South Dakota Gov. Christy Nome recounts her meeting with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un during her time in Congress in a new book. But after the Republican Party further examined the governor’s life story, his office said Friday that the story of the meeting was in error.
Noem has already faced backlash for his explanation of how he shot a hound. The book was part of an apparent pitch to be chosen as Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump’s running mate. But her political prospects plummeted amid bipartisan backlash for what she described as an aggressive behavior and killing of her neighbor’s chickens, her 14-month-old Wirehaired Pointer named Cricket.
In his forthcoming book, “No Going Back: The Truth About What’s Wrong With Politics and How We’re Moving America Forward” Noem recounts events in which he stood up to international leaders—events that enhanced his foreign policy experience—but were questioned. He writes about meeting Kim Jong Un while working in Congress and, more recently, canceling a meeting with French President Emmanuel Macron.
After Dakota Scout First announcing Noam’s explanations of the meetings, his spokesman Ian Fury said in a statement, “It has been brought to our attention that the forthcoming book ‘No Going Back’ contains two minor errors. This has been communicated to the ghostwriter and editor.”
Fury said Kim was mistakenly included on the list of world leaders Noem had met with, and that the dates of his talks with former United Nations ambassador Nikki Haley were wrong.
“The book is not yet published, and all future editions will be corrected,” Fury added.
Kamil Krsacinski/AFP via Getty Images
In the book, Noem wrote, “During my time on the House Armed Services Committee, I had the opportunity to travel to many countries to meet with world leaders — some who wanted our help, and some who didn’t. I remember when I met North Korean dictator Kim Jong Un, and he underestimated me. I’m pretty sure I had no clue about staring at the little tyrants (I was a children’s pastor).
The interpretation of such a meeting is dubious by experts on US-North Korea relations. When Nohm was a member of the House Armed Services Committee from 2013 to 2015, relations between North Korea and the United States were tense, and a congressional delegation meeting with Kim would have raised considerable eyebrows, said Syd Seiler, a former U.S. intelligence official who spent decades in the White House. Works on relations with North Korea.
“Nothing like this happened,” he said, adding that he worked at the White House and State Department during that period and was not informed of the congressional meeting with Kim.
In 2014, Noam joined an international congress trip to Japan, South Korea and China.
Noem wrote that he was “scheduled to meet” Macron in November last year when he was in Paris for a conference of European conservative leaders, but later canceled when he suggested he was “pro-Hamas”.
However, Macron’s office told The Associated Press that there had been no “direct invitation” to Noumea to meet with the French president, although it did not rule out that he may have been invited to the Paris event he was scheduled to attend.
Fury said, “The governor was invited to sit in President Macron’s box for the Armistice Day parade at the Arc de Triomphe. Following his anti-Israel comments, he chose to cancel.”
Meanwhile, Noem tries to fend off a bipartisan backlash for his interpretation of the book in which he shoots his hound and a goat.
“Don’t believe the twisted spin of the #fakenews media,” he tweeted earlier this week on X, Twitter. “I had a choice between the safety of my children and an animal with a history of attacking people and killing livestock.”
His spokesman, Fury, scrutinized the errors in Noam’s book, saying, “The media will certainly try to magnify these minor issues, but downplay Joe Biden’s repeated and false claims…”
However, members of Congress have poked fun at the illness, including Rep. Jared Moskowitz, a Democrat from Florida, Susan Wild. A Democrat from Pennsylvania. And Nancy Mays, a Republican from South Carolina, is launching the Congressional Dog Lovers Caucus this week.
Moskowitz said one of the group’s rules at X was “You can’t kill a puppy.”
Note: The original broadcast date of the video linked to this article was April 29, 2024.
