Following Donald Trump‘s victories so far in the Republican primary race, Nikki Haley remains motivated and optimistic about her presidential campaign despite calls for her to suspend her campaign from a growing number of Republicans backing Trump.
After losing the latest primary election in New Hampshire, Haley has vowed to stay in the GOP race for the Republican nomination. The two remaining GOP candidates have exchanged blows during their campaign events, rallies and social media platforms.
So far, Trump has won both the New Hampshire presidential primary and the Iowa caucuses. In New Hampshire, Trump received about 54 percent of the Republican vote, while Haley got around 43 percent, according to The Associated Press.
In response to Trump’s victory speech in New Hampshire, Haley blasted former Trump’s insults, calling it “a temper tantrum.” She appeared confident at a Wednesday night campaign event in North Charleston, South Carolina.
“So we got out there, and we did our thing, and we said what we had to say,” Haley said. “And then Donald Trump got out there and just threw a temper tantrum. He pitched a fit, he was insulting, he was doing what he does, but I know that’s what he does when he’s insecure.”
Many Republicans, including Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, U.S. Sen. Tim Scott, and other former GOP presidential candidates, have declared their support for Trump while dissing the former South Carolina governor. And some political experts say that Trump has an easy path toward becoming the Republican nominee based on his lead in most polls. However, Trump would likely have a tough battle to defeat President Joe Biden.
“Barring some unforeseen event, Donald Trump’s going to be the Republican nominee,” Alex Conant, a Republican strategist and partner at Firehouse Strategies, told States Newsroom. “It’s just who Republican voters want. In Iowa and New Hampshire, but also every national poll and every state primary poll, Trump’s leading by a lot. So at the end of the day, elections have consequences and Republicans like Donald Trump.”
Still, Trump’s legal woes are lingering despite his popularity among GOP operatives. According to Politico, he needs to win a potentially decisive showdown at the Supreme Court on Feb. 8, where oral arguments will determine if he is barred from running for president under the 14th Amendment. The case revolves around the Colorado decision disqualifying him due to his involvement in the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol attack.
If the court rules against him, Trump could be removed from ballots in several states, but many experts say the court will find a narrow interpretation of the insurrection clause, allowing him to stay on the ballot.
“I believe that the court will find a way to find that he is, in fact, eligible for the ballot,” Jessica Levinson, a constitutional law professor at Loyola Marymount University, told Politico. “At the end of the day, I can’t escape the conclusion that the Supreme Court doesn’t want to be the body that took this choice away from the voters.”
Meanwhile, Haley has faced an onslaught of criticism from Trump and others in the Republican Party who want her to end her campaign. In fact, at least half a dozen congressional Republicans united around Trump after his victory, Axios reported. “It’s now past time for the Republican Party to unite around President Trump,” House Speaker Mike Johnson of Louisiana said in a statement.
Trump has warned Haley that her campaign donors will face a “permanent ban from the MAGA camp,” intensifying his criticism of his only remaining Republican competitor in the race. “Anybody that makes a ‘Contribution’ to Birdbrain, from this moment forth, will be permanently barred from the MAGA camp,” the former president wrote Wednesday on his Truth Social platform.
President Joe Biden won the Democratic primary as a write-in candidate on the ballot, with over 60 percent of the vote. Trump became the first non-incumbent from the Republican Party to win both Iowa and New Hampshire, NBC News reported. Trump is now calling on Haley to suspend her campaign so that their party can focus on his candidacy. The next major GOP primary is in South Carolina, where the former ambassador to the United Nations plans to hold a rally and run new ads in her home state ahead of its primary contest in February.
In a Fox News interview, New Hampshire Gov. Chris Sununu opined that the results from the primary show that Trump may face challenges to beat President Biden in November. Sununu has endorsed Haley and has been campaigning for Haley.
“Trump is going to have a huge problem in November,” Sununu said. “It’s all about the general election. We need winners.” Sununu added: “It’s a nail-biter, and Biden could still win, which means that Kamala Harris is the next president. This is real stuff, and that’s what we are risking. Why not get behind Nikki Haley, who wins in a landslide and brings conservative values to the White House.”
Following Trump’s victory in New Hampshire, he called Haley an “imposter” who claimed a victory. “She did very poorly actually,” Trump said during his victory speech, adding that he’ll “easily win” South Carolina, Haley’s home state.
“She had to win. The governor said she’s gonna win…then she failed badly,” Trump said. “We’ve won almost every single poll in the last three months against Crooked Joe Biden. And she doesn’t win those polls. This is not your typical victory speech. She had a very bad night.”
