South Dakota Gov. Kristi L. Noem (R) on Sunday acknowledged that she was removing a claim that she met with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un from her forthcoming book and continued to defend her decision to kill a dog.
The biographical book, “No Going Back,” is set to be released Tuesday and has caused controversy on multiple fronts as Noem positions herself as a possible running mate for former president Donald Trump.
Noem’s office said Friday it was working to correct some errors ahead of publication, including a passage claiming that Kim, a reclusive dictator, was one of the world leaders she met with as a member of the House Armed Services Committee from 2013 to 2015.
“As soon as this was brought to my attention, I certainly made some changes and looked at this passage,” Noem said Sunday on CBS’s “Face the Nation.” “I’ve met with many, many world leaders. I’ve traveled around the world. As soon as it was brought to my attention, we went forward and made some edits.”
Noem did not directly say whether she ever met with Kim. She emphasized she has met with “many” world leaders and said she would not discuss specific meetings.
Noem, a farmer and rancher, was already under scrutiny for the dog-killing anecdote, in which she describes shooting and killing her 14-month-old wirehair pointer, Cricket, because the dog was “untrainable” and aggressive. After the excerpt came out late last month, Noem drew a wave of scorn from Democrats and other political figures, including President Biden’s reelection campaign.
Noem suggested Sunday she did not regret sharing the story, saying the book is “filled with vulnerable, painful moments in my life, filled with times where I’ve made very difficult decisions.”
“As a mom, I made a choice between protecting my children and protecting them from a dangerous animal that was killing livestock and attacking people,” Noem said.
The host, Margaret Brennan, pressed Noem further by saying that her book describes how “you’d make sure Joe Biden’s dog was nowhere on the grounds. ‘Commander, say hello to Cricket,’” alluding that Biden’s family dog, Commander, should face the same fate as Cricket.
Commander has bitten Secret Service agents about 24 times, according to records released earlier this year, and was sent away from the White House last year.
“Joe Biden’s dog has attacked 24 Secret Service people,” Noem said. “So how many people is enough people to be attacked and dangerously hurt before you make a decision on a dog?”
Asked if she was suggesting Commander should be shot, too, Noem replied “that the president should be accountable to” answer that question.
The uproar over the dog-killing story has fueled speculation that Noem’s chances of being Trump’s running mate have dwindled. She was among several possible vice-presidential candidates whom Trump hosted at a fundraising retreat this weekend in Florida.
The book’s initial reviews include one from Trump that calls it a “winner.”
Asked if Trump mentioned the response to her book, Noem responded: “Oh, he certainly knows about this book, and I appreciate his endorsement of it.”
(c) Washington Post
No way would Trump want such a person as his running mate.