Nikki Haley, a Republican running for president, refrained on Wednesday from claiming that slavery was the reason behind the Civil War, stating instead that it came down to “the role of government.”
A voter asked Haley a direct question at a town hall in New Hampshire, “What was the cause of the Civil War?”
In her long response, Haley—a former governor of South Carolina and ambassador to the UN—did not address slavery, which is the main reason for the conflict. Haley is trying to position herself as the leading Republican contender to former President Donald Trump.
“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 said at the beginning of her response.
She seemed to revert on Thursday, stating in a radio appearance on “Good Morning New Hampshire” that “of course, the Civil War was about slavery” and that her comments reflect what it “means to us today.”
“What it means to us today is about freedom — that’s what that was all about. It was about individual freedom,” she said. “It was about economic freedom. It was about individual rights.”
Then, without providing any supporting proof, Haley claimed that the voter who had asked the question was a “plant” sent by Democrats, claiming that President Joe Biden’s associates were attempting to sway the primary so that he would face former President Donald Trump in the general election.
“Biden and the Democrats keep sending Democrat plants to do things like this to get the media to react,” she said. “We know when they’re there; we know what they’re doing. Why is Biden doing that? Why isn’t he doing it to any other candidate? It’s because he knows I defeat him by double digits.
“It’s also because they know they want to run against Trump,” she added. “They’re trying to help Trump — they’ve tried to help Trump this whole time.”
When asked if she believed the voter was a “Democrat plant” or just an ordinary New Hampshire voter in response to the Civil War inquiry, Haley said, “No, it was definitely a Democrat plant.
“That’s why I said, ‘What does it mean to you?’ And if you notice, he didn’t answer anything. The same reason he didn’t tell the reporters what his name was,” she said.
“We see these guys when they come in, we know what they’re doing, and we know from the second they asked the question, if you look at the last one, I did New Hampshire, there was one at every single town hall,” she added. “This is what they do, and I’m trying to turn the questions back on them. In this case, this is, you know, this is what happened, but yeah, this is what they’re doing. And so if you notice, he didn’t mention anything about slavery, he didn’t talk about it, because that wasn’t the intent. That was never his intent.”
The Republican primary in New Hampshire is open to unaffiliated voters, a demographic that has been perceived as potentially advantageous for candidates such as Haley or former New Jersey Governor Chris Christie.
At a town hall meeting on Thursday morning, Haley strengthened her defense.
“Of course, the Civil War was about slavery. We know that that’s unquestioned, always the case,” she said. “We know the Civil War was about slavery, but it was also more than that. It was about the freedoms of every individual. It was about the role of government for 80 years.”
At the town hall on Wednesday, Haley had responded in length, which sparked the issue.
“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.
“Government doesn’t need to tell you how to live your life. They don’t need to tell you what you can and can’t do. They don’t need to be a part of your life. They need to make sure that you have freedom,” she said. “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.”
What do you want me to say about slavery? Haley said after the voter said that he found it “astonishing” that she had not once uttered the word “slavery” in her response.
Haley then moved on to the next question.
The exchange drew a swift response from Democratic National Committee Chair Jaime Harrison. “This isn’t hard: condemning slavery is the baseline for anyone who wants to be president of the United States,” he said in a statement.
Biden also responded on X, saying, “It was about slavery.”
In response, Haley’s campaign referenced comments she made on the subject during an interview on Thursday morning in New Hampshire.
“Yes, we know the Civil War was about slavery,” Haley said in the interview. “But more than that, what’s the lesson in all this? That freedom matters. And individual rights and liberties matter for all people. That’s the blessing of America. That was a stain on America when we had slavery. But what we want is never relive it. Never let anyone take those freedoms away again.”
When questioned Thursday morning about their thoughts on Haley’s remarks regarding the Civil War, a few voters from New Hampshire voiced their displeasure.
Hella Ross, an undeclared voter who is leaning toward voting for Haley, said she gave a “total softball” response to the question.
“It’s astounding to me that she got tripped up. However, it proves, once again, that she’s concerned about alienating the MAGA crowd/base. Shameful, but she can’t have it both ways,” Ross said.
After Haley tried to walk back her comments Thursday morning, Ross said: “Damage control is always challenging.”
Another New Hampshire voter who had not yet registered to vote, Thalia Floras, was ready to give her vote to Haley when she heard her remarks, but she was taken aback.
“I am not satisfied with her follow-up on it,” Floras said. “I think she is tiptoeing around the subject. When you are the president of the United States, you can’t tiptoe around the Civil War. It’s not a gray area. I’m horrified she’s whitewashing this.”
Marie Mulory, an independent voter who has attended dozens of town halls and is leaning toward voting for Haley, said: “It may have just been an attempt to give one of her normal answers where she tries to be all things to all people and this just backfired horrendously.”
[…] her long response, Haley—a former governor of South Carolina and ambassador to the UN—did not address slavery, which is the main reason for the conflict. […]