Gov. Kristi Noem (R-SD) will no longer attend a fundraiser in Colorado slated for Saturday after it was canceled due to threats against her that arose from an excerpt from her book that described her shooting her young hunting dog.
An excerpt from No Going Back: The Truth on What’s Wrong with Politics and How We Move America Forward revealed that Noem “hated” her 14-month-old dog because it was “less than worthless” at hunting. After it attacked a neighbor’s chickens and her, she took the dog to a gravel pit and shot it, then shot a family goat. The story sparked outrage online, to the point that there were planned protests for the Jefferson County Republican Party’s fundraiser. County GOP Chairwoman Nancy Pallozzi claimed the group “had no prior knowledge of the contents of the book when we invited her.”
“In the past few days, numerous threats and/or death threats have been made to our organization, the hotel, and to the Governor and her staff,” Pallozzi wrote in a statement. “The Denver West Marriott also received alarming comments and shared with us their deep concern over the safety and security for those attending our event, other guests, and their staff.”
The nonprofit activist group ProgressNow had planned a protest outside the hotel but has since referred to the cancellation as a “victory” online.
“The reason this fundraiser was canceled is that Kristi Noem’s values are not Colorado values, and organizers realized they were making a terrible political mistake bringing her here,” ProgressNow Colorado Executive Director Sara Loflin said. “Glad to help make [Colorado] safer for our dogs and dog families.”
“As chair of the Jefferson County Republican Party, I felt that our event would be negatively impacted, and we could not take the risk that those who made threats would cause physical harm,” Pallozzi said.
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However, the Jefferson County GOP did not reveal its stance on Noem’s anecdote. The governor claimed she was right under the law, as the dog, a wire-haired pointer, had killed livestock. However, chickens are not considered livestock under South Dakota law. Another event will take place sometime in the future.
The Washington Examiner reached Noem’s office for comment.
