South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem was reportedly on former President Donald Trump’s shortlist for Vice President before the veteran Republican became embroiled in a controversy over the summer involving a book she had previously released.
Within the book, Noem claimed (or more accurately, bragged) that she had executed a pet dog by shooting it at near point-blank range. Animal lovers across the United States pounced on Noem after the story became front-page news, tanking the political prospects of the rising Republican star.
In preparation for her push from South Dakota to Washington D.C., Noem has started a PAC called ‘Kristi PAC’. The organization began in 2011 under the name ‘KEEPING REPUBLICAN IDEAS STRONG TIMELY & INVENTIVE.’
The Political Action Committee had collected less than $1.5 Million in total from 2011 to 2022, and only started to seriously fundraise during the 2024 Presidential Election. Noem’s PAC has raked in over $4 Million during this election cycle.
Kristi PAC, after rebranding after the 2022 Election cycle, has raised over $3.7 Million from Republican donors since that midterm election, with a majority of the money coming from small donors.
Though Noem’s donations have largely come from donations under $5,000, several powerful members of the Republican establishment have been funding her committee, raising questions about how much influence these donors intend to have within the incoming Trump Administration. Here are some of the largest notable donors to Noem’s PAC in the 2024 Election cycle.
Margaretta Taylor, Cox Enterprises Heiress
Margaretta Taylor is the daughter of Anne Cox Chambers, and the granddaughter of the newspaper publisher James M. Cox, and she is worth an estimated $4.7 Billion. She is a major power player in New York, and has been for many years.
Cox Enterprises encompasses major brands like AutoTrader, Kelley Blue Book, and Manheim Auctions, with international operations spanning Asia, Australia, Europe, and Latin America.
See her $5,000 donation to Kristi Noem’s PAC in 2024, just months before her appointment as Homeland Security Secretary below,
Taylor has considerable influence in the media landscape considering her large stake in Cox Enterprises. Why is she funneling money to Kristi Noem?
Donald Zietlow, Former CEO Of Kwik Trip
Donald Zietlow is the former CEO of the gas station chain Kwik Trip, a company that boasted 36,000 employees in 2022 when Zietlow retired.
The veteran businessman also gave $5,000 to Noem’s PAC in 2023. Is Zietlow interested in obtaining influence over Noem in her new position as Homeland Security Secretary?
It appears that an entire class of donors has pledged $5,000 to Noem’s PAC. A cheap price, perhaps, or perhaps just a sign of loyalty.
As President-elect Donald Trump continues to nominate controversial individuals to cabinet positions, such as Fox News host Pete Hegseth as Defense Secretary, or Congressman Matt Gaetz as Attorney General, the media must continue to examine the financial forces behind these individuals.
Many times it is not the politician him, or herself that is the root of the corruption, but merely the tool used by much more powerful individuals in order to control the outcome of events as they unfold.
It is our duty as an independent and free press to investigate these matters to the best of our ability.
What kind of influence do Kristi Noem’s donors plan to have over her in her position as Homeland Security Secretary?
Moreover, how much of this donated money ended up in the pocket of the Trump campaign? We, unfortunately, will not know until after the beginning of 2025 due to a delay in the federal campaign finance data reporting regulations.
