Kristi Noem is probably a criminal and unindicted co-conspirator

This interested party has been following Kristi Lynn Arnold Noem's (KLAN's) career since she was elected to the South Dakota Legislature in 2006 and ordered a staffer in a leg cast to go into the Capitol parking lot during a blizzard so former South Dakota Snow Queen Kristi wouldn’t have to get into a cold car.

Her father, who smothered in a 1994 grain bin incident likely modeled extramarital proclivities, hated American Indians, she hates Indians and Donald Trump hates Indians. And, after her father died she had an affair with a much older man who was an employee for the US Department of Agriculture then after she was elected to Congress she began boinking Aaron Schock, a now-disgraced Illinois US Representative. Corey Lewandowski is simply one in a string of her paramours.

A 2010 Sioux Falls Argus Leader piece laid the backstory.

Noem's dive into the family operation led to posts agricultural boards - her first steps into politics. She served on the South Dakota Soybean Association board. In 1997, then-Sen. Tom Daschle nominated her to serve on the state board of the Farm Service Agency. That led to an appointment to the board from President Clinton. Noem also attended one of Daschle's leadership camps, which were intended to groom up-and-coming Democrats to compete for local and state offices. Noem said she attended when the camps were open to Republicans because she wanted to learn more about campaigning. Noem isn't sure how her name got to Daschle for the FSA appointment. It came when the board was being expanded from three members to five. Regardless, Noem was a Republican serving among Democrats. "I don't know why or how she got on that board," said Mike O'Connor, a former Democratic lawmaker who served as the executive director of the state FSA.

Trump henchman, Roger Stone reportedly noted that when she was in Congress Noem was like a porcupine but all the pricks were on the inside.

Noem nearly lost her bid for Congress in 2010 following revelations of a 20-year driving record fraught with recklessness and numerous arrest warrants for failure to appear.

It isn’t that uncommon in Noem’s family, based on court records since 1989. Noem’s husband, Bryon, had 18 recorded traffic citations during that period, 11 of them for speeding. Noem’s brother, Rock Arnold, had 34 citations during that period, 25 of them for speeding. He also missed court or fine payment dates four times and had warrants issued three times. Another brother, Robb, had 21 citations, including 12 for speeding. And Noem’s mother, Corinne Arnold, had 11 citations, nine for speeding.

In 2015 while Noem was in Congress it was revealed that her brothers used the H-2A program to bring in workers during planting and harvest season. Today, people - particularly those using the H-2A program - have been a target of Immigration and Customs Enforcement including in South Dakota. 

Noem was a partner in Racota Valley Ranch until 2008. Racota Valley Ranch received $3,058,152 in farm subsides in 1995-2008. Her ownership percentage was 13.5 percent in 2000-2001 and 16.9 percent in 2002-2008. Her 2009 financial disclosure form lists her as a partner in Racota Valley Ranch. EWG’s estimate of federal farm subsidies paid to Noem is $443,748.

Racota Valley Ranch Partnership has received a total of $4,910,179 in taxpayer-funded subsidies between 1995 and 2024.

Noem's anti-civil rights actions are no accident. She's is a graduate of the Koch Brothers' American Legislative Exchange Council or ALEC, an anti-think tank think tank that teaches how wedge issues raise campaign dollars for the extreme white wing of the Republican Party. South Dakota's GOP legislators and candidates enjoy millions in lobbyist benefits from ALEC.

When she was governor she sought to cover up the death of Joe Boever who was killed by South Dakota's attorney general with a 2011 Ford Taurus that was damaged so badly it had to be towed. The state settled with Joe's family for an undisclosed amount orchestrated by the Governor's Office of Risk Management.

When she was in Congress Noem said she believed in the sovereignty of tribes but voted against supporting the needs of Native women and during the height of the Covid pandemic in 2020 Governor Noem sued to have the checkpoints that protected Native Americans removed from the highways on reservations.

Noem has never supported the Violence Against Women Act but anyone who believes she's never been a victim of sexual harassment or unwanted touching is delusional. Is she compliant, infidelitous, or simply a jaded career politician who's used to trading her favors for advancement? 

At her urging Trump invoked the “national emergency” at the border to skirt competitive bidding rules for a $220 million taxpayer-funded ad campaign that benefited a firm with ties to Mrs. Noem.

Three former Department of Homeland Security officials have made it clear that either numbed, radicalized, infidelitous Kristi Noem resign in 2026 or Herr Trump will fire her then replace her with Virginia Governor Glenn Youngkin who is leaving that post. Mrs. Noem caused the murder of a Minneapolis woman and will not go unpunished.

Illinois U.S. Rep. Robin Kelly announced she is filing articles of impeachment again Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem in the wake of a deadly ICE shooting in Minneapoli.

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— CBS News Chicago (@cbschicago.bsky.social) January 8, 2026 at 6:41 AM