South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem (R) doubled down after revealing in her new guide that she shot lifeless her personal canine, along with her newest feedback prompting a second wave of backlash.
“I can understand why some people are upset about a 20 year old story of Cricket,” she wrote on X (previously Twitter) on Sunday. “The book is filled with many honest stories of my life, good and bad days, challenges, painful decisions, and lessons learned.”
She argued that, below South Dakota regulation, canines who assault and kill livestock might be put down.
“Given that Cricket had shown aggressive behavior toward people by biting them, I decided what I did,” she stated. “Whether running the ranch or in politics, I have never passed on my responsibilities to anyone else to handle. Even if it’s hard and painful. I followed the law and was being a responsible parent, dog owner, and neighbor.”
“As I explained in the book, it wasn’t easy. But often the easy way isn’t the right way,” she added.
In her new guide, “No Going Back: The Truth on What’s Wrong With Politics and How We Move America Forward,” Noem remembers capturing a 14-month-old wirehaired pointer on her ranch, the Guardian reported Friday after acquiring an advance copy.
Noem, a contender to be former President Donald Trump’s operating mate, stated she “hated” Cricket, describing the pup as “untrainable,” “dangerous” and “less than worthless … as a hunting dog.”
She stated she shot the animal in a gravel pit.
“It was not a pleasant job,” she wrote. “But it had to be done.”
She confronted fierce criticism over the weekend in regard to the surprising anecdote.
Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, a Democrat, on Saturday shared a picture of his canine having fun with a deal with, captioned, “Post a picture with your dog that doesn’t involve shooting them and throwing them in a gravel pit. I’ll start.”
“In New York we love our puppies,” New York Gov. Kathy Hochul (D) tweeted.
Sunday’s non-apology appeared to solely stoke the flames.
“If you can’t express sincere regret about blowing a puppy’s brains out, you should simply be grateful the statute of limitations has run, and just shut up about it,” conservative legal professional George Conway posted.
Conservative commentator Meghan McCain, the daughter of the late Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.), stated Noem’s story “is something out of a horror movie.”
“My family has a ranch outside of Sedona — no one has ever shot a dog for any reason. This is not a ‘rural/ranch’ thing,” she wrote.
See a few of the different commentary under.
Correction: A earlier model of this text stated the canine was 14 years outdated. It was 14 months outdated.
https://www.huffpost.com/entry/kristi-noem-defends-shooting-dog_n_662f9dc8e4b0eb5fda50dc8c