Nikki Haley's (Finally) Running
Not that it really matters, but Nikki Haley is finally running for something other than a place on Trump's ticket or an appointment
Its been nearly six months since former Governor Nikki Haley announced a run for President to the strains of the 80s power ballad “Eye of the Tiger.” Since the campaign launch in February, Haley’s campaign, however, has largely floundered. This is not for lack of vigorous campaigning on the former UN Ambassador’s part. Quite the contrary. Haley, of all the candidates, has probably been to every town in Iowa — more than once. She is relentless on the campaign trail, particularly in Iowa and more so of late in New Hampshire and her home state of South Carolina. From the Des Moines Register:
"I have been underestimated in everything I have ever done. And it's a blessing, because it makes me scrappy and it makes me work harder," she told Iowans at the end of her town hall in Davenport (in May). "No one is going to work Iowa harder than me."
But up until now it has all come to naught. The campaign languishes in the low single digits largely because the former Governor wouldn’t do the one thing that would distinguish herself from all the others (except for Christie, who is going nowhere, quite frankly, except back to ABC News). That is — go after Trump.
The reluctance of Republican candidates to go after Trump is a result of that I call the Three F’s — Future employment opportunities by the new, Trump Republican Establishment; the Fondness that the electorate has for Trump and, of course, Fear of crossing Trump and his passionate, white nationalist adjacent electorate. But it has obviously been a losing strategy, but Nikki Haley, it appears, finally figured that out on debate day or thereabouts. It looks like she is undertaking a second sailing. She appears now to be in this race to win it — even though, of course, she won’t. Because — white nationalist-adjacent, phallocentric party, ladies and gentlemen of the jury.
Her SuperPAC, though active, is not nearly as robustly funded as the Tim Scott or the DeSantis campaigns. But that could now change thanks to the slight bump recorded after the Fox News debate. As David Goldiner observes in the Daily News:
“Haley appears to have gotten a bump from the debate, surging into double digits in Iowa and into a three-way tie for 2nd place in New Hampshire,” pollster Tony Fabrizio wrote in a memo to Trump’s campaign and donors.
Haley scored 10% support in Iowa, putting her within striking distance of Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis in second place at 18%.
And rising. The most interesting thing about the phenomenon of Nikki Haley finally running for President — in earnest and not for a spot on the Trump ticket or for a prestige appointment — is how it could affect the Big Money. As reluctant as I am to bring the conversation to the American oligarchs pulling the strings and funding the campaigns, Haley’s fortunes will almost certainly affect their calculations. Haley could conceivably replace Ron DeSantis as the darling of the donor class, sending the money, of course, scrambling. Trump, in the instance, still wins; but it could get interesting.
In the run-up to her campaign, one year ago, many donors expressed interest. And after her debate performance, many are now taking a renewed second look. And it seems that the goodwill and forward momentum of the DeSantis campaign is all but spent. This creates a perfect storm, if the Haley campaign can take advantage of it. From Rebecca Davis O'Brien from The Times:
Eric J. Tanenblatt, a top fund-raiser for former Gov. Nikki Haley of South Carolina, woke up Thursday morning in his Milwaukee hotel room to dozens of enthusiastic text messages and emails from donors expressing admiration for Ms. Haley’s performance, particularly her command of foreign policy and handling of questions about abortion.
“Donors who have been sitting on the sidelines are now taking another look,” said Mr. Tanenblatt, an Atlanta businessman who has known Ms. Haley since she was a state legislator and attended the debate Wednesday night. “Obviously I am somewhat biased, but I think last night was a really good night for Nikki Haley.”
Finally, it should be known that Nikki Haley is not a moderate (though that might help with her fundraising). She only looks that way, by comparison, on a stage with neo-fascists like Vivek Ramaswamy and Ron DeSantis. She enabled Trump, serving in his disastrous administration, and is not above normalizing Confederate traitors when it benefits her. From Dave Kilgore in New York:
The facts don’t entirely support the myth of “New South” Nikki. Her big Confederate flag moment was a gesture that stopped being brave or even all that controversial in the South well before 2015; her Republican predecessor, David Beasley, took a lot of heat for taking same position on the battle flag 20 years earlier, as did Georgia’s Zell Miller 23 years earlier. Years after basking in national plaudits for her action on the the flag, Haley backtracked while serving in the Trump administration, saying the Confederate flag was seen as an emblem of “service, and sacrifice, and heritage” before it was “hijacked” by the Charleston murderer Dylann Roof.
Charmed, I’m sure. So, before the media scolds attack me for being a secret Nikki Haley apologist, let me say outright that I am really and truly not. Frank Bruni’s takedown of her artificiality gets it just about right. I am here merely recording the “Haley-mentum,” a microtrend that has been going on now for a few days regarding her movement in the Emerson poll. 11% of those Republican voters polled think she won the debate; 27% of Republican voters polled think Ramaswamy won the debate. Still, Haley’s “big ‘mo” comes at the expense of the DeSantis campaign, which could conceivably find the Haley campaign poaching some of its big dollar donors. And this could slightly alter the outcome of the race. But not in any way that really matters. In the end, Trump gets the Republican nomination, of course.
And hereafter Nikki Haley probably gets a couple of zeros added to the end of her speaking fees. Unless she earns Trump’s ire as the campaign progresses. The campaign, btw, in which she no longer will be pulling her punches against Trump ...
Descendants of the Russian Czar behaving badly (Christina Oxenberg)
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“It’s not a cruel summer after all, as Taylor Swift has become the first female artist in Spotify history to reach 100 million monthly listeners. The music streaming platform announced the news Tuesday via Spotify’s social pages, writing: ‘Queen behavior. On August 29th, Taylor Swift became the first female artist in Spotify history to reach 100 million monthly listeners.’” (Variety)
“Nigeria’s president is facing a storm of media criticism after choosing a new budget minister accused of helping former dictator Sani Abacha loot billions of dollars from the country. Abubakar Atiku Bagudu, who previously served as a state governor and senator, was confirmed as a new minister in Nigerian President Bola Tinubu’s government last week, despite having played an ‘instrumental role’ in Abacha’s plundering of the country from 1993 to 1998, according to the United States Department of Justice. Tinubu, who was forced into exile during Abacha’s reign, assumed the presidency earlier this year in a disputed election, after a campaign during which he promised to rid Nigeria of the ‘menace’ of corruption. Despite Bagudu’s alleged role in the Abacha regime’s corruption, he and Tinubu became political allies following the formation of their All Progressive Congress party in 2013.” (Micah Reddy/ICIJ)