Nikki Haley Has Some Harsh Words For Donald Trump
For the time that Donald Trump sat in the Oval Office, he could count on former South Carolina Governor and United Nations Ambassador Nikki Haley to have his back. But it seems, at least for now, Haley has decided it was time to break with Trump, telling Politico that "We need to acknowledge he let us down. He went down a path he shouldn't have, and we shouldn't have followed him, and we shouldn't have listened to him. And we can't let that ever happen again."
She even said it was time for the GOP to rebuild by taking the good that Trump had created and leaving the bad behind, and "get back to a place where we can be a good, valuable, effective party. But at the same time, it's bigger than the party. I hope our country can come together and figure out how we pull this back."
Nikki Haley has flip-flopped over Donald Trump in the past
If this sounds jarring, it shouldn't, because Nikki Haley didn't always have the back of her onetime boss, former President Donald Trump. When the then-real estate magnate was still in the thick of the 2016 presidential campaign, she had words with him on social media while she saw Trump cut down the candidate she supported — Florida Senator Marco Rubio (via CNN). When Trump attempted to have it out with Haley, she responded like a true Southerner by tweeting: "@realDonaldTrump, Bless your heart."
But it didn't end there because as we all know, she went on to become the Trump administration's ambassador to the United Nations, and she stayed by his side, defending him until the riots broke out at the U.S. Capitol on January 6. But the day after that, she addressed a closed-door meeting of the Republican National Committee, saying that Trump didn't always use "the right words" (via CNN).
"He was wrong with his words in Charlottesville, and I told him so at the time. He was badly wrong with his words yesterday. And it wasn't just his words. His actions since Election Day will be judged harshly by history," she said.
Nikki Haley, on Trump: 'Give the man a break'
That speech behind closed doors would not be the last time she flip-flopped over Trump and his role in the Republican Party, because days after President Joe Biden's inauguration, she resurfaced on Fox News to say the impeachment shouldn't happen (via Newsweek). "Honestly, the actions the president had since Election Day were not his finest," she said. "The actions of the president post-Election Day were not great. What happened on January 6 was not great," but she didn't think he should have been impeached. "They beat him up before he got into office. They are beating him up after he leaves office. I mean, at some point, I mean, give the man a break. I mean, move on," adding that the impeachment would only serve to divide the country further.
It may not matter which way she goes in the end, but Nikki Haley would probably be a lot more convincing if she knew where she really stood with Donald Trump.