Kristi Noem thought the political world would be impressed by her story of executing a dog, but she seems to have misjudged her fellow Republicans including, most critically, Donald Trump.

In the span of a few days, the South Dakota governor reportedly tanked her shot at becoming Trumps running mate when a section of her forthcoming memoir , obtained by the Guardian, described her decision to lead a 14-month-old wirehaired pointer named Cricket to a gravel pit and shoot her dead. The pup was overly aggressive and bad at hunting, Noem wrote. RIP Cricket!

But if Noems out, there are still plenty of people on Trumps VP shortlist who havent killed dogs that we know of!

J.D. Vance

The first-term Ohio senator is reportedly near the top of Trumps VP list.

And unlike Noem, Vance has already had to confront what seemed like his most damaging electoral baggage in his 2022 race: Hes previously bashed Trump , calling him noxious, an idiot and reprehensible.

Now Trump and Vance are thick as thieves, although Vance claims that he and Trump havent discussed the possibility of running together.

I talk to President Trump a lot. Were very close. Ive never spoken to him about being vice president. So, I assume that a lot of this is media speculation, Vance said recently on Fox News .

Marco Rubio

Its unclear how serious Trump is about choosing the Florida senator, since the 12th Amendment prohibits Floridas 30 Electoral College members from voting for a president and vice president who both live in Florida, and thats where Trump now resides. To run with Trump, Rubio would theoretically have to move and give up his Senate seat.

Rubio, who ran against Trump for president in 2016 , offered a testy response to the speculation this week.

Im glad to learn that from the media. Ill let you guys pick where Im gonna move, hows that? he told reporters at the Capitol . No ones offered any jobs, so why would I answer a question that Ive never been presented?

Rubio also has a cute good boy named Winston who seems to be alive and well, at least as of a few years ago.

Tim Scott

The South Carolina senator would make history as the first Black Republican VP, and could signal Trump is making a play to win over Black voters disappointed in President Joe Biden.

Scott began the 2024 election cycle as an opponent of Trumps for the GOP nomination, before dropping out and becoming his surrogate on the campaign trail. He played a major role campaigning for Trump against former U.N. ambassador Nikki Haley in South Carolina in February.

Scott, who doesnt answer questions from reporters at the Capitol, hasnt addressed the speculation.

Marjorie Taylor Greene

Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) has openly pined for the chance to be part of a second Trump administration, speculating to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution in August: Am I going to be a part of President Trumps Cabinet if he wins? Is it possible that Ill be VP?

Greene on Wednesday described herself as the biggest supporter of President Trump in Congress. But in recent weeks she and Trump have differed on her quest to overthrow House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.), about whom Trump still speaks highly.

Trump refused to fan the flames of the dispute while Johnson was with him in Florida last month : Were getting along very well with the speaker, and I get along very well with Marjorie.

Kari Lake

Kari Lake, an election-denying conspiracy theorist running for a must-win Senate seat in Arizona, has reportedly been getting on Trumps nerves by spending too much time trying to flatter the former president at his Mar-a-Lago club in Florida.

You might say both Lake and Greene are in Trumps doghouse right now.

Elise Stefanik

Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-N.Y.) is another of Trumps fiercest defenders in the House of Representatives. Shes called Jan. 6 rioters hostages and even scrubbed her past criticism of Trumps mob from her House website.

Stefaniks vice presidential stock went up when she confronted university presidents about antisemitism on campus, causing them to embarrass themselves by refusing to say if calling for the genocide of Jews, as she put it , would count as bullying or harassment.

Stefanik said in January that she would be honored to serve in any capacity in a Trump administration.

Doug Burgum

The Trump team reportedly likes North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum because he didnt say mean things about Trump when he was competing in the Republican primary this year, was quick to endorse Trump after dropping his bid, and perhaps also because he hasnt shot any dogs (again, that we know of!).

Burgum, like Trump, is a fellow rich guy, wealthy enough to have self-funded his own presidential campaign (which nonetheless didnt last through the first nominating contest in Iowa).

Mitt Romney, If He Didnt Hate Trump So Much

Sen. Mitt Romney (R-Utah) is not on Trumps VP list they hate each other but his dog story shows why dogs matter in politics.

Romney admitted he once put his Irish setter in a crate strapped to the roof of the family car for a road trip in 1983. The family told the story as an example of Romneys problem-solving abilities, but the incident dogged him when he ran for president in 2012. He told HuffPost this week it was nothing compared to what Noem did.

I didnt eat my dog. I didnt shoot my dog. I loved my dog, and my dog loved me, Romney said.