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SCREEN CAPTURE / C-SPAN Nikki Haley hopes to do well in the New Hapshire primary today. |
Haley is the last remaining rival to Donald Trump winning the GOP nomiination for President. The former UN Ambassador and ex-South Carolina governor is drawing the wrong kind of attention to herself that could hurt her in the upcoming primary.
During the CNN town hall last week, the former South Carolina governor was asked if she stood by that answer, given the country’s history of legal racism, including slavery. Haley doubled down, saying that America was founded on the idea that all men are created equal.
Even though many of the framers of the Constitution were slave owners and they signed the country's guiding principles that included counting Black slaves as three-fifths of a White person, Haley continued
"The intent was to do the right thing,” she said of the writers of the US Constitution.. “Now, did they have to go fix it along the way? Yes, but I don’t think the intent was ever that we were going to be a racist country.”
On a personal level, she said that while she experienced racism growing up in rural South Carolina, her parents told her that those experiences wouldn’t define what she could achieve.
“We had plenty of racism that we had to deal with, but my parents never said we lived in a racist country, and I’m so thankful they didn’t,” Haley said. “Because for every brown and Black child out there, if you tell them they live or were born in a racist country, you’re immediately telling them they don’t have a chance.”
Haley pointed to her own achievements of becoming one of the first female minority governors in the country and later Trump’s US ambassador to the United Nations. She echoed comments she’s made on the campaign trail that too many Americans have a “national self loathing,” even though the US is not “racist” but “blessed.”
“I think it’s important that we tell all kids that, ‘Look, America is not perfect. We have our stains, we know that,’” she said. “But our goal should always be to make today better than yesterday.”
"The intent was to do the right thing,” she said of the writers of the US Constitution.. “Now, did they have to go fix it along the way? Yes, but I don’t think the intent was ever that we were going to be a racist country.”
On a personal level, she said that while she experienced racism growing up in rural South Carolina, her parents told her that those experiences wouldn’t define what she could achieve.
“We had plenty of racism that we had to deal with, but my parents never said we lived in a racist country, and I’m so thankful they didn’t,” Haley said. “Because for every brown and Black child out there, if you tell them they live or were born in a racist country, you’re immediately telling them they don’t have a chance.”
Haley pointed to her own achievements of becoming one of the first female minority governors in the country and later Trump’s US ambassador to the United Nations. She echoed comments she’s made on the campaign trail that too many Americans have a “national self loathing,” even though the US is not “racist” but “blessed.”
“I think it’s important that we tell all kids that, ‘Look, America is not perfect. We have our stains, we know that,’” she said. “But our goal should always be to make today better than yesterday.”
Haley's latest comments comes days after a town hall questioner asked her about the cause of the Civil War without mentioning once, the word slavery. A day later she had to clarify her answer, "Of course it was about slavery," she said.
MSNBC News host Mehdi Hasan, an Indian American, also criticized Haley's racial blindness. Reminding Haley of her Indian American heritage, Hasan posted on X:
"What about that time you said you got excluded from a kids' beauty contest for being brown? Or that time you said your dad was profiled at a market because of his turban?"
After Haley finished a distant third in the Iowa Caucuses behind Donald Trump and FLorida Governor Ron DeSantis, she is hoping for a stronger showing in New Hampshire where she has been closing the gap between her and Trump. When DeSantis dropped out of the race Sunday, she's halfway there.
Indian American businessman Vivek Ramaswamy finished in the fourth in the Iowa caucuses. His poor showing convinced him to end his campaign and throw his support to Trump.
Indian American businessman Vivek Ramaswamy finished in the fourth in the Iowa caucuses. His poor showing convinced him to end his campaign and throw his support to Trump.
Haley's apparent gaffs on race might, however, might raise her appeal to White voters. New Hampshire is one of the whitest states in the nation with 87% of its population counted as White in the US Census. Asians account for only 2.6% of the New England state.
No matter how she fnishes in New Hampsire, nationally her position on racism may hurt her nationally. Her assertion runs counter to the experience of the majority of Asian Americans. A recnt poll from AAPI Data and The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research found 15% of Asian American and Pacific Islanders specifically say they believe they have been the victim of a hate crime. About half — 51% — believe racism is an “extremely” or “very serious” problem in the US.
But as Haley fights for relevancy by courting moderate Republicans, she is losing the fight for a portion of the Indian American vote. Of all the Asian ethnic groups and nationalities, Indian Americans have remained overwhelmingly Democratic with 68% of Indian American voters leaning towards the Dems. A candidates' racial origins were less of a deciding factor with Asian American voters than a candidates' positions on issues.
EDITOR'S NOTE: For additional commentary, news and views from an AANHPI perspective, follow me at Threads.net/eduardodiok, @DioknoEd on Twitter or at the blog Views From the Edge.
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