Governor Kristi Noem didn’t have to shoot her dog — she wanted to

I trust the readers of the Editorial Board will correct me if I’m wrong when I say I don’t recall having paid any attention to Kristi Noem. The Republican governor of South Dakota pops into my field of vision now and then, recently as a leading candidate for Donald Trump’s vice presidential pick. Other than that, however, I haven’t been interested.

I wasn’t interested even after The Guardian broke the story, on April 26, about the time she shot and killed her 14–month-old dog, an episode she recounts in her new book...