Nikki Haley obviously believes in miracles.
In an interview with CNN’s Jake Tapper on Monday, the Republican presidential candidate insisted that despite her seemingly insurmountable polling numbers, she will defeat Donald Trump and become the party’s nominee.
However, the former South Carolina governor expressed skepticism that Trump will endorse her candidacy when she pulls off her unlikely upset:
Note the following exchange:
TAPPER: So obviously you’re running in South Carolina and you’ve told me that you plan to be around well obviously you want to be the nominee and then the president, but, but you’re going to be around at least until super Tuesday. If the unthinkable happens in your view and you do not win will it be difficult to Support Trump as the Republican Party’s nominee, given what you think about him quite obviously.
HALEY: Well, first, I think that you need to know that I am going to beat President Trump. But you should ask him if it’ll be difficult for him to support me?”
TAPPER: He didn’t sign the GOP pledge in 2016. I don’t think and he certainly not signing it now. So I am I’m sure he would say no. But but I guess you’re not going to commit to voting for him if he becomes the nominee?”
HALEY: What I’m saying is what I said from the very beginning when there were 14 candidates on the stage, that any one of the 14 would be better than Joe Biden.
It is difficult to see what Haley thinks she stands to gain from making such claims. Although the argument goes that there is no point being in a campaign if you don’t believe you can win it, at this point, it is difficult to understand why any sane person would still think Haley *can* win it.
While putting on a brave face about her chances of victory, Haley has also stepped up her attacks on Donald Trump after he made some unusual comments about the fact her husband is rarely with her as a result of his military service.
She said of Trump’s comments:
It’s disgusting! I mean, every bit of it’s disgusting, you know, to sit there and mock my husband for not being with me on the presidential trail because he is deployed and serving our country.
You mock one veteran, you’re mocking all veterans. But this is a pattern, Dana. He’s done this over and over again. Whether he went and called military members suckers, whether he was at Arlington Cemetery saying what was in it for them, why would they do this?
The problem with Trump is he’s never been anywhere near a uniform. He apparently had some sort of foot reason that he says he couldn’t do that. But the reality is the closest he’s come to harm’s way is a golf ball hitting him on a golf cart.
Although Haley may be on the right side of that particular argument, it will likely have next to no impact on her chances. Meanwhile, she has previously indicated that she will carry on in the race even if she loses in South Carolina.
“I need to show that I’m building momentum. I need to show that I’m stronger in South Carolina than New Hampshire,” she said last month. “Does that have to be a win? I don’t think that necessarily has to be a win. But it certainly has to be better than what I did in New Hampshire, and it certainly has to be close.”
