South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem has extended an offer to the hair salon owner who exposed House Speaker Nancy Pelosi of coming in to her closed salon without a mask to have her hair done, telling the businesswoman, “South Dakota is open for you.”
“My heart goes out to Erika. As a former female small business owner, I can only imagine how crushing these last few months have been. And now THIS!?” the governor tweeted Wendesday.
“Erika, if you want to run your salon in a state that respects Freedom and won't shut you down, then South Dakota is open for you,” she added.
My heart goes out to Erika. As a former female small business owner, I can only imagine how crushing these last few months have been. And now THIS!?
— Governor Kristi Noem (@govkristinoem) September 3, 2020
Erika, if you want to run your salon in a state that respects Freedom and won't shut you down, then South Dakota is open for you. https://t.co/la6CD5LScC
South Dakota is one of just five states that has refused to issue a statewide stay-at-home order or mandated that businesses shut down amid the coronavirus scare.
Erica Kious, who owns ESalonSF, revealed security camera footage earlier this week showing Pelosi, who has repeatedly accused President Donald Trump of risking Americans’ safety with his coronavirus response, walking through her salon without a mask, despite local ordinances that have ordered all salons to remain closed due to COVID19 since March.
Kious said she got a text from one of her stylists Sunday night telling her that Pelosi’s assistant had called her to schedule a hair appointment.
“It was a slap in the face that she went in, you know, that she feels that she can just go and get her stuff done while no one else can go in, and I can’t work,” Kious told Fox News, adding that her business and the employees who work in it have been devastated by the coronavirus shutdown that Pelosi herself has supported.
In response to reporters’ questions over her hypocritical behavior, Pelosi threw the salon under the bus, claiming she was “set up” and lied to before refusing to answer any more questions about the incident.