South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem said Sunday that former President Donald Trump should choose a running mate who would “help him win” and indicated that she has not been formally vetted for the job.
“I didn’t receive any paperwork. No, I haven’t,” Noem told NBC’s “Meet the Press,” adding, “I’ve had conversations with the president and I know he’s the one who will make the decisions about who will be his vice president.” President.”
Earlier this month, Noem suggested that having a woman on the ticket could be particularly helpful to Trump, telling CNN“All the polls tell him in these swing states that a woman on the ticket will help him win.”
But when guest moderator Peter Alexander asked Sunday whether Trump was making a mistake by not selecting a woman as his running mate, Noem didn’t say that.
“He needs to pick the best person for the job,” Noem told Alexander, adding that Trump should “pick someone who will help him win.”
NBC News reported Friday that Trump’s vice presidential search has narrowed to focus on three Republican men: Florida Sen. Marco Rubio, Ohio Sen. J.D. Vance and North Dakota Gov. , Doug Burgum.
Burgum told CNN on Sunday that Trump is a strong enough candidate that he doesn’t need to select a vice president to help him garner votes.
“President Trump can win this race regardless of who is vice president. He has the luxury of not having to choose anyone,” Burgum said.
Noem was seen as a leading contender on Trump’s list of vice presidential candidates, but faced backlash earlier this year over an anecdote she told in a memoir about the murder of her family’s young dog.
Asked whether what she wrote in her book cost her the opportunity to be vice president, Noem declined to answer, only saying: “I would say that was a story from 20 years ago about me protecting my children from an animal. cruel”.
She later added, “The reason it’s in my book is because it’s full of challenging moments and difficult decisions.”
The book also faced criticism after certain parts were challenged, including allegations that she met with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un.
Future editions of the book will not include the north Korea anecdotewhich his spokesman later acknowledged was erroneous.
“I’m not going to talk about it,” Noem said Sunday, adding, “I took that line out of my book and I’m not going to talk about it.”
Noem also spoke about her views on abortion, which differ from Trump’s. South Dakota has one of the most restrictive bans on the procedure in the country, allowing no exceptions for rape and incest. Meanwhile, Trump said that supports such exceptions.
The governor argued that her state’s law is not at odds with Trump’s view that laws governing abortion should be made at the state level.
“I would say it will be different,” Noem said Sunday. “[Trump] I said this many times. In fact, you know, specifically in our state, the people decide.”
The governor also repeated Trump’s position on pardoning the protesters who stormed the Capitol on January 6, 2021.
“Each of these cases needs to be analyzed individually,” Noem said. “[Pardons] it will be based on your prerogative and your decision when considering these cases.”
The former president said he will “absolutely” consider pardoning all people convicted in connection with his actions on January 6.
This story originally appeared on NBCNews.com read the full story
