South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem (R) could potentially kiss her chances of becoming Donald Trump's running mate goodbye, after The Guardian reported the right-wing leader's new book reveals that she once killed her own dog.
"Cricket was a wirehair pointer, about 14 months old," Noem wrote, according to The Guardian, "adding that the dog, a female, had an 'aggressive personality' and needed to be trained to be used for hunting pheasant."
In a Monday, April 29 article, Rolling Stone reports that several Trump allies are hoping the story of killing her dog takes her chance of becoming the MAGA hopefuls vice president completely off the table.
READ MORE: 'Brutality is the point': SD governor may have thought dog-killing story would impress Trump
Rolling Stone reports one source close to the former president's campaign "told Semafor that Noem 'just keeps proving over and over that she’s a lightweight.'"
The publication also notes:
Trump’s allies may be trying to use the story bury Noem’s VP chances, Trump’s past comments indicate he doesn’t exactly have a soft spot for dogs.
The former president often uses canine descriptors as insults towards his enemies and political opponents. He famously said that Islamic State leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi died 'like a dog,' remarked that Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) was 'sweating like a dog' during a 2016 debate, and said Sen. Mitt Romney (R-Utah) 'choked like a dog' during his ill-fated 2012 run for the presidency.
Noem, however, doubled down in defense of her actions in a Sunday, April 28 tweet, writing, "I can understand why some people are upset about a 20 year old story of Cricket, one of the working dogs at our ranch, in my upcoming book — No Going Back. The book is filled with many honest stories of my life, good and bad days, challenges, painful decisions, and lessons learned."
The GOP leader added, "The fact is, South Dakota law states that dogs who attack and kill livestock can be put down. Given that Cricket had shown aggressive behavior toward people by biting them, I decided what I did."
READ MORE: Kristi Noem doubles down with 'legal cover' for shooting her puppy to death
Rolling Stone adds, "It wasn’t surprising that elite conservatives who are boosting non-Noem contenders could barely conceal their glee over the weekend, ecstatic that the governor essentially did their work for them and delivered such a uniquely awful self-inflicted wound. 'She did oppo against herself,' one Trump adviser says, mockingly."
Rolling Stone's full report is here.) (subscription required).
