Haley slams Trump comments about her husband

Republican presidential candidate Nikki Haley criticized former President Trump’s “disgusting” comments in which she questioned the whereabouts of her military husband who is serving overseas.

Trump, who holds a comfortable lead over Haley in the Republican primary, spoke at a campaign event in Conway, South Carolina over the weekend and asked why her opponent’s husband isn’t joining her on the campaign trail. asked the audience.

“What happened to her husband?” Trump asked at a campaign event in South Carolina. “Where is he? He’s gone. He knew. He knew.”

Asked by CNN anchor Jake Tapper about the former president’s comments and the cheers at the rally, Haley said, “The first thing I want to say is I’m disgusted.”

Haley’s husband, Maj. Michael Haley, is currently overseas with the South Carolina Army National Guard on a year-long tour of duty in the Horn of Africa. He is assigned to the 218th Maneuver Enhancement Brigade as a staff officer.

“If you’re going to criticize veterans, if you criticize one veteran, you’re going to criticize all of them. But this, whether he’s sitting there and calling them suckers or not, at Arlington Cemetery. It continues to be a pattern of what he’s doing, whether you’re saying, “Why would they do this?” “No, my husband is not with me on the presidential campaign because he serves our country,” Haley said on Monday, referring to U.S. service members who died during Trump’s administration as “sucks.” He mentioned this and said:

“Because if we don’t understand that it’s on their shoulders that we stand, we all know someone who has lost their life or contributed to this country to keep it free. If you don’t understand that, it doesn’t matter.” He’s the right person to be commander-in-chief. Because if you don’t respect our military, how are you supposed to respect the military, prevent wars, and deter the military in times of war? ” she added.

Michael Haley posted a photo without directly criticizing President Trump’s remarks. wolf of x, on the platform formerly known as Twitter, said, “What is the difference between humans and animals?” Animals will never allow the stupidest animal to lead the herd. ” Michael also tagged Trump’s account along with various news outlets.

Trump’s recent comments quickly drew comparisons to ones he said in 2015 when he was a senator at the time. John McCain (R-Ariz.), who was held as a prisoner of war in Vietnam, should be considered a hero because President Trump loved “people who weren’t taken prisoner.”

Tapper pressed Haley to explain her decision to serve as U.N. ambassador under the former president following her comments about McCain.

“When he said something, at first…in 2015…I don’t think it was a gaffe or I didn’t know who he was,” she replied. “I was proud to serve America under his administration. It was the American people I was working for. And I was proud to serve in his administration.”

Haley jokingly said that Trump has repeatedly said that he is “his own worst enemy” and will always tell him when his actions are “not right.”

“I always told him the truth. I’ve always represented the idea that a strong America should be,” Haley said. “And to be honest, he always listened to me and was very respectful. [knew] I saw the truth and he knew I cared about America. ”

Early Monday, Haley released a roughly 90-second ad. Showing President Trump’s stance Past ridicule against veterans (including in the press) “Duck” and “Loser” These include comments about soldiers killed overseas, remarks about Mr. McCain’s time in Vietnam, and the 2018 attack on retired Navy Adm. William McRaven, who oversaw the 2011 attack that killed Osama bin Laden. .

“Today, Donald Trump held a rally and at that rally he mocked my husband’s military service. And I will say this: Donald, if you have something to say, don’t say it behind my back, put it on the debate stage. Stand up and say it to my face,” Haley said at a rally in South Carolina last Saturday. Featured in advertisements. “I’m proud of Michael’s contributions. Every military spouse knows it’s a family sacrifice.”

On Sunday, Haley criticized President Trump’s comments about her husband, calling them “an insult to military families.”

In an earlier statement to The Hill, Trump campaign spokesman Stephen Chan asserted, “For our nation’s military, there is no greater warrior than President Trump.”

“Nikki Haley likes to talk about her foreign policy chops, but she loves advocating forever war by bowing to China and sending our troops into unnecessary conflicts. It represents the last of America’s policies,” Chan said in a statement to The Hill.

Haley and Trump have made a series of campaign stops in Haley’s home state of South Carolina, where the Republican primary will be held later this month.

Trump holds a nearly 32-point lead over Haley in the Palmetto State, according to polls compiled by The Hill and Decision Desk Headquarters. The former South Carolina governor has vowed to remain in the race at least through Super Tuesday, March 5, despite disappointing results in Iowa, New Hampshire and Nevada.