Republicans who have been shouting “Donald Trump!” and “Ron Desantis!” at one another like the Miller Lite “tastes great/less filling” ads of the ’80s will soon have a new name to bat around: Nikki Haley. According to an article in The Post and Courier, the former Governor of South Carolina is set to make her official announcement at a “special event” on Feb. 15 at The Shed at the Charleston Visitor Center. The paper says that someone from inside the Haley camp confirmed the information on Wednesday.
Haley served under Trump as the ambassador to the United Nations and originally did not intend to challenge him for the presidency. But the paper said that during a campaign junket through South Carolina this weekend, Trump said he discussed the matter with Haley and stated:
I talked to her for a little while. I said, ‘Look, you know, go by your heart if you want to run.’ She called me and said she’d like to consider it, and I said you should do it. Go by your heart if you want to run.
Trump said that he would welcome the competition. It is interesting that Haley’s plans have not drawn the same ire from Trump as the notion of a DeSantis run. Whether or not this is because the two still enjoy a degree of friendship, or that at least for the moment Trump does not consider her to be a threat, remains to be seen. Haley made an appearance on Fox News last week and talked with Bret Baier about a potential run:
Haley also told Baier, “I’ve never lost a race. I said that then, I still say that now. I’m not going to lose now.”
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The Post Millennial notes that during a speech to the Republican Jewish Coalition’s Annual Leadership Meeting back in November, Haley made a similar statement.
Fmr. UN Ambassador @NikkiHaley on running for president in 2024
"I've never lost an election" pic.twitter.com/KOR2Xunkpa
— Ari Hoffman (@thehoffather) November 20, 2022
In addition to Trump and likely DeSantis, Haley could also face Mike Pompeo and Tim Scott for the nomination. Wyoming’s Liz Cheney is expected to throw her hat into the ring for 2024, as well.
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