Nikki Haley Answers More Challenging Questions

 

Courtesy of the Washington Post's great satirist Alexandra Petri:

... “What caused the Civil War?” is just one of a whole host of straightforward questions that no GOP presidential candidate can hope to answer. I have taken the liberty of predicting Haley’s responses to analogous questions. Try this at home and you, too, can enjoy a fun, alarming word salad where “capitalism” and “limited government” are thrown in at intervals, like pecans. Happy 2024!

Who is the current president of the United States?

Capitalism, of course, is so important.

Was it good or bad that a mob descended on the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, yelling “Hang Mike Pence” and trying to prevent certification of the presidential election?

(laughs) Don’t go easy on me! I think the Capitol is certainly, in the hearts of Americans, a place, and capitalism itself is so important. What do you think?

Do the villains in “Star Wars” seem like they’re based on Nazis?

(laughs) Wow, all right! Coming in with a real challenge! So, obviously, freedom is the most important thing. And we keep coming back to that question of, what can the government tell you to do or not do? I think it comes down to capitalism, of course, is good, and we need to do things to make sure that unaccountable bureaucrats aren’t wielding excess power. And stars are wonderful. But most important of all, what role does government play? Are we compensating the contractors who build our Death Stars?

Can you say something bad about the villains in “Raiders of the Lost Ark,” who were clearly Nazis?

Well, I think the villains were basically, you know, any time the free market doesn’t operate to produce maximum freedom.  [snip]

If elected, will you force more people to give birth?

Government overreach is so bad and individual liberty is of course, freedom.

Are you afraid to say that slavery was bad?

Wow, a real doozy! (chuckles) I would never be afraid of freedom. Some things go without saying.

And Donald Trump is not currently president?

Well, of course, capitalism is so important.

There's more from Petri at the link.

Lightweight windsock Haley has fooled many people (looking at you, corporate media types), but time and time again reveals herself as "an altogether uninteresting person" (Benjamin Wittes) who has managed to rise in Republican politics largely based on her novel biography (for Republicans) as a daughter of immigrants from India ("Look at Nikki Haley! See, we're not prejudiced!").  Her transparent strategy has been to temporize and obfuscate in order to win some "independent" voters while not driving away MAGAts.  Instead, her inane word salad answers to fundamental questions of freedom, democracy, and American history demonstrate a shallow cravenness that's in direct proportion to her ambition. Maybe this latest public example of her cowardice and unfitness will finally stick.

(Photo: Haley and her former mentor, "Be still, my tiny heart!" / Mark Wilson, Getty Images)

Don't Know Much About History? Nikki Haley And Slavery

 

 

Lightweight- who- will- never- be- President Nikki Haley is used to talking in front of white nationalist Republican crowds who don't like to hear "woke"/ Critical Race Theory discussions about things like, um, American history -- specifically things like the Civil War.  It might make them feel (there's that word again) uncomfortable about the institution of slavery, the North's hostility toward which was the first reason Haley's home state of South Carolina cited when it seceded from the Union in 1860.  It's not the first time she's been asked, and we're certain Haley knows all about this history but was too chickenshit to mention it when she was confronted at a New Hampshire town hall yesterday: 

Nikki Haley had talked about a litany of issues America is confronting today — including fentanyl, inflation and wars abroad — before an audience member at a town hall here Wednesday raised his hand to question the Republican presidential candidate about a 162-year-old event.

“What was the cause of the United States Civil War?” the man asked Haley, a former U.N. ambassador and South Carolina governor who is campaigning this week in this key early primary state.

Haley’s answer did not include any mention of slavery, which scholars agree was the main driver of the conflict. It prompted surprise from her questioner and swift criticism and rebuttals from Democrats and Republicans beyond New Hampshire, including President Biden. It also resurfaced Haley’s previous comments that the war was the result of disagreements over “tradition versus change.”

At first, when she heard the question, Haley appeared caught off guard. The recreation room in this northernmost city in New Hampshire, a place that has leaned red in recent elections, grew quiet, and Haley looked at the man dressed in a plaid shirt who stood behind his sons seated in the back row.

She paused and responded, “Well, don’t come with an easy question.” Then she proceeded to answer.

“I think the cause of the Civil War was basically how government was going to run, the freedoms and what people could and couldn’t do,” Haley said.

She then turned the question to the man who asked it: “What do you think the cause of the Civil War was?”

The man responded that he is not running for president and wanted to hear her thoughts.

“I think it always comes down to the role of government and what the rights of the people are,” Haley continued. “And I will always stand by the fact that I think government was intended to secure the rights and freedoms of the people. It was never meant to be all things to all people. Government doesn’t need to tell you how to live your life. They don’t need to tell you what you can and can’t do. They don’t need to be a part of your life.”

