Jesse Watters Confronts Kristi Noem on Dog Shooting Tale: ‘Do You Understand Why People Don’t Like That Story?’
Fox News host Jesse Watters pressed South Dakota Kristi Noem (R) about shooting her dog because it repeatedly misbehaved.
In her new book, Noem tells the story of Cricket, who the governor says was a very bad dog that liked to bite people and animals. After Cricket escaped and killed several chickens, Noem took the dog to a gravel pit, where she shot it to death.
Noem called Cricket, “less than worthless.”
The inclusion of the story has gained Noem gobs of negative press across the political spectrum. Some have even speculated that it will hurt her political prospects, as she has been rumored to be on the shortlist to be Donald Trump’s running mate. Meanwhile, the former president was reportedly “disgusted” by the story.
Noem has been doing the usual media blitz that accompanies new memoirs written by politicians, but she has been on the defensive more than other such authors.
Appearing on Jesse Watters Primetime, Noem defended her actions.
“What happens if you are debating Kamala Harris and she says, ‘Well, wait a second, you shot your dog and you wrote a book about it, bragging about it. How can you be vice president?'” Watters asked.
“That story was a choice as a mom,” she replied. “The safety of my children versus a dangerous dog that was killing livestock and attacking people. So, this book that I’ve written is full of stories of my past, hard decisions. And I told the truth.”
“Do you regret telling that story?” he pressed. “Do you understand why people don’t like that story?”
The governor curiously replied by saying “everybody” knew about her executing a dog, a statement that appears to be undercut by the shock and horror her story has garnered.
“Everybody’s known that story for years,” she insisted. “Most people don’t realize that in South Dakota they’ve used that story to attack me and my political campaigns for years. I wanted people to know the truth. This dog was vicious, it was dangerous, it was killing livestock for the joy of it and attacking people. And I had a choice between keeping my family safe, I had little kids at the time, a very public business of inviting people to come out and enjoy our hunting lodge and our business, and I don’t pass my responsibilities off to anybody else.”
“So, you’re standing by the dog story?” the host asked.
“I’ll tell you what, it’s the facts,” Noem answered.
Watch above via Fox News.
