Former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley's endorsement of Donald Trump as the Republican presidential nominee has not turned into a windfall of voters that the former president might have hoped for.
According to a report from Politico's Meridith McGraw, Lisa Kashinsky and Natalie Allison, a substantial number of supporters of the South Carolina Republican felt they had good reason to back her over Trump and her endorsement did little to change their minds.
As the report notes, "Former state campaign chairs for Haley’s now-defunct presidential bid are increasingly coming out against the former president, including Utah Lt. Gov. Deidre Henderson, who declined Monday to endorse Donald Trump. And in several other cases, they are endorsing Vice President Kamala Harris over Trump, including in Iowa and Michigan."
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One of them, former Maine GOP Rep. David Emery, cut right to the chase by telling Politico, “Most of us are pretty disgusted with Trump and think he would be a disaster. And if you really believe that, then you can’t sit on the sidelines."
That attitude has led to a movement of Haley supporters who have gone well beyond making their own endorsements of Vice President Kamala Harris to mobilizing and fundraising for her.
The report goes on to note that Haley, despite her endorsement of the former president – who memorably called her "bird brain" – has not been overly effusive in her praise of her party's nominee, recently telling a reporter, “I have issues with him, as well. I have not forgotten what he said about me. I’ve not forgotten what he said about my husband or his, you know, deployment time or his military service. I haven’t forgotten about his or his campaign’s tactics from, you know, putting a bird cage outside our hotel room to calling me ‘bird brain.’ I haven’t forgotten any of that.”
Haley’s Virginia leadership team head, Alissa Baker explained the dilemma facing Republicans who wanted no part of Trump when Haley was still in the running.
“I think that a lot of times we see him play to the base and keep wanting to secure the base, and it’s like, you’ve got them, say something to the rest of us,” Baker explained. “We might be leaning your way, we might align with you more. But you’re still not talking to us.”
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