Press "Enter" to skip to content

Noem Bid for Presidency About Image, Not Ability or Achievement

Still floating… must be a witch….

Much to the certain pleasure of Corey Lewandowski and the folks in charge of Kristi Noem’s national campaign, the New York Times asserts that South Dakota’s Governor is a quickly rising presidential prospect.

But if Noem is rising, it’s not because of actual achievement, the way previous governors earned their ticket to the White House:

Ms. Noem’s approach is markedly different from the arc of other modern governors-turned-presidents, such as Bill Clinton and George W. Bush. Those politicians assiduously courted their states’ kingmakers, held up their legislative achievements as campaign calling cards and waited until they had been re-elected to the governor’s office before auditioning on the national stage [Jonathan Martin, “Why Kristi Noem Is Rising Quickly as a Republican Prospect for 2024,” New York Times, 2021.05.02].

Noem is not campaigning on real achievement or management ability. She is a pageant puppet, the latest grotesque metastasis of the reality-TV conflict pageant wrought on us by the last unqualified sleazebag Corey Lewandowski coached to the White House:

As she steps up her already-busy travel schedule — she was the keynote speaker at the Kansas G.O.P.’s convention this month and will address Arkansas Republicans in June — Ms. Noem, 49, may represent the purest test of the potency of Trump-style pugilism.

“It’s a contest about who can trigger the media and Democrats the most, and Noem is trying to get in that conversation,” said David Kochel, a Republican strategist and a veteran of presidential politics. “It’s, ‘Can I come up with something that’s going to inflame Rachel Maddow and raise awareness among conservatives because Fox will cover how much the left hates me?’”

In the post-Trump party, a willingness to confront the news media and do battle with the left, preferably in viral-video snippets, is more compelling to activists than amassing a record of achievement or painstakingly building coalitions [Martin, 2021.05.02].

SDGOP tool Russell Olson tells the Times, Noem “can talk without regurgitating talking points, so she rises to easy consideration in my book.” Russ’s assessment is both false about Noem—do you listen to her talk, Russ? do you read her tweets? she is all regurgitation—and embarrassingly honest about Republican standards. Republicans aren’t looking for someone who can carry out the duties of the most powerful job in the world more effectively than Joe Biden; they just want a talker, someone who says the things they want to hear, triggers the media, and makes for good TV.

The Times article makes clear that, for the third time in a row, Republicans are looking to run pure image over substance for President of the United States.

31 Comments

  1. Loren 2021-05-03 08:06

    Why is it that the folks in Alaska were able to figure out Sarah Palin’s schtick and Minn. was able to understand the “qualities” of Michelle Bachmann, but SD can’t seem to understand they are being played by a Snow Queen and her carnival barker? I really thought S. Dakotans were smarter than that. My mistake! !@#$%^&!

  2. RST Tribal Member 2021-05-03 08:18

    America’s Governor is heading for a reality check in June 2022; she gets her marching orders from the GOP leader in FL. Replace RINO Thune or continue as SD Governor. Sadly the state is on auto pilot slowly declining. Would be a good time for Independents and Democrats to save the state from the 1 party inbred leadership in Pierre and Washington.

    Noem could be selected by GOP leader in 2024 as Vice, but only if she follows orders issued. Top of the ticket is not in her future; snow queen is not state queen.

  3. Mark Anderson 2021-05-03 08:32

    Caitlyn could be her VP.

  4. Buckobear 2021-05-03 08:58

    We’re so proud ……….

  5. mike from iowa 2021-05-03 09:02

    Great read, John. Thanks for the link.

  6. Eve Fisher 2021-05-03 09:21

    Noem’s main problem with rising to the top is that (1) South Dakota doesn’t have any clout politically and (2) Noem is boring. She doesn’t have a sense of humor, no wit, and her public speaking voice is the constant monotone of a bored day care worker. So… Corey L can fluff and buff her all he wants, he doesn’t have a winner.

  7. W R Old Guy 2021-05-03 09:35

    Does Noem use the state airplane for all of these out of state trips? Who pays for the use of the state plane as the trips are not for state business?

  8. AmyB 2021-05-03 11:31

    Kristi Noem is nothing more than a puppet with the Republican hand so far up her butt we can see the rings on their fingers when she opens her mouth. She has no helpful thoughts or ideas but would rather start fires and throw gasoline on them. South Dakota is far down on her list of priorities and she has no problem stepping on anyone and everyone, breaking a few backs and kicking the head of anyone who disagrees to benefit herself and her family.

  9. Porter Lansing 2021-05-03 13:01

    There’s always a “lamb” chosen to run for the “out of power” team during a Presidential re-election campaign.

