SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (AP) — South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem traveled to Michigan Thursday to appear at a campaign event for President Donald Trump at a time when she is overseeing an investigation into a car crash in which the state's attorney general struck and killed a pedestrian.

The Republican governor has become a surrogate for Trump's campaign and developed a national profile within the GOP, but also received backlash from critics who say she is paying more attention to national politics than what is happening in the state. Her office has disputed that notion, saying she has leveraged her national profile for South Dakota's benefit.

Noem is currently overseeing an investigation into a fatal car crash involving Republican Attorney General Jason Ravnsborg. Noem has promised a transparent investigation, but has not released a timeline for when the state will release details on the crash.

She was headlining a Thursday event sponsored by Workers for Trump, an arm of the campaign reaching out to people employed in the manufacturing sector. Corey Lewandowski, Trump’s former campaign manager who now advises Noem, was also speaking at the event.

Noem has taken a "freedom-first" approach to many of her policy decisions, including during the pandemic. She did not issue orders to shutter businesses and avoided statewide lockdown orders.

In a recent column to commemorate Labor Day, a holiday that recognizes the labor movement within the United States, Noem emphasized a free-market and business-centered approach to policy.

“Thanks to America’s free market, workers in this country are blessed with endless opportunity to find the right job to provide for themselves and their loved-ones,” she wrote. “Businesses are free to grow and innovate, which creates more jobs and more opportunities for the workers that they employ.”

Noem is also scheduled to speak at an October Republican event in New Hampshire. The state is considered a proving ground for presidential hopefuls, though Noem has insisted she has no interest in running for president.