Kristi Noem seems to be growing tired of defending herself for shooting and killing her 14-month-old dog, Cricket, 20 years ago.
The South Dakota governor fired back at Fox Business host Stuart Varney during an interview Tuesday for his persistent questions about whether Noem had spoken to former President Donald Trump about the dog story.
Noem and Varney were discussing her chances of becoming Trump’s vice president — which Noem says is ultimately Trump's decision but she talks to the former president often — though Varney kept returning to questions surrounding the dog saga.
“Enough, Stuart. This interview is ridiculous, which you are doing right now,” Noem said. “So you need to stop. It is OK. It is. Let’s talk about some real topics that Americans care about.”
“I’m afraid we’re out of time,” Varney responded.
Noem has been on a media blitz for the past week promoting her new book “No Going Back,” though the governor has been bombarded with questions surrounding her decision to kill her 14-month-old dog, as detailed in the book. Noem has faced condemnation from both sides of the aisle after The Guardian reported that she writes in the book that she “hated” the “aggressive” dog, who she says ruined a pheasant hunt and attacked her neighbor’s chickens.
When backlash to the story first surfaced, Noem openly talked about and defended her decision to kill her dog, saying that “South Dakota law states that dogs who attack and kill livestock can be put down” and that she “chose the safety” of her children. Now, it seems Noem has grown tired of defending her decision and claims that people are upset because “the fake news” twisted her story.
“Listen, going through hard things, and I’ve been through a few of them — I’m going through one right now, I mean they’re just attacking me like crazy right now,” Noem said Saturday during her speech at a Republican donor retreat hosted by Trump in Palm Beach, Florida, according to audio obtained by POLITICO.
The fallout of the dog story reached the local level last week when a Colorado county Republican group canceled a Saturday fundraiser that Noem was set to headline after the group received death threats over her previously scheduled appearance. The group and the governor’s office “mutually decided” that the safety risk was too great and canceled the event.
Noem has also faced backlash after the Dakota Scout reported on an anecdote in the book where Noem claims that she met with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un while serving in Congress. Noem said earlier this week that when she was made aware of the passage, she asked that the book be corrected before its imminent release, but has declined to say that she never met the North Korean leader.
"I took responsibility for it," Noem said in a Newsmax interview on Tuesday. "The buck stops with me. This anecdote I should not have put in the book, and I asked to have it taken out and it is.”
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