The man then responded, “In the year 2023, it’s astonishing to me that you answer that question without mentioning the word slavery.”

Haley quickly replied with a question: “What do you want me to say about slavery?”

The man said, “You’ve answered my question, thank you.” Haley replied, “Next question.”... (our emphasis)

Our next question would be, "Where and at what point did you lose your soul?"

One of our lasting political myths is that "character counts" when selecting a presidential nominee. Any number of candidates for president (including a few Democrats along the way) have failed to meet that standard, and the most recent Republican cult leader has completely obliterated it from that party's list of criteria for eternity.  Haley, being the ambitious lightweight that she is, will happily say whatever she thinks will help her in the moment.  Of course, she's a hypocrite like all of her Republican cult mates.  A daughter of immigrants, she's all over the place on immigration policy.  She's the current darling of the Republican- wired  horse race media, which has been desperately trying to brand her as a "different kind of Republican" for years now.  She ain't no "moderate."  She was reportedly vying to be the Malignant Loser's running mate in 2020.  Don't be surprised if she doesn't try the same move in 2024.  We could go on, but when it comes to Haley, there's no there there.  Suffice it to say, this should be disqualifying for anyone running for the Office of President of the United States, and with any luck, this unprincipled windsock is not likely to get within sniffing distance of the Oval Office again.

(Image:  via Wonkette)

BONUS:

It was about slavery. https://t.co/q9bTDvtPne

— Joe Biden (@JoeBiden) December 28, 2023

 

 

The Good, The Bad, And The Ugly

 

The good:

... Today, our Nation faces another inflection point.  In 2023 alone, State and local legislatures have already introduced over 600 hateful laws targeting the LGBTQI+ community.  Books about LGBTQI+ people are being banned from libraries.  Transgender youth in over a dozen States have had their medically necessary health care banned.  Homophobic and transphobic vitriol spewed online has spilled over into real life, as armed hate groups intimidate people at Pride marches and drag performances, and threaten doctors’ offices and children’s hospitals that offer care to the LGBTQI+ community.  Our hearts are heavy with grief for the loved ones we have lost to anti-LGBTQI+ violence. 

Despite these attacks, the LGBTQI+ community remains resilient.  LGBTQI+ Americans are defiantly and unapologetically proud.  Youth leaders are organizing walkouts at high schools and colleges across the country to protest discriminatory laws.  LGBTQI+ young people and their parents are demonstrating unimaginable courage by testifying in State capitols in defense of their basic rights.

They are not alone:  My entire Administration stands proudly with the LGBTQI+ community in the enduring struggle for freedom, justice, and equality.  And we are making strides.  On my first day in office, I signed a historic Executive Order charging the entire Federal Government with protecting LGBTQI+ people from discrimination — from health care to housing, education, employment, banking, and the criminal justice system.  Last December, surrounded by dozens of couples who have fought for marriage equality in the courts for decades, I had the great honor of signing into law the landmark Respect for Marriage Act.  This bipartisan law protects the rights of same-sex and interracial couples — like caring for one’s sick partner and receiving spousal benefits.  Deciding who to marry is one of life’s most profound decisions, so we etched a simple truth into law:  Love is love...

From President Biden's Proclamation on LGTBQI+ Pride Month.  The full text is at the link above.

The bad:

Natalia Hafykina, 60, was so close to her next-door neighbors, Vladislav and Natalya Prykhodko, that they celebrated the young couple’s pregnancy together and then, just over one year ago, the birth of their daughter, Liza.

Until now, their small, suburban town, seven miles north of the bustling city of Dnipro, had been peaceful. But on Saturday night, a Russian missile struck their two-story apartment building, cracking slabs of concrete and shattering walls and windows.

The blast left little Liza dead under the rubble and her mother in an intensive care ward. When Vladislav Prykhodko briefly came home from the hospital on Sunday, Hafykina could not bear to speak to him.

“He looked so vulnerable that I couldn’t go up to him — there were no words,” she said, standing amid splintered furniture as her son and his friends nailed plywood over her shattered windows. “We were a family. This was our community. We never worried about danger,” Hafykina said. “Now I too am scared. Suddenly everything feels different.”

The strike in Pidhorodne, which injured 22 people including five children, was the second attack in just over a week in the Dnipro area.

On May 26, a medical clinic specializing in psychological disorders was hit by two missiles, leaving the old stone building in ruins, four people dead and 32 injured. An adjacent veterinary clinic burned to the ground, though all staff members and animals escaped harm.

The back-to-back strikes in greater Dnipro, a city in central Ukraine that often feels far from the front lines, came as a disconcerting reminder that there is no escaping Russia’s brutal war and that Moscow’s relentless barrage of missiles can deliver death and destruction at any moment...

