We Are Being Governed by Unserious People

Mr. Bruni is a contributing Opinion writer who was on the staff of The Times for more than 25 years.

Is there a heart somewhere inside Kristi Noem, underneath all those costumes, behind all that lacquer? She makes no attempt to show it. Whether killing an inconvenient dog or slandering Minnesotans gunned down by federal agents, she picks cruelty over compassion — and, sadly, seems to equate that choice with strength.

Does she have a pinch, even a grain, of modesty? She spent tens of millions of taxpayer dollars on advertisements for, well, Kristi Noem. That seemed to peeve the president. From his underlings he expects compliments, not........

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