a sidewalk near the ICE facility. He became involved in a physical scuffle over an American flag—a flag that Sortor had previously taken from a protester who was in the process of burning it.
The criminal charges filed against Sortor were subsequently dropped following significant backlash in conservative media outlets. This outcry prompted Harmeet Dhillon, who heads the civil rights division at the Department of Justice, to threaten launching an investigation into the Portland Police Bureau over allegations of anti-conservative bias. Meanwhile, the two women who Sortor was arrested for fighting with continue to face their charges—a disparity that raises questions about equal application of justice.
On Sunday, Oregon Governor Tina Kotek publicly accused federal officers stationed at the ICE facility of deliberately attempting to provoke and antagonize the protesters. She cited their use of disproportionate quantities of teargas in what is primarily a residential neighborhood, as well as their decision to invite conservative social media influencers onto the facility's roof to film the crowd below. "They are clearly trying to antagonize the crowds," Kotek stated plainly.
A police report filed last month specifically identified three of these conservative influencers as "counter-protesters" who "constantly return and antagonize the protesters until they are assaulted or pepper sprayed." The report noted that these individuals have ignored "repeated advice from officers to stay away from" the demonstrators—suggesting a pattern of deliberately instigating conflict.
Benny Johnson, who previously worked as a journalist before reinventing his career as a Christian nationalist influencer following his termination from BuzzFeed over plagiarism violations, shared video footage of Secretary Noem observing the scene from the ICE facility's rooftop. Below her was a small group of protesters that included Jack Dickinson, a protest organizer known for wearing a chicken costume to mock Trump. Johnson captioned his video with dramatic flair: "DHS Secretary Kristi Noem stares down army of Antifa and a guy in a chicken suit"—a description that seems to acknowledge the non-threatening nature of the scene even while trying to frame it as dangerous.
The protesters below attempted to undermine Noem's photo opportunity by blasting the comedic Benny Hill theme song—a choice clearly designed to mock the absurdity of the situation.
Despite the glaring disconnect between the claims from Trump and Noem portraying this ICE field office as being "under siege" from "domestic terrorists" and the clear visual evidence showing a small number of demonstrators wearing non-threatening costumes like chicken suits and baby shark outfits, the influencers accompanying Noem persisted in characterizing the protesters as dangerous radicals and violent extremists.
During her Portland visit, Noem also held a meeting with Portland Police Chief Bob Day, who has been portrayed negatively as "woke" in conservative media circles primarily because he allowed his officers to arrest Sortor. In a social media post about this meeting, Johnson made the claim that the chief had "sided with violent ANTIFA militants assaulting journalists and officers outside ICE facility"—an assertion that contradicts the peaceful nature of most interactions at the site.
Secretary Noem's motorcade eventually departed from the facility, driving past a small handful of protesters standing on the street outside, including one person dressed as a bear wearing a sombrero—again, hardly the image of a violent siege.
So here's the real question that should make you think: When government officials selectively grant access to partisan influencers while excluding traditional journalists, and when they characterize people in chicken costumes as terrorists, are we witnessing legitimate security concerns or political theater designed to justify expanded federal power? Is this about protecting Americans, or about controlling the narrative?
What do you think—are these protests genuinely threatening enough to warrant military intervention, or is this an overreach being sold through carefully curated social media content? Drop your thoughts in the comments, even if they go against the grain. This conversation matters more than ever.
