South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem refused to say whether she actually met North Korean leader Kim Jong-un during a tense interview with Fox News host Jesse Watters on Monday.
After Watters grilled Noem about the backlash she received for dragging her 14-month-old dog to a gravel pit and shooting it in the head, he added, “They’re also attacking you– I guess you said you met Kim Jong-un? Did you meet him?”
“I’ve been to the [demilitarized zone]. I’ve been to North Korea,” replied Noem. “I don’t talk about my conversations with world leaders and so when I looked at the book and I saw that excerpt, I decided to make the change to the content of the book and that’s been done.”
Watters questioned, “So, you didn’t have a conversation with Kim when you were at the DMZ?”
“I don’t have conversations about my conversations with world leaders,” Noem responded. “I’ve been working on policy for thirty years, Jesse, and that’s what most people don’t remember about me is I’m old.”
Watters shot back, “You’re not that old. So maybe you did have a conversation with Kim but you don’t wanna talk about it?”
“I will not talk about my personal conversations with any world leaders,” concluded Noem. “I just won’t and I’m not gonna do it.”
Noem received backlash last month over an anecdote in her new book about her decision to shoot and kill her 14-month-old dog Cricket after it proved “less than worthless” as a hunting animal.
Noem’s book sparked additional controversy this week after she was accused of lying about a supposed meeting with Kim Jong-un during a trip to North Korea.
“I remember when I met with North Korean dictator Kim Jong Un, I’m sure he underestimated me having no clue about my experience staring down little tyrants,” wrote Noem in an extract of the book, which has since been removed. “I’ve been a children’s pastor after all.”
While Noem has insinuated that the passage in her book was added without her knowledge, she also narrated the claim in her audiobook.
Watch above via Fox News.
