'Homeland Barbie': Leader of flooded Texas city mocks Kristi Noem in private chats

The city manager of Kerrville, Texas vented his frustrations at Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem in private messages, KSAT reported — including calling her a derogatory nickname.

The messages from Dalton Rice, who handles the day to day operations of the city on behalf of Mayor Joe Herring Jr., reveal a local government struggling to get back on its feet amid a horrific crisis that killed over 100 people in the surrounding area.

"On July 5, Rice took part in an afternoon press conference in Kerrville with federal, state and local leaders to update the public on search and rescue efforts," said the report. "Hours after the press conference ended, a city staffer texted Rice, 'Just saw you met Homeland Barbi, how is she?!?!?!'"

In a text response, Rice wrote, “Beahahaha basically homeland Barbie.”

Noem has come under criticism for the federal response to the crisis, particularly after reports that because of rule changes to when spending contracts needed to be signed off on personally by the secretary, first responders from the Federal Emergency Management Agency were delayed around three days.

Other issues have been scrutinized at every level of government, including the fact that state and local officials in Texas were unwilling to spend the money for a siren system along the Guadalupe River where the deadliest parts of the flood occurred, and the fact that President Donald Trump's Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) task force pushed out a vital emergency coordination officer from the National Weather Service.