Donald Trump said remaining primary rival Nikki Haley is only still in the race because she ‘doesn’t know how to get out.’
It comes following a ‘state of the race’ speech earlier in the day where former UN Amb. Haley said she is ‘far from’ ready to drop out of the 2024 race.
Speaking at a town hall in South Carolina on Tuesday, Trump lambasted Haley for remaining in the running this long – especially after the massive primary defeats in Iowa, New Hampshire and Nevada.
‘I don’t think she knows how to get out, actually. I really don’t,’ Trump said to laughter from the in-studio audience in Greenville, South Carolina.
He added, in reference to polling in the Palmetto State: ‘You’re not supposed to lose your home state and she’s doing it bigly.’
‘She’s doing poorly in the polls. Look, if she was doing well, I’d understand that.’
Former President Donald Trump said during a Fox News town hall on Tuesday that primary rival Nikki Haley ‘just can’t get herself to get out’ of the 2024 race
Haley blasted Trump during her campaign speech in Greenville ahead of the South Carolina primary on Saturday. She said she will stay in the race no matter the results of the primary in her home state
Trump also floated that Haley is ‘playing’ into Democrats that he claims are funding her campaign as a way to damage his chances in the general election in November.
‘They’re trying to hurt me because of the general election so the Democrats are giving her money and she’s playing into the game,’ Trump theorized.
‘I think she just can’t get herself to get out.’
Haley took a defiant stand earlier on Tuesday, saying she is ‘not going anywhere’ and vowed to fight ‘harder than ever’ ahead of the South Carolina GOP presidential primary on Saturday.
Haley gave a passionate state of the race speech in Greenville while Trump was arriving for the taping of the town hall with Fox host Laura Ingraham.
It comes just four days before the state’s primary amid calls from fellow Republicans for Haley to drop out. Instead, she is hunkering down.
‘Some of you, perhaps a few of you in the media, came here today to see if I’m dropping out of the race,’ Haley said. ‘Well, I’m not, far from it.’
Haley dismissed calls for her exit, claiming they came from the ‘political elite’ and pushed back on not having won a single state so far. She came in third in Iowa, second in New Hampshire, and lost the Nevada primary to ‘none of these candidates’ as Trump won the state’s caucuses.
Haley said she will still be running for president on Sunday no matter the results of the South Carolina primary on Saturday. She pointed out in the 10 days after South Carolina, another 21 states and territories will vote.
Haley slammed Republicans calling on her to drop out, saying people deserve a choice in the primary ‘not a soviet-style election.’ She said of Trump that she sees no reason to ‘kiss the ring’
‘Dropping out would be the easy route. I’ve never taken the easy route,’ Haley said. ‘I’ve been the underdog in every race I’ve ever run. I’ve always been David taking on Goliath, and like David, I’m not just fighting someone bigger than me, I’m fighting for something bigger than myself.’
Haley has blasted Trump on the campaign trail but upped her attacks of the Republican presidential frontrunner on Tuesday, calling him ‘unstable’ and ‘unhinged.’
‘People have a right to have their voices heard, and they deserve a real choice, not a Soviet-style election where there’s only one candidate and he gets 99% of the vote,’ Haley said. ‘We don’t anoint kings in this country. We have elections, and Donald Trump, of all people, should know we don’t rig elections!’
She said the country does not want more chaos and craziness and argued Americans do not want another Trump-Biden rematch.
‘At the end of the day, the only candidate who’s helping Joe Biden is Donald Trump, because Trump is the only Republican Biden can beat,’ Haley said.
Haley called Biden and Trump two old men only getting older.
‘We’re talking about the most demanding job in human history. You don’t give it to someone who’s at risk of dementia,’ Haley said.
Haley with her husband at a campaign event in March 2023. Michael Haley, who serves as a major in the South Carolina Army National Guard, deployed overseas last year
At one point in her speech, Haley became visibly emotional while talking about her husband Michael, a major in the South Carolina Army National Guard, who is currently serving overseas.
‘As I prepare for what lies ahead, Michael is at the front of my mind. I wish Michael was here today, and I wish our children and I could see him tonight, but we can’t,’ Haley said, holding back tears.
‘Michael is fighting for the country he loves, so are all his brothers-and-sisters-in-arms, wherever they’re stationed in our dangerous world. They have made their stand because America is worth fighting and even dying for,’ Haley said. ‘Now I will continue to make my stand because America is worth living for.’
Haley’s emotional remarks about her husband deployed overseas comes after Trump recently took a jab at his absents on the campaign trail.
At a rally Trump recalled Haley previously coming to see him at Mar-a-Lago and bringing her husband before saying, ‘What happened to her husband? What happened to her husband? Where is he? He’s gone! He knew.’
The Trump campaign on Tuesday released a memo arguing the end is near for Haley’s campaign. Based on their analysis, they predict even with a generous model for Haley, Trump will capture the GOP nomination March 19. Based on current data, they estimate he will clinch the necessary 1,223 delegates on March 12.