South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem got the national and even international spotlight for one whole week, and as it turns out, she was nowhere near ready for primetime. Noem’s dumb book isn’t even out yet, but The Guardian got a copy and “spoiled” the big reveal, which is that Noem shot and killed her 14-month-old puppy, Cricket. Her justification for killing Cricket and leaving the dog’s body in a gravel pit was that Cricket annoyed her and that SHE hadn’t trained Cricket properly. Before the dog-killing story, pundits believed that Noem was possibly on Donald Trump’s VP shortlist. Post-dog-killing story, MAGA-world, MAGA-ville has tossed her aside. Incidentally, I absolutely believe sexism is at play here – in MAGA-world, you can be a violent, anti-science, dog-killing nutjob, but not if you’re a woman. Anyway, Politico is putting a bow on this week of dog-murder sociopathy:
Kristi Noem’s damage-control tour is in full swing. It appears destined for the same fate as her late dog Cricket: dead in a gravel pit somewhere near Pierre. But at Mar-a-Lago, even before the revelation about her dog, Noem had long ago been cast aside as a likely running mate, according to six people close to former President Donald Trump who, while not discounting Noem entirely, have for many weeks said she has almost no chance of being on the ticket. The Cricket saga was just the latest in one of the most spectacularly botched vice presidential contender rollouts in modern political history.
Noem will return to Trump’s turf in Palm Beach, Florida this weekend, addressing top-dollar donors with other prospective running mates at a luxury hotel. Two advisers to Noem, granted anonymity to speak freely, said they expect a Sunday show appearance on CBS’s “Face the Nation” and additional excerpts from the book to also make news. But it almost certainly won’t be enough to turn the tide of public opinion or, more importantly for Noem, the view of her inside Mar-a-Lago.
“She is of no use,” said Scott Jennings, a former President George W. Bush political adviser, comparing Noem to other running mate contenders, including North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum, Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-N.Y.), Sens. Tim Scott (R-S.C.), Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) and J.D. Vance (R-Ohio) who would “have utility” on the Trump ticket.
“What does she bring?” Jennings said of Noem. “The possibility of weirdo drama. That’s it. She appeals to no constituency Trump doesn’t already have.”
As I said – there IS sexism at play here. “The possibility of weirdo drama. That’s it. She appeals to no constituency Trump doesn’t already have.” Trump has the franchise on weirdo drama and if he’s going to fully mine the weirdo-drama constituency, he certainly won’t look for it with Kristi Noem. She has the potential to become a Sarah Palin-esque figure – an idiot drama queen who speaks in word salads and relishes the murder of family pets. Plus, Politico points out that Trump hates the rumors that Noem was banging his former aide Corey Lewandowski. Now, suddenly, Trump is a moral authority on infidelity? No – Trump can’t abide a woman who cheats. Noem is being punished for acting like a man and believing she could get away with the things male politicians get away with.
Photos courtesy of Cover Images.