Sen. John Kennedy said he quickly realized former Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem was in serious trouble following a tense congressional hearing earlier this week.

Speaking on The Will Cain Show with host Will Cain, the Louisiana Republican described how events unfolded after he questioned Noem during a hearing of the Senate Judiciary Committee.

Kennedy had pressed Noem about a $220 million taxpayer-funded advertising campaign launched while she was leading the Department of Homeland Security. The ads were intended to warn illegal immigrants that they should leave the United States.

During the hearing, Noem said the campaign had been approved by President Donald Trump and claimed he had directed her to spread the message both domestically and internationally.

But Kennedy said that shortly after the hearing he received a phone call from Trump, who strongly disputed that claim.

“He was mad as a mamma wasp,” Kennedy said, recalling the president’s reaction.

According to the senator, Trump told him directly that he had nothing to do with approving the advertising campaign.

“He said, ‘Kennedy, I hope you understand that I had nothing to do with this,’” Kennedy recalled. “I said, ‘I do believe you, Mr. President.’”

After that conversation, Kennedy said he suspected Noem’s tenure leading DHS would soon come to an end.

“To be blunt, she was dead as fried chicken,” he said.

Shortly afterward, Trump announced on Truth Social that Noem would be leaving her position at DHS. The president said she would instead take on a new diplomatic role connected to the “Shield of the Americas” coalition.

Trump also announced that Sen. Markwayne Mullin would replace Noem as the new head of the Department of Homeland Security.

In a separate interview earlier the same day, Trump reiterated that he had “never known anything about” the controversial ad campaign.