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Donald Trump breaks silence on Kristi Noem's ‘tough story’ about killing dog, calls her ‘terrific person’
Donald Trump finally responded to backlash that Kristi Noem has received after admitting to killing a 14-month-old dog ‘Cricket’ several years ago.
Former President Donald Trump finally responded to backlash that South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem has received after admitting to killing a 14-month-old dog 'Cricket' and a family goat several years ago.
Appearing in an interview with radio hosts Clay Travis and Buck Sexton, Trump called Noem a "terrific person", stressing that it was a “tough story”.
“I think [Noem’s] terrific. A couple of rough stories, there’s no question about it,” Trump stated. “And when explained — the dog story, people hear that and people from different parts of the country probably feel a bit differently, but that’s a tough story.”
“She had a bad week. We all have bad weeks,” the presumptive Republican presidential nominee added.
Noem, who was considered a prospective running mate for Trump, faced criticism after an extract from her memoir, "No Going Back: The Truth on What's Wrong with Politics and How We Move America Forward," disclosed how she killed Cricket.
The former president appeared to imply that Noem was not totally responsible for her book's contents.
“Until this week, she was doing incredibly well. And she got hit hard, and sometimes you do books, and you have some guy writing a book and you maybe don’t read it as carefully, you know,” Trump continued. “You have ghostwriters too. They help you, and they, in this case, didn’t help too much.”
The incident, combined with other latest controversies concerning Noem, has harmed her chances as a potential Trump running mate.
Kristi Noem justifies her action of killing dog and goat
Noem in her book stated that she killed the German wirehaired pointer on her property after taking it for pheasant hunting. She mentioned she "hated" Cricket and blamed it for killing a neighbour's hens and attempting to bite her. She even called her dog “untrainable” and “dangerous”.
She also talked about murdering a "nasty and mean" male goat who used to smell awful and chase her kids.
The South Dakota Governor went on to say that President Joe Biden’s dog Commander should b e killed like Cricket for attacking several Secret Service personnel. Commander was removed from the White House in October and it was handed over to Biden's relatives.
A number of Democratic governors and conservatives eventually condemned Noem for murdering the pet. However, she justified her actions, saying that the killing and her willingness to disclose the incident demonstrated her genuineness and capacity to make difficult decisions.
After Trump’s interview aired on Tuesday, Biden campaign spokesperson James Singer issued a statement, stating that they are proudly anti-puppy-killing and "don’t think those who murder puppies are ‘terrific.’”
