Amanda Marcotte: Kristi Noem's Proud MAGA Bimbo Act

[allegorical oracle]

Does Kristi Noem know what habeas corpus is? One thing we know for certain: She would very much like Americans to believe she does not. On Tuesday, the head of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) used a Senate hearing to insist the legal term means the opposite of its actual definition. "Habeas corpus is a constitutional right that the president has to be able to remove people from this country and suspend their right to," Noem said through her unnervingly Botox-inflated lips.

snip

Was Noem legitimately confused? Jonathan Chait of the Atlantic thinks so, writing that Noem's "ignorance appears to be utterly genuine." After all, "habeas corpus" is a Latin term used by lawyers but not much by laypeople, especially those, like Noem, who got a college degree through online courses at age 40. But I'm not so sure that Noem, who has been neck-deep in this debate about basic human rights for months, is as dumb as she seemed in that moment. Those who keep watching will notice that Noem doesn't act embarrassed when she's corrected, like normal people do when they get something so terribly wrong.

There was much mockery of Noem for being so dumb in mainstream and left-leaning media, but notably, neither Noem nor her allies have shown any shame or defensiveness about her alleged mistake. Whether Noem comes by her confusion honestly or she was just play-acting, she's there to play the role of the proud MAGA bimbo, in the grand tradition of figures like Sarah Palin. The MAGA bimbo isn't just ignorant. She's contemptuous of people who actually know what they're talking about, especially if those facts-laden human beings are fellow women.

In the world of MAGA, stupidity is a badge of honor for both sexes, but the heads of women need to be thoroughly empty. Book learning, in MAGA-land, is for lesbians and cat ladies. Intelligence gets in the way of the true duties of MAGA womanhood: keeping up your highly artificial appearance and, crucially, defending the man you serve with your whole heart and soul.

https://www.salon.com/2025/05/23/kristi-noems-proud-maga-bimbo-act-builds-on-the-legacy-of-sarah-palin/

[bucolic_frolic]

1. Being dumb is an asset in this current environment.

MAGA Bimbo is a great name for them.

[Paladin]

2. Salon, doing Noem a NY Times-style favor by crediting her with nonexistent intelligence.

It's blatantly obvious that Noem is, in fact, every bit as dumb as she seemed at that hearing. Same goes for the rest of the rightwing trash that trump has put in positions of power. Fucking idiots, every one of them.

[allegorical oracle]

3. Your point is well taken, but must confess that I was stunned that she didn't have any

rebuttal to having an incorrect understanding of "habeas corpus." She has a history of biting back, once bit. She interrupts, she answers throughout being questioned or when corrected. She was a Congress critter and isn't as ignorant as she looks or acts. It's all an act to remain in the good graces of King Donald.

[AStern]

4. I'm shocked that this OP hasn't gotten backlash over Marcotte misogynist slur

because it's so much worse than Noem's actions.



for all you language police.