South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem has had a rough couple of weeks.
Ever since her book came out, she had been taking incoming, and it just got worse, with Noem learning she is not welcome on about 20% of the lands of South Dakota.
Talking Points…
- Noem book release
- Native tribes ban Noem
- Analysis
Noem recently released her memoir, "No Going Back: The Truth on What's Wrong with Politics and How We Move America Forward." At this point, I am sure she wishes she would have thought better about the content in the book, as she has been under fire ever since, quite possibly costing her the nod as Trump's VP.
The most discussed passage from the book is Noem's story of putting down a 14-month-old dog, Cricket. She immediately took flack from animal lovers, but Noem refused to back down from her story and continued to say this was the right thing to do. She also reportedly suggested that Joe Biden's dog, Commander, needed to be put down for his aggressive behavior.
In addition to the dog story, Noem's book contains several other scrutinized stories. Three stories in particular came under fire: her alleged meeting with Kim Jong Un, her cancellation of a meeting with French President Emanuel Macron, and a phone call she claims she had with former South Carolina Governor and former presidential candidate Nikki Haley.
The Kim story appears to have been fabricated, or at best, a stretching of the truth, but it seems pretty clear that Noem never actually met with Kim. Macron's office has also disputed the meeting she claims to have canceled with Macron. And Nikki Haley's office pushed back on the story's overall tone regarding her call with Noem. So, Noem now looks like a liar, and most would agree we already have enough of that in DC.
Noem has been scrambling to save her career, but the Native tribes just dealt her another blow in South Dakota. On Friday, several tribal leaders voted to ban Noem from tribal lands, which accounts for about 20% of the overall lands in her state.
Noem was banned from comments she made in March while discussing relations with the tribes in South Dakota. At the time, she had stated:
"We've got some tribal leaders that I believe are personally benefiting from the cartels being there, and that's why they attack me every day.
"But I'm going to fight for the people who actually live in those situations, who call me and text me every day and say, 'Please, dear governor, please come help us in Pine Ridge. We are scared.'"
Noem appeared to make matters worse with a post on X on May 9, which stated:
"Tribal leaders should take action to ban the cartels from their lands and accept my offer to help them restore law and order to their communities while protecting their sovereignty."
The ban against Noem now means that she is not welcome on the lands of six of the nine Native American tribes located in South Dakota. These would include the Yankton Sioux, Sisseton-Wahpeton Ovate, Oglala, Rosebud, Cheyenne River, and Standing Rock Sioux. She has more or less destroyed her career over the last three months, going from someone who was considered a top VP choice and quite possibly the next GOP nominee for president in 2028 to someone that nobody will touch with a 10-foot poll.
Time generally heals all wounds, and while I am sure she will bounce back at some point, I think any aspirations she had for higher office have, for the use of a better term, gone up in smoke.