Each and every Russian responsible for these war crimes, from war criminal Putin down to the sub-morons firing the missiles, needs to end up dangling from a noose.

The ugly: 

Republican presidential hopeful Nikki Haley suggested in an interview that United States forces “need to align” with non-European countries including Russia to enhance global security, a remark her campaign characterized as a gaffe.

Asked by WMUR-TV for a segment Wednesday on regions of the world to which she felt the U.S. could pay more attention, Haley — who served the Trump administration as United Nations ambassador, first said “the Arab world,” saying the U.S. needs Arab countries “to kind of join with us” on opposing Iran.

“You see Saudi Arabia making deals with China, that’s not good for us. We need them to be with us, and then we need to align with others, Russia, Australia, Japan, Israel,” Haley added.

“We need to start focusing on the allies that we have besides the Europeans and make sure that we have more friends — one, for our needs, so that we’re not dependent on an enemy for energy or medicines or anything else, and then two, to make sure that we build those alliances so that the world is more safe.”...

Her campaign later claimed she "misspoke."  She's still the hyper- ambitious, resume- building lightweight the Malignant Loser sent to the UN to give her foreign policy cred for her to use at just this campaign moment.  Sadly for her, she still thinks and speaks in banal terms that would make a high school Model UN student blush.

Twit Tweet, Thwap -- Haley's Comment

Twit tweet from a lightweight sycophant with big, never- to- be- realized ambitions:

It is amazing that a liberal socialist won in Iowa and New Hampshire. The idea that we would give up the freedoms our veterans fought and died for is unthinkable. Other countries have to be scratching their heads wondering what we are thinking.

— Nikki Haley (@NikkiHaley) February 12, 2020

Thwap:

Hello from the Netherlands. Totally agree with Norway!

— Anita Pavoni (@AnitaPavoni) February 12, 2020

Hmmm so let me get this straight: you would prefer an authoritarian nationalist over a democratic socialist???  Got it.

— Matthew Dowd (@matthewjdowd) February 12, 2020

It’s amazing a racist criminal con artist “won” the presidency and turned this country into a banana republic dictatorship. The idea that vets fought for our freedoms only to see a crook crap all over them is unthinkable. Other countries are mourning the loss of America as it was

— Lesley Abravanel🆘 (@lesleyabravanel) February 12, 2020

Second, other countries are fleeing our partnerships because you serve a despot you helped elect and worked for. Trump wants to punish an officer who did his duty. He spits on our service. You've got a lot of nerve and not an ounce of self awareness. You've become pathetic.

— Fred Wellman (@FPWellman) February 12, 2020

Does she think the vets died to protect fossil fuel subsidies, private insurance companies, election interference, and locking kids in cages? https://t.co/bYsBazxlGb

— Brian Tyler Cohen (@briantylercohen) February 12, 2020

Any comment on how Trump is now persecuting LTC Vindman, a wounded veteran of the Iraq War? https://t.co/sEe81Uz0kQ

— Max Boot (@MaxBoot) February 12, 2020

Tweets Of The Day -- Lightweight Sycophant Says What?

Nikki Haley: Tillerson and John Kelly wanted me to subvert Trump to “save country” https://t.co/r5FvKUY2pf pic.twitter.com/EYTsmaQCRS

— The Hill (@thehill) November 10, 2019

That fact she thinks this makes her look good is all anyone needs to know.

— CalamityJane (@ninekatz) November 11, 2019

So why didn't you save the country, Nikki? The prospect of pushing Pence out of the way to be Veep was too appealing?

— Heather Hughson (@HNHughson) November 11, 2019

She opted for career opportunities over country.

— Alison Berkowitz (@aliberk65) November 11, 2019

But she chose Party over country and now is choosing profit over country

— George Edward (@TrumanQuest) November 11, 2019

Nikki Haley Is the Latest ‘Adult in the Room’ to Exit With Pie on Her Face https://t.co/uezLLKJuu3

— Matt Lewis (@mattklewis) November 10, 2019

Nikki Haley had a pander reveal party.

— Schooley (@Rschooley) November 11, 2019

Oh let me add: Hypocritical tattletale and exhausting classroom snitch. She insists they should have voiced their concerns to the Baby Huey President, but then waits for the book to spill on them instead of saying it out loud herself.

— Kara Swisher (@karaswisher) November 11, 2019

This is for all the geniuses out there telling us Nikki Haley is a different kind of Republican. https://t.co/nPIQCuJkL9

— Adam Parkhomenko (@AdamParkhomenko) November 8, 2019

BONUS:  Trump regime leakers are telling the media that Haley was not a "player," and was around "for the photo ops."  Confirms what anyone could see with the naked eye.