South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem claims she grew up ‘the kid that loved animals’ in a new documentary trying to jump-start her chances of being Donald Trump’s running mate.
Noem, who returned to cable news a couple of weeks ago after a month-long hiatus, went MIA due to backlash from promoting a book that featured an anecdote about her shooting her fourteen-month-old dog ‘Cricket’ which sparked outrage from the public.
America’s Governor: The Kristi Noem Story is a self-produced film that attempts to humanize the once rising star of the GOP.
‘[The film] is a compelling 45-minute documentary that delves deep into the life and political journey of South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem,’ the website for the movie says.
The movie was directed by Shawn Rech, who has made largely religious documentaries and films that highlight the stories of wrongfully convicted killers, and was produced by Cleveland-based company Transition Studios.
South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem claims she grew up ‘the kid that loved animals’ in a new documentary trying to jump-start her chances of being Donald Trump ‘s running mate
Noem tries to cast herself as not just a political titan, but a devotee to animals who has always taken special care of critters, including one scene that is set to a background of the governor with a small dog.
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‘So from the time I was five, six years old, even all the neighbors knew how much I loved animals and would bring me random animals they would find, or needed nursing or taking care of,’ she says in the flick.
Noem’s mother is offered as a testimonial shortly after, discussing a time when a young Kristi rescued a cat.
‘Even if the livestock sales barn had a donkey or goat or something that went through that nobody bought that day, they would call my dad and say ‘does Kristi want this?’ So that was my passion and love,’ Noem said.
Noem was widely considered to be at the top of a list of potential running mates for former President Donald Trump, until her book was released, kicking off a flurry of criticism from dog lovers across the globe.
The Republican governor tried to soldier on with her book tour, but the story about her shooting her dog consumed all of the news coverage and media interviews surrounding her book.
Noem ultimately paused her book tour in early May, returning to South Dakota citing bad weather in the state that demanded her attention.
Afterward Trump said in an interview that Noem had a bad week, but that he was still a fan of the South Dakota Governor who had been ‘a supporter of mine from day one.’
Noem, who returned to cable news a couple of weeks ago after a month-long hiatus, went MIA due to backlash from promoting a book that featured an anecdote about her shooting her fourteen-month-old dog ‘Cricket’ which blew up in the media
Noem attempts to cast herself as not just a political titan, but a devoted animal lover who has always taken special care of critters
Trump said in an interview that ‘people from different parts of the country probably feel a little bit differently’ about the story of her shooting her dog but conceded it was a difficult controversy.
‘She had a bad week,’ Trump said. ‘We all have bad weeks.’
But if Noem was ever a serious running mate contender, it appears she did not make the short list.
The list has reportedly included North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum, Florida’s Marco Rubio, Ohio Sen. JD Vance and South Carolina’s Tim Scott, Florida Rep. Byron Donalds, New York Rep. Elise Stefanik, and former Secretary of Housing and Urban Development Ben Carson.
Noem said that she did not care if she was picked as Trump’s running mate, but said choosing a woman would be an asset to his campaign
‘I think that that would be beneficial,’ she said. ‘According to the polling that I’ve seen for him, in a lot of swing states, is that having a woman that is helping him campaign makes a difference.’