President Trump has thrown a political curveball by sending his hardline ‘border czar,’ Tom Homan, straight into the heart of Minnesota, a state now reeling after a second fatal encounter this month involving immigration agents. The move sidelines Homeland Security boss Kristi Noem, fanning rumors of a deepening rift within the administration’s top ranks.

Taking to Truth Social, Trump declared: “Tom might be new to Minnesota, but he knows people on the ground and brings the grit we need. He’ll cut through the chaos and answer only to me.”

The abrupt appointment comes against a backdrop of mounting friction between Homan and Noem, who once served as South Dakota’s governor. Insiders whisper that the pair’s behind-the-scenes power struggle has only grown more intense as violence at the border spills into heartland cities.

While ICE Director Todd Lyons and Homan have been championing a targeted crackdown on undocumented immigrants deemed most dangerous—those with serious criminal pasts and final deportation orders—Noem and her inner circle, including staunch ally Corey Lewandowski and roving Border Patrol Commander Greg Bovino, want to cast the deportation net as wide as possible. They’re pushing for an all-out sweep to clear as many undocumented residents as possible, according to Fox News sources.

Noem, maintaining a facade of unity, took to X to praise the shake-up. “Glad to have Tom’s expertise in Minneapolis. His input will bolster our fraud investigations and reinforce law and order,” she tweeted, highlighting their recent collaborations.

But not every insider is convinced. A DHS source confided to The Post that bypassing Noem in favor of Homan signals “trouble for Kristi”—though one White House official insisted she’s not about to be ousted anytime soon, saying, “This isn’t the Super Bowl—we don’t bench a star player because of a few setbacks.”

The drama comes in the wake of Saturday’s controversial shooting of ICU nurse Alex Pretti, 37, by Border Patrol. Noem swiftly claimed Pretti had lunged at officers with a firearm—a story quickly unraveled by video evidence contradicting her account. Doubling down at a press conference, Noem painted Pretti as a would-be cop killer.

This latest tragedy unfolded just over two weeks after Renee Good, also 37, died when she reportedly drove at an ICE officer in Minneapolis—an act Noem labeled ‘domestic terrorism.’ The twin incidents have ramped up pressure on Trump to restore calm, prompting his high-stakes gamble of sending in Homan as his man on the ground.