The sound of Kristi Noem's political future: Crickets

The best line I've read so far this week — and it's unlikely to be topped — is the opening sentence of John Hendrickson's piece, "Did Kristi Noem Just Doom Her Career?" in The Atlantic. Hold for rimshot:

Say this for Kristi Noem: She has an eye for literary detail.

Something else I find amusing. To date, every piece I've read on Noem's ghoulish canine-eliminazione ways begins by acknowledging in so many words that The Guardian "broke the story." The story, of course, is in her book No Going Back. Her epic is not yet out, but publishers distribute advance copies of books to the press. It seems The Guardian, alone, actually read it — and if it hadn't, no one would have ever known of Kristi Noem-cum-Mommy Dearest because no one else was ever going to read her book.       

The second-most memorable line of the week comes from the governor herself, quoted in Hendrickson's piece. Attempting again to quell the seething swarms of gathering villagers, on Sunday she pleaded that she was only "being a responsible ... dog owner." The first law of holes states that "When in a hole, stop digging." The second law of holes states, "When you stop digging, you are still in a hole." See: Kristi Noem. 

One item of particular interest in The Atlantic story is Hendrickson's speculation that the South Dakota governor might have been following the advice of the "old political idiom": "Hang a lantern on your problem." He writes:

"In the book, Noem reportedly notes that a construction crew watched her kill both the puppy and the goat. Perhaps, as her national profile grows, and as potential vetting for Trump’s VP gets under way, Noem sought to get in front of any potentially damaging story that might emerge through opposition research."

The lantern adage is generally good advice. Too few politicians take it. In Noem's case, if indeed she had the old saw in mind, it was exceptionally bad advice to take — even more so when it came to blowing away poor Cricket.

Comments

[Anne J]

Even animal hater Trump has the good sense not to own any animals.

[Uncle Billy]

I'm sure the ever-hopeful, wannabe Trumpian Veep designee, and perpetually pathetic, pathological prevaricator Kari Lake has plans to one-up Kristi. Hence, a photo op with a baseball bat and a litter of Labra-Doodle puppies is probably in the works.

[PM]

You're not far off, Billy. She quickly posted a photo of herself while lovingly holding "her little dog, too."