Trump admin officials move into military housing amid threats, security concerns

Several senior members of the Trump administration have moved into military housing in the Washington, DC, area, citing security concerns and threats. This comes as there has also been an increasing number of threats against federal agents associated with ICE as well.

According to The Atlantic, a growing number of top officials have chosen to live on military installations rather than in private homes due to fears of harassment or violence. This comes after a number of Trump cabinet officials have faced swatting incidents and other threats. 

Top Trump aide Stephen Miller and his family relocated to military housing after neighbors in Arlington protested their presence. The Millers have reportedly listed their former home on the market. Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem now resides in the home typically designated for the Coast Guard commandant at Joint Base Anacostia-Bolling.

“Following the media’s publishing of the location of Secretary Noem’s Washington, DC apartment, she has faced vicious doxxing on the dark web and a surge in death threats, including from the terrorist organizations, cartels, and criminal gangs that DHS targets," DHS Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin said earlier this past summer. "Due to threats and security concerns, she has been forced to temporarily stay in secure military housing." 

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and Secretary of State Marco Rubio are both living on Fort McNair’s “Generals’ Row,” near Buzzard Point. Army Secretary Dan Driscoll is sharing quarters with a roommate at Joint Base Myer–Henderson Hall in Arlington.

While it is not uncommon for defense or national security officials to occupy military housing, it is rare for so many to do so simultaneously. The residences include Quarters 8 at Fort McNair, a historic home overlooking the Anacostia River that traditionally houses the Army’s vice chief of staff. With that position’s current occupant remaining on another base, Hegseth took over the property.

A Defense Department official said Hegseth pays about $4,655 per month in rent. The Atlantic also reported that Rubio lives largely alone, as his family remains in Florida, while Noem pays “fair market" rent for her Coast Guard-owned residence, according to a Department of Homeland Security spokeswoman.

Navy Secretary John Phelan also recently moved into military housing after his Washington home was damaged in a fire. During Trump’s first term, only Defense Secretary Jim Mattis and Secretary of State Mike Pompeo were known to have lived in government quarters.

There is precedent for elected officials residing in military housing. In 1974, Congress authorized the vice president to live at the Naval Observatory, formerly the residence of the chief of naval operations.

Former Defense Secretaries Robert Gates and Leon Panetta also used or considered government housing, though Panetta ultimately opted for a private apartment outfitted with secure communications. Panetta told The New York Times that if today’s cabinet officials are facing elevated security threats, the government could consider building new housing specifically for them.

For national security officials, Fort McNair’s proximity to the Pentagon makes it a strategic location, Panetta said. “Any time there’s an emergency, they’ve got to be able to respond quickly,” he noted.