South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem is facing concerns about her forthcoming book beyond her bizarre anecdote that she killed the family’s 14-month-old dog because it was too aggressive.
Politico reported that in the book, “No Going Back: The Truth on What’s Wrong with Politics and How We Move America Forward,” Noem claims to have met North Korean leader Kim Jong Un when she served in Congress.
Noem’s spokesperson admitted to the publication that the governor’s claim was wrong.
“We’ve been made aware that the publisher will be addressing conflated world leaders’ names in the book before it is released,” Noem spokesperson Ian Fury told the publication. A Noem representative did not immediately respond to Business Insider’s request for comment.
The South Dakota governor has seen her political standing crater in recent months just as she needed to showcase her skills if she wanted to become former President Donald Trump’s running mate. Noem’s book tour offered a perfect opportunity to put a capstone on her veepstakes shadow campaign. Instead, it is nearing disaster territory.
Noem has for days defended her decision decades ago to kill a 14-month-old dog named Cricket. She has defended disclosing the previously unknown story as a way of illustrating how she’ll make tough decisions. In response, even fellow Republicans and Trump allies have tried to distance themselves from her.
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“I’ve always been a strong advocate of a woman as VP, because I think you have some strong women — although maybe Kristi Noem is maybe a little too based,” former White House strategist Steve Bannon told Donald Trump Jr. on Trump’s “Triggered” show.
The Kim mixup isn’t even the only new concern about the book. Politico reported that Noem recounts a conversation with former UN Ambassador Nikki Haley. In Noem’s view, Haley was subtly threatening her during a 2021 conversation about the governor’s political career.
“Hi, Governor, this is Ambassador Nikki Haley, and I just wanted to introduce myself and have a conversation,” Noem wrote of the talk. “I just wanted to let you know that I follow you quite a bit. I have heard quite a bit about you, and you are doing a good job there in South Dakota. I was thinking that maybe you might like a mentor, and maybe I could be someone who could do that for you.”
Noem adds that Haley then promised to keep her aware of she heard any bad things about the governor.
“”Let me be clear,’ she added. ‘I’ve heard many good things about you. But when I do hear bad things, I will make sure that you know. I’ve enjoyed talking to you. We will visit soon. Goodbye.’ Click.”
After the conversation, Noem claims she called an aide.
“‘I think I was just threatened by Nikki Haley?'” Noem wrote of what she said.
Haley’s camp strongly disputes Noem’s characterization. A spokesperson for Haley, who challenged Trump for the 2024 GOP primary, also claimed that Noem got the year of the conversation wrong. It was a year earlier, in 2020.
“Nikki has long called and written notes supporting other women when they go through challenging times,” Haley spokesperson Chaney Denton told Politico. “She called Governor Noem in 2020 to encourage her when she was criticized for keeping her state open during Covid. How she would twist that into a threat is just plain weird.”