Trump Scores South Dakota Governor’s 2024 Endorsement at Rally

Former US President and Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump reacts at a South Dakota Republican party rally in Rapid City, South Dakota, US September 8, 2023. (Reuters)
Former US President and Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump reacts at a South Dakota Republican party rally in Rapid City, South Dakota, US September 8, 2023. (Reuters)
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Trump Scores South Dakota Governor’s 2024 Endorsement at Rally

Former US President and Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump reacts at a South Dakota Republican party rally in Rapid City, South Dakota, US September 8, 2023. (Reuters)
Former US President and Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump reacts at a South Dakota Republican party rally in Rapid City, South Dakota, US September 8, 2023. (Reuters)

South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem endorsed Donald Trump at a campaign rally on Friday, potentially boosting the former president's lead in the Republican Party's 2024 presidential primary race.

A rising star in the party, Noem has long been mentioned as a possible running mate for Trump should he win the nomination. Her endorsement will likely add fuel to that speculation.

Noem announced her "full and complete endorsement" of Trump at an evening rally in Rapid City, South Dakota, attended by thousands of the former president's supporters.

"He is the leader, the fighter that our country needs," said Noem, who used a joke to nod at speculation that she could be his running mate but did not directly address the issue. "I will do everything I can to help him win and save this country."

With the first nominating contest in Iowa still months away, only a handful of Republican governors have officially endorsed candidates in the crowded primary.

Republican strategist Matt Dole said Noem's move to endorse at this early stage suggests she is increasingly confident that Trump, who is far ahead of Florida Governor Ron DeSantis and other rivals in national polls, will win the primary.

"It is a sign that he is solidifying the base behind his candidacy," said Dole, who has advised gubernatorial and congressional candidates. "Governor Noem has a backing in the Republican Party who like her style and have followed her career. I think she brings folks to the table with her."

Noem, 51, raised her national profile during the COVID-19 pandemic when she pushed back on restrictions aimed at curbing the spread of the virus. She has been a staunch Trump supporter, winning her a measure of popularity among his base of voters.

Trump called Noem one of the most successful governors, citing her record resisting pandemic lockdowns and strong economic growth in her state.

"I get endorsements, some don’t mean anything. Hers means a lot," Trump said.

Trump spent most of his nearly two-hour speech railing against the policies of President Joe Biden, a Democrat who defeated him in the 2020 election. The two appear to be on track for a rematch in 2024, with Republican primary voters rallying to Trump's side even as he faces four criminal indictments.

He reiterated plans to dismantle tax incentives for electric vehicles, one of Biden's signature policies, and vowed to implement a mass deportation of immigrants and fire scores of government workers in an effort to "obliterate the Deep State."

Trump painted the economic outlook in hyperbolic terms, underscoring his attempt to capitalize on polls showing that most voters don't approve of Biden's handling of the economy, despite easing inflation and low unemployment.

"The fact is we are probably heading into a Great Depression," Trump said. "The only question is whether or not it will be during the remaining months of the Biden administration. If it's going to happen, let it happen then."

Trump also called on Republicans in Congress to try to use an upcoming government funding deadline of Sept. 30 as leverage to ban the Biden administration from using taxpayer funds for resettling immigrants within the United States.



Cuba Left Reeling after Hurricane Ravages Island

A man rides a bicycle along a flooded street after the passage of Hurricane Rafael in Batabano, Mayabeque province, Cuba, on November 7, 2024. (Photo by Yamil LAGE / AFP)
A man rides a bicycle along a flooded street after the passage of Hurricane Rafael in Batabano, Mayabeque province, Cuba, on November 7, 2024. (Photo by Yamil LAGE / AFP)
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Cuba Left Reeling after Hurricane Ravages Island

A man rides a bicycle along a flooded street after the passage of Hurricane Rafael in Batabano, Mayabeque province, Cuba, on November 7, 2024. (Photo by Yamil LAGE / AFP)
A man rides a bicycle along a flooded street after the passage of Hurricane Rafael in Batabano, Mayabeque province, Cuba, on November 7, 2024. (Photo by Yamil LAGE / AFP)

Cuba was left reeling Thursday after a fierce Category 3 hurricane ripped across the island, knocking out the country’s power grid, downing trees and damaging infrastructure. No fatalities were immediately reported.
Hurricane Rafael crossed a western portion of Cuba on Wednesday evening about 75 kilometers west of Havana.
Some 50,000 people took shelter in Havana, with thousands more doing the same in regions south and just west of the capital since they lived in flood zones or in flimsy homes. The main road from Havana to the southern coastal city of Batabanó was strewn with dozens of utility poles and wires.
Lázaro Guerra, electricity director for the Ministry of Energy and Mines, said power had been partially restored in the island’s western region and that generation units were powering back up. But he warned that restoring power would be slow-going as crews took safety precautions.
As Rafael plowed across Cuba on Wednesday evening it slowed to a Category 2 hurricane as it chugged into the Gulf of Mexico before heading toward Mexico, according to the National Hurricane Center in Miami.
Late Thursday morning, the hurricane was located about 200 miles (320 kilometers) west-northwest of Havana. It had maximum sustained winds of 100 mph (345 kph) and was moving west-northwest at 9 mph (15 kph).
Earlier in the week, Rafael brushed past Jamaica and battered the Cayman Islands, downing trees and power lines and unleashing heavy flooding in some areas.
Authorities in Jamaica are searching for a couple last seen inside a car that was swept away by floodwaters, police told Radio Jamaica News.
Thousands of customers in Jamaica and Little Cayman remained without power as crews worked to restore electricity after the storm.
Rafael was expected to keep weakening as it spins over open waters and heads toward northern Mexico, although the hurricane center warned there was “above average uncertainty” in the storm's future track.
Meanwhile, many Cubans were left picking up the pieces from Wednesday night, after a rocky few weeks in the Caribbean nation. In October, the island was hit by a one-two punch. First, it was hit by island-wide blackouts stretching on for days, a product of the island’s energy crisis. Shortly after, it was slapped by powerful hurricane that struck the eastern part of the island and killed at least six people.
The disasters have stoked discontent already simmering in Cuba amid an ongoing economic crisis, which has pushed many to migrate from Cuba.
Classes and public transport were suspended on parts of the island and authorities canceled flights in and out of Havana and Varadero. Thousands of people in the west of the island had been evacuated as a preventative measure.
Rafael is the 17th named storm of the season.