    When the “lamb” is finally sacrificed, it ends up working in the public sphere, somewhere.

    e.g. – Mitt Romney – John Kerry – Walter Mondale – Michael Dukakis – Bob Dole – Al Gore – Hillary Clinton – Kristi Noem

  10. sx123 2021-05-03 13:10

    With my charming good looks, maybe I should run for SD gov ;-)

  11. Donald Pay 2021-05-03 13:35

    Eve Fisher’s point 2: exactly. She is boring, and worse than that, she is predictably boring. She’s Scott Walker with breasts. You could always tell when Walker was lying, and Noem is the same, except she’s always lying, whereas Walker sometimes told the truth. It was semi-interesting for a time to watcj her twist like a pretzel when trying to answer a tough question. She never answers a question, guaranteed. She really doesn’t know why she is saying what she’s saying, except that someone gave her some talking points. This explains why she’s always trying not to explain why what she said before no longer applies. Predictable Noem response when she is caught: “the left-wing haters” or “biased media.”

  12. M 2021-05-03 13:54

    Donald, don’t forget the abs. Kristi has been working on those abs and makes sure everyone sees them. She’s gonna ride in on her horse, waving a flag, to hog tie and arm wrestle all those 2024 hopefuls in Texas next week. The old men love Kristi when she’s standing by Pence, Christie, Cotton, and the likes, and the old ladies admire her because of her “Onward Christian Soldier” attitude.

    However, because there is no substance, no one really takes her seriously. Nikki Haley is a different story. Just about as wish washy but with White House experience.

  13. o 2021-05-03 14:40

    Let’s not forget the format of deciding a nominee: put 14 hopefuls on stage together. So looking good, being coherent for three total minutes (broken into five segments), quipping one good line makes one the instant frontrunner. By the time any depth is required, the nomination race is over.

  14. Mark Anderson 2021-05-03 17:25

    Gosh boys, I’m afraid De Santis has this down, he’s become quite a little dick tator recently. It will be fun when he realizes that he can only have the VP. Maybe kristi would settle for it, who knows?

  15. Cory Allen Heidelberger Post author | 2021-05-03 17:46

    Indeed, O, it’s hard for the current nomination process to be anything other than a combination of beauty pageant and battle-royale WWF match. Get attention, win the nomination. Attention overrides all other considerations.

  16. Gwen 2021-05-03 19:13

    Do not forget she was the 1990 Snow Queen Beauty Contest winner. Not Miss Congenitally….

  17. grudznick 2021-05-03 19:24

    You are righter than right, Ms. Gwen, and a very pretty Snow Queen was she.

  18. Porter Lansing 2021-05-03 19:41

    There’s a reason Trump fired Corey Lewandowski. He’s out of touch!

    – Trump and Covid-19 began the death knells of Reagan’s era of “small government”.

    – Trying to revive it with a support base of half-educated, rural white people and selfish, greedy, uber wealthy is futile.

    – Calculating liberal Democrats see no better opponent than the “day late and a dollar short” Governor from backwater South Dakota.

    – The only politicians wary of Kristi Noem are Ted Cruz and Jim Jordan. Certainly not Kamala Harris.

  19. Arlo Blundt 2021-05-03 20:12

    well…Cory, your point is well taken. Trump will be 79 on election day 2024. A lot of things may crop up health wise with our ex President. He’s solid with 70% of the Republican Party and the 15 or so other Republicans who ran against him in the 2016 primary are old news. His natural successor, Mike Pence, is anathema to the Trumpers. I believe when he sponsored the Capitol Riot, he crossed the Rubican and so did his followers…if he runs it will be a three way election and he could win a three way election. In the interim, he could get hit by a car, fall out of his golf cart or have the inevitable health problems. Meanwhile, Governor Noem is following the old adage “You won’t get hit by lightning unless you stand out in the rain.” She’s getting wet. Don’t rule out a Noem-Lindell ticket.

  20. Cory Allen Heidelberger Post author | 2021-05-03 20:24

    M, if she succeeds in the primaries, maybe she’ll move the convention to Huron so she can ride in on her horse to her acceptance speech in the new state fair rodeo barn… one of the few concrete achievements of her political career, And another great example of how, on those rare occasions when she achieves anything, she can only achieve things through big government spending.

  21. Porter Lansing 2021-05-03 20:25

    PS: “Small Government” is why your net wealth is 40% less now than it was predicted to be when you were born. Our fiscal lives have stagnated while “small government” made the rich into the super rich.

  22. Whitless 2021-05-03 21:55

    Gotta give Corey L credit for frequently getting Kristi’s name and face in front of Republican primary voters, but she still has a long ways to go before even getting close to Trump’s name recognition. Assuming the former liar-in-chief does not run, Kristi will be in the midst of a crowded field of candidates who, similar to her, are totally lacking in decency or respect for the truth. In other words, her competitors will be unlike Stephanie Herseth-Sandlin and Marty Jackley. The likes of Ron Desantis, Tom Cotton, Josh Hawley and Mike Pompeo have more personality than Kristi, and the ability to verbally demolish her. Unless she has a personality makeover and suddenly acquires the ability to understand and articulate coherent policies, I am hopeful her candidacy will collapse as quickly as other former Midwest wannabe presidential candidates such as Michelle Bachmann and Scott Walker.

