Republican presidential candidate Nikki Haley is facing heat from all sides of the aisles after her latest Civil War comments.
The controversy started when Haley was at a campaign event and was asked why the Civil War occurred.
In response, Haley shared, “I think the cause of the Civil War was basically how government was going to run – the freedoms and what people could and couldn’t do.”
The voter responded that he was in disbelief. Haley didn’t mention that “slavery’ played a factor, too.
Haley responded to the voter by sharing, “What do you want me to say about slavery?”
Why does Nikki Haley have so much trouble saying that the Civil War is about slavery? 💀 pic.twitter.com/57WKa4lOMA
— HOT SPOT (@HotSpot__Media) December 28, 2023
Here’s what Fox News reported:
Republican presidential candidate Nikki Haley is catching heat from both sides of the political aisle after she declined to mention slavery as the reason for sparking the U.S. Civil War.
ADVERTISEMENTA voter asked the former U.N. ambassador during a New Hampshire town hall on Wednesday what was “the cause” of the war, to which she joked, “Well, don’t come with an easy question or anything.”
“I think the cause of the Civil War was basically how government was going to run – the freedoms and what people could and couldn’t do,” she continued.
“I mean, I think it all comes down to the role of government,” she added. “We need to have capitalism. We need to have economic freedom. We need to make sure that we do all things so that individuals have the liberties so that they can have freedom of speech, freedom of religion, freedom to do or be anything they want to be without government getting in the way.”
The voter responded that he was shocked she didn’t mention the word “slavery.”
On a cringe scale of 0 to 10, this is a 563. Hey @NikkiHaley: no need to phone a friend or consult Super PAC puppet masters when a one-word answer would suffice. Her fear of answering truthfully is just….bizarre. pic.twitter.com/Kx5uhgu4HY
— Stefan Mychajliw (@StefanMychajliw) December 28, 2023
Per NBC News:
GOP presidential candidate Nikki Haley on Wednesday declined to say slavery was a cause of the Civil War, arguing instead that it came down to “the role of government.”
At a New Hampshire town hall, a voter bluntly asked Haley, “What was the cause of the Civil War?”
Haley, the former South Carolina governor and former U.N. ambassador who is aiming to present herself as the top Republican alternative to former President Donald Trump, gave a lengthy answer but did not mention slavery — the primary cause of the war.
“I think the cause of the Civil War was basically how government was going to run — the freedoms and what people could and couldn’t do,” Haley said at the beginning of her response.
ADVERTISEMENTShe went on to say: “I think it always comes down to the role of government and what the rights of the people are. And I will always stand by the fact that I think government was intended to secure the rights and freedoms of the people. It was never meant to be all things to all people.
FLASHBACK: During a 2010 interview with neo-Confederates, Nikki Haley avoided saying the the Civil War was fought over slavery and instead implied the South was “fighting for tradition” while the Union was “fighting for change.” pic.twitter.com/66be5iiw1y
— MeidasTouch (@MeidasTouch) December 28, 2023
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