Social media users on X ripped former Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem after she posted a picture with her dog for the start of pheasant hunting season in South Dakota.
“Happy Opener, South Dakota! Foster and I wish you good luck in the field! Pheasant hunting is part of who we are, and it’s a tradition worth passing on to our kids and grandkids,” Noem said on X Saturday.
Noem’s dog, Foster, is a Hungarian Vizsla, a sporting dog known for its hunting skills.
“As Governor, I partnered with landowners to start the Second Century Initiative, helping turn marginal land into wildlife habitat so the next generation can enjoy the same hunting traditions we grew up with,” Noem continued on X.
X users were quick to dig up Noem’s past, referencing her decision to put down her 14-month-old puppy, Cricket.
“NOOOOOO FOSTER GET AWAY FROM HER,” one said.
“Oh god that dog is about to get shot isn’t it,” another said.
One commenter created an image using artificial intelligence to show Noem with a gun pointed to Foster’s head.
“Save the dog,” the commenter said.
Noem explained in her book, No Going Back: The Truth on What’s Wrong with Politics and How We Move America Forward, why she made the decision to put Cricket down. Due to backlash she was already receiving before the book’s publication, she took to X to defend herself, saying she killed Cricket to be a “responsible parent, dog owner, and neighbor,” after the dog killed another family’s chickens.
NOEM REASSIGNMENT CAPS TUMULTUOUS WEEK OF TERMINATIONS AND RESHUFFLING AT STATE DEPARTMENT
Noem said Cricket tried to bite her when she tried to stop him.
The Washington Examiner reached out to the Department of State for comment.