Media Attacks Gov. Noem, Possible Trump VP, Over Killing Animals

ANALYSIS – I guess we can say it’s now officially “open season” on Kristi Noem, the 52-year-old Republican governor of South Dakota, rancher, mom and contender to be former President Donald Trump’s vice presidential running mate in 2024.

With the Trump veepstakes heating up, Noem’s star appears to be rising. I’ve always been a fan and think she would be great for the ticket, as well as a presidential candidate in 2028.

But leave it to the liberals in the media to take out of context statements from the governor’s still unpublished memoir, “No Going Back,” to take some potshots at the attractive, outdoorsy GOP politician.

And Noem also didn’t take long to use these attacks to promote her book which will be out on May 7.

Meanwhile, Politico reported:

IN THE DOGHOUSE — In her forthcoming memoir, South Dakota Gov. KRISTI NOEM boasts about killing her 14-month-old puppy, CRICKET. Now, we’re seriously wondering if she just killed her own shot at being VP. [MY ANSWER IS, NO].

The Guardian’s Martin Pengelly got his hands on an excerpt from “No Going Back” [The Truth on What’s Wrong with Politics and How We Move America Forward],” ($30), which will be published next month. In the book, Noem tells the story of her rowdy German wirehaired pointer, who she said had an “aggressive personality.”

According to the story, Noem tried to redirect the dog’s energy into hunting. But Cricket, Noem writes, went “out of her mind with excitement, chasing all those birds and having the time of her life.” Then, on the way home, the dog attacked a local family’s chickens and “whipped around to bite” Noem when she tried to stop him. She proceeded to shoot Cricket in a gravel pit.

Noem says she included the anecdote to show her willingness to do “difficult, messy and ugly” things in South Dakota life, as Pengelly writes. She doubled down on that sentiment in an X post this morning: “We love animals, but tough decisions like this happen all the time on a farm.”

Politico adds: “But read the story, and it sure sounds more like animal cruelty.”

And maybe to liberal city folks it does sound that way. I must admit, I probably wouldn’t have killed a young dog for being aggressive before trying to get it trained (Joe Biden’s hyper-aggressive dogs repeatedly biting Secret Service officers and agents, is a different story!). But to Noem’s mind, the dog was “untrainable.”

And Noemi is showing how country folks are tougher than most, while also maybe including the anecdote intentionally to goad the lefties, and to avoid the stories appearing as “scoops” elsewhere.

Unfortunately, it’s not just the liberal media going after Noem, and it’s not just the dog killing story. There is also a goat involved. Yup. A goat.

And the New York Post headlined its story: “Potential Trump VP pick says they shot dead a ‘less than worthless’ dog, ‘disgusting’ goat.”

Of course, the otherwise credible tabloid was misleading when it quoted her as saying her dog was “worthless.”  She in fact said he was less than “worthless … as a hunting dog,” due to his uncontrollable temperament.

But Noem also reportedly detailed how she killed a “nasty and mean” male goat she owned because it had not been castrated. She described the animal as smelling “disgusting, musky, rancid,” so she shot him too, twice.

Maybe she could have tried castrating it first? But what do I know about farm animals?

Well, either way, now I really want to read her book, which is currently available for pre-sale on amazon for $23.59 or $14.99 on Kindle. And I still think she should be Trump’s VP.

The opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the positions of American Liberty News.

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Paul Crespo

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Paul Crespo is the Managing Editor of American Liberty Defense News. As a Marine Corps officer, he led Marines, served aboard ships in the Pacific and jumped from helicopters and airplanes. He was also a military attaché with the Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA) at U.S. embassies worldwide. He later ran for state and federal office, taught political science, wrote for the editorial board of a major newspaper and had his own radio show. A graduate of Georgetown, London and Cambridge universities, he brings decades of experience and insight to the issues that most threaten our American liberty – at home and from abroad. To read more go to: paulcrespo.com.

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