White House Hopeful Haley Rebuked Over Civil War Comments
Faizan Hashmi Published December 28, 2023 | 10:04 PM
US presidential hopeful Nikki Haley faced a firestorm of criticism on Thursday after failing to mention slavery as a cause of the American Civil War when asked what led to the conflict at a campaign event
Washington, (APP - UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 28th Dec, 2023) US presidential hopeful Nikki Haley faced a firestorm of criticism on Thursday after failing to mention slavery as a cause of the American Civil War when asked what led to the conflict at a campaign event.
Less than three weeks before voting begins in the race for the 2024 Republican presidential nomination, it was the first major stumble for a candidate whose campaign has seen her propelled from an unlikely outsider to front-runner Donald Trump's biggest threat.
The former UN ambassador told a town hall crowd Wednesday in Berlin, New Hampshire that the cause of the bloody 1861-65 war was "basically how the government was going to run" and "freedoms and what people could and couldn't do."
She added that "it always comes down to the role of government and what the rights of the people are."
Apparently caught off guard, she turned the debate back at the questioner, who responded that he was not the one running for president, and that it was "astonishing" that slavery had not come up in her answer.
Scholars agree that slavery was the main driver of the Civil War, and Haley's obfuscation prompted swift rebuttals.
"It was about slavery," President Joe Biden said, responding on social media to video footage of the town hall.
Haley, 51, attempted to clear up her comments in a local radio interview Thursday in New Hampshire, affirming that "of course the Civil War was about slavery, that's the easy part."
She accused the town hall questioner -- who refused to identify himself to reporters -- of being a "Democratic plant" sent to damage her campaign and boost Trump, who is considered a weaker prospect against Biden in the general election.
- 'Embarrassing' -
Trump commands a lead of more than 20 points in polling for New Hampshire's January 23 primary, but Haley has been gaining ground -- overtaking Florida Governor Ron DeSantis as the former president's biggest threat.
DeSantis spokesman Andrew Romeo called Haley's clarification "embarrassing."
"If she can't handle a question as basic as the cause of the Civil War, what does she think is going to happen to her in a general election. The Democrats would eat her lunch," he posted on X, formerly Twitter.
The Florida governor, who is a distant second behind Trump in nationwide Primary polling, has sparked controversy in his own state over the teaching of race, a delicate issue that divides Americans.
Trump himself has been berated on both sides of the political divide and accused of echoing Adolf Hitler's remarks about undocumented migrants "poisoning the blood" of the nation.
Haley, who has a history of stirring controversy on America's Confederate past, raised eyebrows over her views on the Civil War during her successful run for South Carolina governor in 2010.
Characterizing the conflict as a fight between "tradition" and "change," she told a private meeting of Confederate heritage groups there were "passions on different sides."
She was praised in 2015 when she signed legislation removing the Confederate flag from the State House after a white supremacist killed nine people at a church in Charleston.
But she had vowed to leave the flag up during her election campaign, arguing that "every state has different conditions and every state has certain things that they hold as part of their heritage."
Democratic National Committee Chairman Jaime Harrison said her latest remarks were "not stunning" to any Black residents of South Carolina during her term in office.
"Some may have forgotten but I haven't. Time to take off the rose-colored Nikki Haley glasses folks," he said.
Related Topics
Recent Stories
Four terrorists involved in suicide attack on Chinese in Besham arrested
SIC chief asks PTI leaders to resign from assemblies
Pakistan working tirelessly to eradicate polio from country: PM
IHC Justice Sattar dismisses pleas moved by FIA, PEMRA and PTA in audio leaks ca ..
Gillespie, Kirsten feature in 48th edition of PCB Podcast
Security forces kill four terrorists in Tank
Fake immoral video of Ducky Bhai's wife goes on viral on social media
Currency Rate In Pakistan - Dollar, Euro, Pound, Riyal Rates On 29 April 2024
Today Gold Rate in Pakistan 29 April 2024
Currency Rate In Pakistan - Dollar, Euro, Pound, Riyal Rates On 28 April 2024
Today Gold Rate in Pakistan 28 April 2024
Fresh wave of rainfall in AJK continues for the second consecutive day
More Stories From World
-
Iran slams crackdown on US student protesters
3 minutes ago -
Dozens killed as dam bursts in flood-hit Kenya
13 minutes ago -
Brunson sets Knicks record with 47 to lead New York over 76ers
13 minutes ago -
Filipino farmers struggle as drought and heatwave hits
33 minutes ago -
Spain's Sanchez says he will not resign as PM
33 minutes ago -
President Xi to visit France, Serbia, Hungary from May 5
53 minutes ago
-
Burkina Faso suspends more foreign news media over massacre reports
53 minutes ago -
With motorbikes banned, Yangon delivery riders struggle in heatwave
1 hour ago -
England stars Kane and Bellingham headline Bayern-Real Madrid battle
1 hour ago -
Kenya dam bursts, killing at least 42: governor
1 hour ago -
China's energy storage capacity expands to support low-carbon goals
1 hour ago -
China's giant panda couple set off for Spain
1 hour ago