Kristi Noem Secretly Took Personal Cut of Political Donations — ProPublica

In 2023, while Christie Noah was the governor of Southern Dakota, she supplemented her income, secretly reducing the money she raised for a non -profit organization that promotes her political career, shows tax records.

The experts called the experts a very unusual agreement, the non -profit organization sent funds to the NOEM personal campaign, which was recently established in Delaware. This year, the payment was $ 80,000, which is approximately $ 130,000. Because the non-profit organization is the so-called dark money group that is not required to disclose the names of its primary source of money remains unknown.

Then NOEM did not open a $ 80,000 fee. After President Donald Trump elected NOEM to his secretary of the Department of Internal Security, she had to release a detailed account of her assets and sources of profits since 2023. It did not include income from Dark Goney Group Her form of disclosure of informationwhich experts called the likely violation of the federal requirements of ethics.

Experts said propublica that anxious that noem personally was taking the money coming from political donors. In submission of documents, a non -profit organization called the American Foundation’s determination fund described 80,000 dollars as payment for fundraising. The organization stated that NOEM had brought hundreds of thousands of dollars.

The politicians have nothing excellent in assembling money for non -profit organizations and other groups that promote their companies or programs of the day. According to experts, it is unusual for the politician to keep some money on himself.

“If donors do not just keep the keys to the political future of the chosen official for these non -profit organizations, but literally provide their income, it is a new and disturbing,” said Daniel Weiner, a former prosecutor of the Federal Election Commission, who now heads the work of the Branna Financing Center.

PROPUBLICA has discovered the payout details in an annual tax form of American determination that is part of A A network of political groups which promote Noah and its agenda. The commercial organization describes its mission as “the fight for the preservation of America for the next generation”. There is little evidence in the open access that the group has done a lot. In the first year, its main costs were the payments of NOEM and covered the cost of some uncertain trips. It also supports social media accounts dedicated to promoting Noem. It has 100 followers on X.

In his statement, Noma’s lawyer, Stanley, said: “Then the governor fully fulfilled the letter and spirit of the law” and that the Office of Government Ethics, which processes the forms of disclosure for federal officials, “analyzed and cleaned its financial information in relation to this subject.” Stanley did not answer the following questions about whether the $ 80,000 ethics management knows.

Stanley also stated that “Secretary Noome completely revealed all his income on public documents that are easily accessible.” He asked about the evidence of this, given that NOEM did not report the payment of $ 80,000 in its federal form of financial disclosure, Stanley did not respond.

Before he was called the secretary of the internal security, watching the immigration execution, Nema spent two decades in the Southern Dakota government and the House of Representatives, attracting a civil servant’s salary. Her husband Brayon Noah runs a small insurance brokerage company with two offices in the state. He has at least $ 2 million between his company and his real estate, NOEM reports.

While it is one of the least wealthy Trump’s cabinet members, her personal expenses have attracted a notice. Nom was photographed in gold Rolex Cosmography Daytona Watch It costs almost $ 50,000 when she visited the Salvadoran prison where her agency sends immigrants. In April, after her wallet was stolen in Washington, the District of Colombia, a restaurant, it turned out that she was carrying 3000 dollars in cashWhich official said that “dinner, events and Easter gifts.” On her criticized Using taxpayer money As the governor pays for the cost of traveling to Paris, to Canada for hunting bears and Houston to do dental work. At the time, NOEM refused to abuse state funds.

A personal company NOEM, LLC called Ashwood Strategies, shares a name with one of its horses. It was registered in Delaware at the beginning of the second term as the governor of South Dakota, about 1 pm on June 22, 2023. Four minutes later, the non -profit policy fund was also included in Delaware.

According to him, the American is firmly tax supply. The group reported that she had zero staff, and what she did with these money was not clear.

In 2023, the non -profit organization spent only about $ 220,000 – with more than a third that goes to NOEM LLC. The rest mainly went to administrative expenses and approximately $ 84,000 for the budget. It is unclear whose journey the group paid.

The commercial organization said she had sent a $ 80,000 fee to NOEM LLC as a $ 800,000 payment, 10% reduction. A professional fundraiser, which also raised money for the group, was paid a lower rate of 7%.

The American Resolve’s intervals have retained a low public profile. In March this Purchased ads on Facebook The striker on the local news in South Dakota, which reported the use of state credit cards Noem. NOEM lawyer did not answer questions about whether the group paid more money after 2023, in the last year for which the tax is available.

The non -profit organization has an affiliated political committee, the US determination to PAC, which was more active in the public. The Conservative Guide of Noem under the photo as she looked into the sky, his web -resort states that Pac was created to put “Christie and her team on the ground in key races across America.” Last year, Nohem traveled around the country, attending events, Pac sponsored in support of national candidates.

Treasury American Resolve sent questions to the lawyer noem. In his statement, the NOEM lawyer stated that “did not establish, financed, supported and controlled the American Fund. It was just a leading organization.”

While NOEEM reported on the income to rally ashwood received on its federal financial disclosure, it provided some other details. She described the LLC as “a personal activity that is not included in my official governance” and noted that she had received an advance at $ 140,000 for her book “Without Returning”. The LLC also had a bank account between $ 100,001 to $ 250,000 in IT and at least $ 50,000, “animals and equipment,” she said.

The fact that Ashwood Strategies is a NOEM company only in the process of confirming her Trump’s office. Southern Dakota has minimal disclosure rules for selected officials, and noem has not previously launched that it created a by -business when the governor was.

According to Nom’s income, the legislation of South Dakota may go Lee ShoenbekA veteran is a republican politician and a lawyer who has recently been the head of the state Senate. A The law requires High officials, including the governor, have devoted their full -time official role.

“By no means the governor must have a private byve, which the public does not know,” Schenbek Propublica said. “It will not obviously be appropriate.”

NOEM lawyer said the South Dakota law allowed it to profit from a non -profit organization.