Nikki Haley raises eyebrows with ‘change personalities’ comment as her momentum sparks increased scrutiny

Republican presidential candidate Nikki Haley raised some eyebrows from conservatives over the weekend after comments she made about the former South Carolina governor's change in “personality” while discussing the Iowa caucuses and New Hampshire primary. .

“The structure is really amazing,” Haley told an interviewer with her local Iowa PBS station last week about the Republican primary process. “Iowa is where you start. Change your personality and go to New Hampshire.”

The presidential candidate was debating whether he would support changing the voting order of states in the Republican primary, as Democrats did in the presidential primary. She often talks about how each state has its own unique personality.

At a recent event in Iowa, Haley said Iowans are “patriotic,” “hard-working” and “very cautious,” but New Hampshire voters are “emotional.” The South Carolinian said he would “kick it away with a smile on his face.”

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Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis said he sees the polls getting closer as Haley's support increases, answering questions after an event in Des Moines, Iowa, on Saturday. He criticized Haley, 51, for his comments.

DeSantis said “things are not going well” for Haley, who has faced intense media scrutiny. “I don't think she can stand up to it and hasn't shown the ability to be able to answer the kinds of questions that you need. I mean, she's dealing with history and she's having problems there and It was clear that he had contempt for Iowa by what he said.'' …And now he is being told that his personality will change if he leaves Iowa for New Hampshire.'' ”

Texas Rep. Chip Roy, who supports DeSantis, wrote on X (formerly Twitter) on Saturday: @Nikki Haley (Ally) throws another $1.8 million at @RonDeSantis…so she can “change her personality” to go to NH to “fix” Iowans…and Trump Audition for Vice President of ($0 for Trump)…interested in forever promoting war, open borders, and business. Understood. #DeSantis2024. ”

Haley's campaign fired back at the attacks, with spokeswoman Annemarie Graham-Burns telling Fox News Digital: “Every time Nicki's momentum is real and her vision resonates, Ron DeSantis and Donald…・Mr. Trump is getting more and more desperate, so they are.” I'm grasping at straws. Voters see through that. ”

Haley reacts to Trump and Dezantis swipes: 'Sweet' they're spending so much money on me

According to an Iowa poll, former President Trump, who has stepped up his attacks on Haley through TV attack ads, has a double-digit lead over other candidates (approximately 50 percentage points, according to Real Clear Politics' average). However, Haley won by a narrow margin. The gap between him and DeSantis is large, with the two vying for second place at 15.7% and 18.4%, respectively, with Vivek Ramaswamy a distant fourth at 6%.

Republican presidential candidate and former U.S. ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley speaks at a campaign town hall in Rye, New Hampshire, on Tuesday. (Reuters/Brian Snyder)

“President Trump has said for a long time that he was going to zero in on who would come in second place in the race,” Trump adviser Jason Miller recently told Politico. “Rob DeSanctimonius is nearing single digits everywhere and his campaign is on life support, which means it's Nikki Haley's turn.”

Haley has suffered from other gaffes recently, most notably in her response at a New Hampshire town hall last month in which she never mentioned slavery as a cause of the Civil War. She retracted her comments hours later, saying the war was “of course” about slavery, but her opponents continue to hound her about it.

She also recently told New Hampshire voters, “You know what Iowa is starting to say, you know we're going to fix it… My sweet South Carolina is bringing it home. You know what?'', which she later clarified was meant as a joke.

“People are paying too much attention to me,” Haley joked at an Iowa town hall on Saturday, referring to increased attacks from Trump and other opponents.

She also claimed that both she and President Biden opposed President Trump's border security measures, including building a wall, and mocked President Trump for his recent attack ad against her.

“Isn't it sweet of him to spend so much time and money on me?” she joked to Fox News. She told Iowa voters on Saturday that building the wall is actually a start, but more needs to be done to secure the border, she said.

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“They're trying to take little bits and pieces and put them together to make it look like what they want you to see,” Haley said of other candidates' attacks. “But you know what it means that they're lying. It's because they know they're losing. It's that simple. And if they lie about me… I will tell the truth about them if I am going to get them.'