 July 6, 2021 | by Chris Cillizza and Lauren Dezenski Kristi Noem emerges as the female Trump  Among the many contenders to be the "next Donald Trump" (if such a thing actually exists) there are, well, a lot of dudes.
There's Trump heir Don Jr., former VP Mike Pence, Arkansas Sen. Tom Cotton, Missouri Sen. Josh Hawley, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, Texas Sen. Ted Cruz, former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott, Florida Sen. Rick Scott ...
You get the idea. LOTS of dudes.
And then there is Kristi Noem, the governor of South Dakota and someone making quite clear that when if she runs for president in 2024, she will do so as the female incarnation of the 45th President.
The latest evidence of that positioning came Monday morning, when Noem tweeted "#SparklersSuck" accompanied by several images: The first (labeled "Trump's America") showed fireworks bursting over South Dakota's Mount Rushmore. The second two (labeled "Biden's America") show Noem and her family looking sad while holding small sparklers.
The message was unmistakable. Donald Trump went big -- and awesome. Joe Biden, well, doesn't.
And the tactic was familiar to anyone who has watched Trump over these past five years: Use social media to a) throw red meat to the GOP base who loves a good troll and b) enflame Democrats, knowing that their outrage will only help beef up your bona fides with the GOP base. (That some people on Twitter noted that the "Trump's America" photo appeared to be a composite image from 2015 will do little to slow the efficacy of Noem's move.)
Consider Noem's response to the Covid-19 pandemic in her state. In the fall of 2020, as the small-population state was averaging more than 1,000 new cases a day and was designated by Forbes as one of the 10 riskiest states in the country to visit, Noem was determined to raise questions about mask-wearing.
Speaking at the Conservative Political Action Conference this spring, Noem sought to cast her handling of Covid-19 in South Dakota as a success story and a victory for, er, liberty. "South Dakota is the only state in America that never ordered a single business or church to close," said Noem. "South Dakota never instituted shelter in place, never mandated people wear masks."
(Sidebar: At the time Noem delivered that CPAC speech -- early March --South Dakota had the second highest number of cases per 100,000 residents in the country, according to CNN's data from the Johns Hopkins University Center for Systems Science and Engineering.) Noem is on the docket to speak at a CPAC gathering this weekend in Dallas.
She also drew national attention when she condemned rapper Lis Nas X's "Satan Shoes" -- which allegedly contained a drop of human blood. "Our kids are being told that this kind of product is, not only okay, it's 'exclusive,'" Noem tweeted. "But do you know what's more exclusive? Their God-given eternal soul."
And let's not forget -- let us NEVER forget -- that Noem once presented Trump with a 4-foot replica of Mount Rushmore with his head added next to those of George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Theodore Roosevelt and Abraham Lincoln.
Yup. That happened.
While what Noem is doing is utterly transparent, it also appears to be working. The New York Times' Jonathan Martin nailed that success here:
"If Gov. Ron DeSantis of Florida is widely seen as the brash heir apparent to Mr. Trump, and senators like Josh Hawley and Tom Cotton are attempting to put a more ideological frame on Trumpism, Ms. Noem is trying to cement her place as the only female Trump ally echoing the former president's trigger-the-left approach among the upper tiers of potential 2024 candidates. "
-- Chris QUOTE OF THE DAY "You've got another lottery going on and it's the death lottery." -- West Virginia Gov. Jim Justice said the state's vaccine-hesitant are in a "death lottery" by gambling their health with the dangerous Covid-19 virus, in a recent interview with ABC. West Virginia is among the states offering vaccinated residents entry in lotteries for money, cars and even firearms. A SUIT FOR HISTORY  Around 11 p.m. ET on January 6, Rep. Andy Kim was photographed walking around the US Capitol with a trash bag in hand, trying to clean up after insurrectionists had ransacked the building just hours earlier.
Now, six months later, the New Jersey Democrat is donating the suit he wore to the Smithsonian as the museum builds its exhibit documenting what happened on January 6.
"It was tough for me to think through this in terms of saving items from that day for history's sake. I wasn't quite there yet in my mind because I was trying to deal with moving forward," Kim told CNN, recounting how he had felt when the Smithsonian initially approached him about donating something to its exhibit.
"But, it was starting to see the reactions from people around the country to that day in particular, to my actions in the suit, that made me realize that this was something that might help tell that story beyond just the photographs and the video footage to have something tangible."
TUESDAY'S MUST-SEE TWEETS 1. Don't forget what happened that day 2. The Covid-19 vaccine doesn't have to be political! (But it is.) 3. No, the US Women's National Team wasn't turning away from the flag 5. This trailer made my day 6. I want Joey Chestnutt's hype guy 7. This is a TOUGH choice 8. The psychology of penalty shootouts
LAUREN'S GOOD READS  Don't miss these two reads on redistricting: On CNN, Republicans are considering cracking Nashville's blue congressional district to gain another House Republican, but there are major downsides. Politico goes big-picture on the GOP redistricting effort and includes this memorable line: "There's an old saying: Pigs get fat. Hogs get slaughtered," said Rep. Patrick McHenry (R-N.C.). "And when it comes to redistricting, that is, in fact, the case."
Will New York's botched ranked-choice voting experience finally bring change to the beleaguered NYC Board of Elections? Jimmy Vielkind investigates for the Wall Street Journal.
From critical race theory to Trump, Virginia's Loudon County has become the epicenter of America's culture wars, reports The Washington Post.
For Vulture, E. Alex Jung profiled one of Lauren's favorite actresses: Jennifer Coolidge. From "Best in Show" to "Legally Blonde," she can do it all.
Jessica Springsteen and her horse: Born to run ride (at the Olympics!)
MUSICAL INTERLUDE Chris loves ALL things Jason Isbell -- including this cover of Metallica's "Sad But True" that sounds NOTHING like the original. WHAT IS PENCE DOING?  Former Vice President Mike Pence defied his old boss by presiding over Congress as it certified the 2020 election, but he is also trying to keep his legacy tied with Donald Trump as the GOP barrels toward 2024.
In the latest episode of The Point, Chris breaks down Pence's tightrope walk to set up his political future ahead of the next presidential election.
Stick with The Point on YouTube and subscribe!  ONE BIG TRAVEL WEEKEND ✈️ 10 million + More than 10 million people passed through America's airports this July Fourth holiday weekend, according to TSA screening numbers. Travel on Thursday and Friday was busier than in 2019, before the pandemic cratered air travel. You are receiving this message because you subscribed to CNN's The Point with Chris Cillizza newsletter. Was this email forwarded to you? Sign up now to get The Point in your inbox.
Send your tips and thoughts via email to Chris Cillizza and Lauren Dezenski. You can follow Chris and Lauren on Twitter and connect with The Point on:
Our mailing address is:
Copyright © 2021 Cable News Network, Inc., All rights reserved. | |||||||||||||||||||||||
SUBSCRIBE TO OUR NEWSLETTER
Top Articles
-
Baird and NWSL general counsel Lisa Levine were ousted Friday in the wake of a rep...
-
Plus: The high costs of housing, school board politics and alien life abroad July 16, 2021 View in B...
Our Hindi Website
www.hindi.men