  23. leslie 2021-05-04 07:36

    What to say? She exercises everyday so she didn’t get covid from her privileged political travel. Sounds like another John Thune. But dumb.

  24. mike from iowa 2021-05-04 08:46

    If yer guv was paid commensurate to her accomplishments, she would owe the state a fortune.

  25. Mark Anderson 2021-05-04 20:53

    Gwen, Gloria Jennings was a much better Snow Queen. Highmore again.

  26. leslie 2021-05-05 18:27

    .

    Noem lied saying less than a couple handful of cases resulted from the superspreader Sturgis Motorcycle Rally. However on Fox News she confessed more than 120 cases in South Dakota alone were tied to rally. SD Dems

  27. leslie 2021-05-05 18:31

    More than 463 COVID-19 cases across 30 states were directly connected to the Sturgis Rally in August and September 2020. Seventeen patients were hospitalized and one person died, according the report by the Oxford University Press for the Infectious Diseases Society of America. USAToday

  28. leslie 2021-05-06 09:17

    “Noem rising”? Not hardly. She is not the only news item rising to the surface today. Noem is also enabling SD’s No.1 industry, over misnomers Ag and Tourism: How? Secrecy in law!

    “The essence of money laundering is to hide the source of ill-gotten wealth,” the letter states. “Without insider information, this multi-trillion dollar highly corrupt international business cannot be stopped.” (Link to follow)

    In other significant news, that at times is susceptible to the cop-out, “both political parties do it”:

    TRMS covered the following significant items in the 1st 16 minutes of its May 4th evening news reporting cycle, but this is not your typical Fox “news” fodder:

    1.) Ironically, centrist federal Judge Merrick Garland has now freed himself from some of the chains Republicans wrapped around the US Department of Justice and is about to focus the considerable horsepower of that agency on the shenanigans of the seditious Republican administration over the last four years.

    2.) It seems former AG Bill Barr lied to two different federal judges. Barr received the special counsel’s 500 page report in March and over that weekend published a 4 page summary, hiding the Mueller report itself. Barr wrote that the report did not reach the issue of whether then President Trump obstructed justice. His own review concluded there was insufficient evidence. Mueller cried “foul”. But the President announced himself fully exonerated. “No collusion!”

    Another big public lie from the president. No surprise.

    In April Barr lied to Congress saying he reached his “insufficient evidence” conclusion by consulting with DOJ lawyers. DC federal Judge Amy Berman Jackson revealed today that evidence of those consultations showed that Barr had already decided from the outset that Trump would not be charged with anything. This evidence will likely be made public in two more weeks. Barr’s Justice department had made it difficult for this federal judge to even obtain that evidence. Until now.

    Garland, our nation’s new AG, (not as a centrist SCOTUS justice as Obama intended to replace Scalia), is having an impact on the legitimate administration of the rule of law. Barr is toast.

    BTW, Barr also lied to DC federal judge Emmet Sullivan concerning Gen. Mike Flynn’s withdrawal of his guilty plea for lying to the FBI about Flynn’s shenanigans with Vlad Putin. More to follow there.

    Rachel Maddow covered the following in her news program’s next few minutes.

    3.) McConnell announced yesterday there will be zero Republican votes for the Dem’s infrastructure bill and their American Families Plan.

    4.) Schumer announced he will now add immigration matters to Dem’s substantial bill, the infrastructure bill. The Dem’s need every one of its 50 majority votes.

    5.) Of course for you Facebook lovers out there, Trump is still blacklisted for his propaganda. So his big lie about a “stolen erection”, I mean “election” continues to lose traction from data thief Zuckerberg, as well being permanently banned on Twitter.

    6.) Finally, corporations conscious of customers in Georgia and Texas are standing against voter suppression laws Republicans have grasped onto en mass desperation in their final death plunge as a legit political party. In fact, …

    7.) While the Dem’s covid relief bill, the American Rescue Plan cut taxes on middle and low incomer earners, surprisingly, voter suppression laws hastily engineered in 40 states by Republicans, are turning out to eliminate Republican voters! Especially mail-in, elderly and military voters in Florida! Amy Gardener, WAPO

    An observation: in this short year remaining the Dems will continue to halt right wing police killings of people of color, and their intentional tearing apart of immigrant families at the border. 2022 brings a dangerous mid-term election McConnell is “100 % focused on” to stop the Dems.

  29. mike from iowa 2021-05-14 15:27

    New Number 3 in the magat house says magats are unified and looking forward to working with Prez drumpf and she repeated that line. This nation is in serious jeaopardy as 70% of magats still think the election was stolen. And Noem is just as freaking goofy as the rest of them thar magats.

Comments are closed.