Kristi Noem posted photos celebrating a successful hunting trip. When critics questioned the display, the former Homeland Security secretary answered with insults and a lecture about God.
The former South Dakota governor shared six Instagram photos on Sept. 21 showing herself and hunting companions posing with a dead bull elk after an archery hunt in Wyoming. The pictures drew congratulations from supporters — and criticism from people who found the celebration troubling.
In her original Instagram post, which contains images of the dead animal, Noem described a “Super fun hunt” and thanked the friends who helped make it successful.
For a politician whose account of shooting her own dog already sparked national outrage, the photos brought a familiar controversy back into view.
Some commenters objected to killing the elk. Others made a narrower point: Hunting for food and publicly celebrating over an animal’s body are different things.
One commenter quoted by RadarOnline identified as conservative but criticized presenting the animal as a trophy. Another called the images “disturbing.” HuffPost also reported objections from users who said they accepted hunting but questioned Noem’s judgment in posting the pictures.
Noem responded by calling critics “ignorant and uninformed.”
She said the elk would feed her family and others, described learning to hunt from her father, and invoked what she sees as a God-given responsibility to care for the natural world.
“Shame on you,” she wrote.
She also argued that people rejecting harvested food would find empty grocery shelves and be unable to feed their families. Her response was reproduced by multiple news outlets.
That defense addressed why she hunts. It did less to answer the criticism of why she chose to post celebratory pictures — the distinction several commenters were making.
The reaction was not universally negative. Supporters praised the hunt, and the New York Post reported that many responses were congratulatory. The available comments show a divided audience, rather than a reliable measure of broader public opinion.
Still, Noem’s history gives the dispute a political weight that an ordinary hunting post might not carry.
In her 2024 memoir, No Going Back, she described shooting Cricket, her 14-month-old wirehaired pointer. According to Associated Press reporting, Noem said the dog had killed chickens, bitten her and proved untrainable. She wrote that she led Cricket to a gravel pit and killed her.
The revelation triggered widespread criticism while Noem was being considered a potential running mate for Donald Trump. She defended the decision as an example of the difficult choices involved in farm life.
The dog episode and the Wyoming elk hunt are separate events. Wyoming permits regulated elk hunting, with the state Game and Fish Department setting seasons, hunting areas, bag limits and special archery rules. Criticism of Noem’s photos does not itself establish a hunting violation.
The latest dispute comes after another major change in Noem’s public career. Trump removed her as Homeland Security secretary in March and appointed her special envoy for the Shield of the Americas, an initiative focused on confronting drug cartels, Reuters reported.
This time, the controversy began with pictures she chose to share — and intensified when she treated objections to the display as evidence that her critics did not understand food, faith or family tradition.
Discover more from Next Gen News
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.