The latest scandal: Kristi Noem’s husband, Bryan Noem, has been revealed to be a cross-dresser by the Daily Mail. That’s a terrible source, but it’s been confirmed by others that he was a member of an online fetish community.
“Ms. Noem is devastated. The family was blindsided by this, and they ask for privacy and prayers at the time,” Kristi Noem’s representatives told The New York Post.
Why be devastated? It’s her husband with whom she has had three children, so she had to have known something…except I guess she may have been distracted by her own cos-playing as ICE Barbie, and her dalliance with Lewandowski. Maybe she should try this kind of play with her partner?
Of course, there’s the usually baseless whining that it made her vulnerable to blackmail by foreign agents, but has that ever been a real thing? There are gay people working within the Trump administration, so that doesn’t scare anyone anymore — I’m sure there are others who have their own peculiar (to a straight Republican, anyway) behaviors. Let them all hang out!
I am mildly distressed by the fact that I might share an opinion with crazy Nancy Mace, though.
Rep. Nancy Mace (R-S.C.) posted that the news was personal matter and a distraction from other “priorities.”
I agree, it’s a personal matter, and I wouldn’t hold that against either Noem. I have other priorities, like seeing corrupt fascists chased out of the government.
Of course, Nancy Mace alternates this post with attacks on trans and gay people. Her rule is that it’s only wrong to criticize the private lives of Republicans.
What possible “prayers” could they be asking for?!
Her not knowing is not credible. This indicates she has been trying to get out in front of the story for some time by telling reporters off the record her husband is gay (not a straight crossdresser). If true, she probably got a heads-up from a friend contacted by the DM during their research for the story.
https://bsky.app/profile/ronfilipkowski.bsky.social/post/3mieztica7224
I long to live in a world where the Noem marriage, fetishes, and polyamory could all exist as a non-issue as long as all involved had knowledge and gave consent (ie ethical). It is the constant lying that pisses me off. And of course the fascism.
Happy International Trans Day of Visibility, everyone!
https://www.hrc.org/campaigns/international-transgender-day-of-visibility
Meanwhile, a federal judges has ruled that the University of Pennsylvania must obey Trump’s demand of a list of its Jewish community members.
Some personal matters matter more than others it would seem.
https://www.cnn.com/2026/03/31/us/upenn-subpoena-jewish-community-list
“Ms. Noem is devastated. The family was blindsided by this, and they ask for privacy and prayers at the time,”
I certainly will respect their wishes, but prayers I can’t bring myself to doing. And let me add, whatever kind of smearing happens to her will be deserved.
Noem is more devastated about losing her spotlight (firing). Now she has to deal with a different type of spotlight. No, I do not wish her good luck.
According to my moral calculus, it stops becoming a personal matter the nanosecond you join a political movement or religion that calls for your sex life be regulated by the state according to the “ethics” of ancient Middle Eastern misogynists. The moment these uptight hicks get caught at the gay bar or with a hooker, there ought to be no mercy.
As bcw bcw says, as soon as this kind of revelation is about a political opponent, she’ll be demanding their head on a pike.
As the good book says: “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.”
By that measure, I must assume that Kristi Noem, secretary of DHS and therefore de facto leader of ICE, wants to be repeatedly shot in the face and then denounced as a terrorist.
I wouldn’t dream of refusing her wishes.
@ whywhywhy : “It is the constant lying that pisses me off. And of course the fascism.”
Don’t forget the hypocrisy. The hypocrisy and double standards amongst the Repugs and Trumpists are staggering..
Why does the word schadenfreude keep coming to mind?
nomdeplume @2:
“What possible “prayers” could they be asking for?!”
Does it really matter? Nothing else has that highest possible abysmal failure rate as “prayer”. But the supremely superstitious are immunized against admitting failure, while also ignoring reality. They rely on a collection of flat Earth writings in a book that they continue to insist is “inerrant”. “Delusional” is entirely insufficient to describe the level of their adherence to primitive superstitions.
zetopan,
“Does it really matter? Nothing else has that highest possible abysmal failure rate as “prayer”.”
Every other useless thing has exactly the same failure rate.
Also, here ‘prayers’ translates to ‘good wishes’.
The form is not the function.
Cricket knew and was about to bark.
John Morales @14:
“Also, here ‘prayers’ translates to ‘good wishes’.”
There are religious apologetics available for every occasion. If they meant ‘good wishes’, why didn’t they say so. Also note that wishes have the same failure rate as prayers. Try harder.
Sure, I can try harder. :)
“There are religious apologetics available for every occasion. If they meant ‘good wishes’, why didn’t they say so. Also note that wishes have the same failure rate as prayers. Try harder.”
Um. I know, that’s what I said!
Point is, that’s the idiom at hand.
Again — and this is analytic: “Every other useless thing has exactly the same failure rate.”
If you do a logical conjunction, then
“Nothing else has that highest possible abysmal failure rate as “prayer”.”
&
“Every other useless thing has exactly the same failure rate.”
is clearly a contradiction. F
So it cannot be both, unless you imagine prayer is ¬useless.
(Useless surely means it has no utility)
But we both know that there is more than a singular useless thing, the which you claim is unique.
Your exception claim is vitiated thereby.
(Unless you imagine prayer is worse than merely useless, whenceupon it works only in a negative manner, or you imagine it is better than merely useless, uponwhich you concede its benefit)
“It’s her husband with whom she has had three children, so she had to have known something…except I guess she may have been distracted by her own cos-playing as ICE Barbie…”
Not distracted as such, but likely that her psyche is too focused on herself and her own fantastical version of the world. Others are simply support characters in her own story arc, and in such cases you don’t really pay attention to what they are doing, as long as they are doing the role you expect of them when you expect it of them. At the same time, she only cares about this because it became public and is now being used to affect her own story arc. This is similar to those people who say “This divorce talk came out of nowhere…”. Sometime this is true, but more often than not, they were simply not paying, which is why ultimately the divorce request will inevitably appear.
Re: “According to my moral calculus, it stops becoming a personal matter the nanosecond you join a political movement or religion that calls for your sex life be regulated by the state according to the “ethics” of ancient Middle Eastern misogynists. ”
Shouldn’t that be ‘you join a political movement or religion that calls for you to regulate everyone else’s sex life according to the “ethics” of ancient Middle Eastern misogynists’.
Whywhywhy @ 4
StevoR @ 11
Seconded! I wish I was a really sarcastic Brit comedian, so I could give it to them with both barrels.
What the gnome’s husband does is none of my business. I just cared about her when she had the power to mistreat people .
Blackmail is about whether you feel shame about who you are or what you’ve done. Out and proud gay people can’t be blackmailed for being gay, they’re out already! Closeted gays might be vulnerable to blackmail, depending on why they’re in the closet.