Presidential candidate Nikki Haley has warned that the Republican Party is becoming a “playpen” for former President Donald Trump.
Haley made the comments during a speech in Grand Rapids, Michigan, where she was campaigning in response to a crushing defeat in her home state of South Carolina.
“Look at what’s going on at the RNC. The idea that the RNC would choose a chairman and board members before the primaries are over is a massive control move by Donald Trump,” Haley warned.
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Nikki Haley speaks at the primary election night gathering at Charleston Place in Charleston, South Carolina. (Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)
Republican National Committee Chair Ronna McDaniel will officially resign after the Super Tuesday primary on March 5th.
The announcement comes weeks after President Trump unveiled his recommendations for changes within the RNC earlier this month. He suggested Michael Whatley, chairman of the North Carolina Republican Party, take over as chairman, with his daughter-in-law Lara Trump and senior campaign adviser Chris Lacivita also in leadership positions.
“The idea that there’s a resolution at the RNC that says, ‘Donald Trump can’t be used,’ [the RNC] ‘For his legal slush fund,’ he’s upset about the suggestion, but he’ll tell you everything you need to know,’ Hailey continued.
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Former President Donald Trump gestures to his supporters at the election night watch party at the State Fairgrounds in Columbia, South Carolina. (Win McNamee/Getty Images)
lara trump He told reporters earlier this month that if she is appointed, “every penny will go to my campaign.”
“Every penny goes to the RNC’s number one and only job: electing Donald J. Trump as President of the United States and saving our country,” she added.
“The idea is that the people who are trying to get into the RNC right now are saying that the RNC is only about Donald Trump,” Haley told a Grand Rapids audience. “I can cancel the rest of the election,” he said. “Donald Trump is now trying to turn the Republican Party into his playpen.”
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Former President Donald Trump’s daughter-in-law and RNC co-chair candidate Lara Trump mingles with a crowd of supporters in North Charleston, South Carolina. (Brandon Gillespie/Fox News)
Nearly 800 delegates will gather on Super Tuesday, and over 150 delegates will be up for grabs over the next two weeks. Delegate-rich California and Texas are among the states holding contests on Super Tuesday, but other large states such as Florida, Illinois and Ohio are also scheduled to hold contests. Winner-take-all primaries Polls in many of those states show Trump with a wide lead over Haley.
In a memo, the Trump campaign said it expected the former president to win the nomination on March 19, even under the “most generous model” for Haley.
Asked by Fox News what she would do if Trump secured the nomination next month, Haley quickly replied, “Let’s see if that happens.”
Fox News Digital’s Paul Steinhauser and Anders Hagstrom contributed to this report.
