South Dakota
Inaccuracies found in Noem’s new memoir ahead of release
South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem’s (R) memoir has not been released, but inaccuracies in the text are already emerging.
Noem’s spokesperson said “two small errors” have been brought to the Republican governor’s attention. The book is titled “No Going Back: The Truth on What’s Wrong with Politics and How We Move America Forward.”
The Dakota Scout reported Thursday that Noem’s book said she met with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un while she was serving in Congress on the House Armed Services Committee.
“Though my tenure on the House Armed Services Committee, I had the chance to travel to many countries to meet with world leaders,” she reportedly wrote in the forthcoming book. “I remember when I met with North Korean dictator Kim Jong Un. I’m sure he underestimated me, having no clue about my experience staring down little tyrants (I’d been a children’s pastor, after all).”
The Dakota Scout spoke with congressional staffers and North Korea analysts who explained why such a meeting was all but impossible. Although Noem visited China in 2014 as part of the committee, there is no record of Kim leaving North Korea until 2018, when Noem was campaigning for governor.
An analyst noted to the outlet that not even former President Obama had met Kim, and former President Trump met Kim in summer 2018.
In an emailed statement to The Hill, Noem’s spokesperson Ian Fury said Kim “was included in a list of world leaders and shouldn’t have been.”
Noem also wrote about a “weird” conversation she had with former GOP presidential candidate Nikki Haley, who Noem said called her and offered to be a mentor in summer 2021.
According to an excerpt of the book obtained by Politico, Noem writes that Haley said she had “heard quite a bit” about her, but Noem said she felt threatened by the call.
Noem said Haley made it clear that there was only room for one Republican woman to be in the spotlight. The South Dakota governor has been rumored to be on Trump’s vice-presidential short-list, though another story in her book — about killing her dog — has not helped her prospects.
Politico reported that a Haley spokesperson said the two women spoke, but in 2020, not 2021. Fury confirmed the 2020 timing of the conversation in his statement.
Fury said the errors have “been communicated to the ghostwriter and editor” and “the book has not been released yet, and all future editions will be corrected.”
“The media will, of course, try and make these tiny issues huge,” Fury said in a statement, going on to list dubious claims made by President Biden about his own life.
Last week, Noem made national headlines after excerpts of the book were reported where she detailed shooting her 14-month-old dog, Cricket, after he misbehaved during a hunting trip.
Noem doubled down on her actions, despite receiving sharp criticism from across the political spectrum.
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South Dakota
Republican businessman Toby Doeden advances to primary runoff in South Dakota governor’s race
Republican businessman Toby Doeden has advanced to a runoff in South Dakota governor’s race, NBC News projects.
Gov. Larry Rhoden, who replaced Kristi Noem last year when President Donald Trump nominated her to lead the Department of Homeland Security, was battling with Rep. Dusty Johnson and former state House Speaker Jon Hansen for a second spot in the July 28 runoff. The primary will go to a runoff because no candidate eclipsed 35% of the vote.
Trump did not issue an endorsement in the race. Doeden branded himself on his campaign website as “a total political outsider who’s tired of the government’s failure to deliver on its promises” and one of Trump’s “fiercest supporters.”
Rhoden, a former lieutenant governor, agriculture secretary and lawmaker, campaigned on property tax cuts and lowering crime in his bid for a four-year term.
Johnson is the state’s lone representative in the House, where he previously was chair of the Republican Main Street Caucus. Hansen, who was elected to the South Dakota House in 2010, held several leadership positions before he became speaker.
The Republican nominee will be the favorite to win the general election in the solidly red state this fall. A Democrat has not served as governor in South Dakota since the 1970s, and Trump carried the state by 29 points in 2024.
News
Agronomist: eastern South Dakota crops hit and miss
An agronomist in eastern South Dakota says corn and soybeans are hit and miss as the growing season begins.
Steven Zemlicka with AgTegra Cooperative tells Brownfield, “We’ve got corn anywhere from V1 all the way up to V4. Biggest stuff’s maybe touching V5. Corn’s coming right along, looks pretty good. A little bit of hail here too, but I don’t think it’s going to be much of an issue. Stands for the most part are pretty good, pretty solid.”
Zemlicka says soybean emergence has been slow due to the wet, cool conditions, and there are a few fields that still need planted.
“People were still working on planting soybeans when we got the recent rain.”
He says recent rain totals ranged from a half inch to as much as four inches in the northeast part of South Dakota; the southern part of the state has been drier.
South Dakota’s corn is rated 61 percent good to excellent, with soybean conditions rated 57 percent good to excellent, according to USDA’s first condition ratings of the season.
RAPID CITY, S.D. (KOTA) – The South Dakota Community Foundation is encouraging nonprofits to apply for funding this June.
Beth Massa and Ginger Niemann joined us live with what you need to know before applying.
Watch the full interview above.
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