Speaker 1: Will. Nikki Haley's 2024 presidential campaign is off to a very,
very rocky start on day one of her presidential campaign. Videos from years ago were resurfaced
in which she defends the state's right to secede from the United States and also praises
the Confederate flag. This is going to be a wild primary, and we knew that. But this is
what we call candidate vetting. The earlier you announce, the earlier you get vetted,
apparently. And this going bad very quickly for Nikki Haley. Now, remember,
when we talk about the Republican electorate, they may not care about this stuff. So we'll talk
about that in a moment. But let's go to the first video. Nikki Haley in 2010 was interviewed by a
group called the Sons of Confederate Veterans, quite a group about her feelings about the
Confederate flag. In this video, she says the flag is not racist and she would even support
a Confederate Memorial Month. You've got Black History Month and Confederate Memorial Month.
Why not, Right. Take a listen to this. Speaker 2: We'd like to know what your
position is on our father. Speaker 3: I feel like it's
been resolved to the best of its ability. I mean, I wasn't here when they actually went
through and did the negotiations to understand that it was brutal. But I think that they came
up with the best solution we're going to hope for. You know what people need to what I tend
to look at is the practical side of the matter is, you know, you have to learn. It takes two
thirds of the House and two thirds of the Senate to change that. That's not going to happen. I
think right now, the Confederate flag, where it is, is where the legislature is comfortable with
it. I think that, you know, there was a compromise and one the state where it should be. And so it's
not something I see as a priority right now. I think right now we need to be focusing on jobs
and our economy and our education. You know, for those groups that come in and say they had issues
with the Confederate flag. I will work to talk to them about our work and talk to them about
the heritage and how this is not something that is racist. This is something that is a
tradition that people feel proud of. Yeah. Speaker 1: It's about the tradition.
Of having slaves. It's so funny when they say the Civil War wasn't about slavery,
it was about states rights and there should be an ellipsis. There states rights to maintain
legal slavery. It's about the tradition that included fighting to keep slavery legal.
Speaker 3: And let them know that we want their business in the state and that the flag
where it is was a compromise of all people that everybody should, except in far South Carolina.
Speaker 2: Would you support a Confederate History Month?
Speaker 3: I mean, yes, it's part of the traditional you know, it's part a tradition.
And so when you look at that, if you have some news, you have Black History Month and
you have Confederate History Month. Speaker 1: I satirically said that.
That's very true. At the start of the segment, I satirically said, listen, why not Confederate
History Month? You've got Black History Month. Why not Confederate History Month? Of course,
that ignores the reality of what the Confederacy was. I'm actually stunned. I jokingly made that
analogy, and she's seriously making the analogy. Speaker 3: All it does as long as it's done
where it is in a positive way, right? Not in a negative way.
Speaker 1: In the positive aspects of the Confederacy. Like, for example,
they did feed their slaves after all. Speaker 3: Doesn't go to harm anyone. And it goes
back to where it focuses on the traditions. Yes, the people that are wanting to celebrate that,
I think it's one that. Speaker 1:
Yeah. Confederate History Month. There is an idea. Here's a bonus clip from this same interview with
the Sons of Confederate Veterans. She played up the right of states to secede. Let's take a listen
to this. This is not a good. Could this be the worst first day of any campaign for president?
Speaker 2: If you believe that the states of the United States have the
right to secede from the union. Speaker 3: I think that they
do. I mean, the Constitution says that. Speaker 1: The Constitution does not say that.
Speaker 2: If it became an issue of the state of South Carolina needed
to secede from the union, would you support it? Speaker 3: You know, I'm one of those people that
doesn't think it's going to get to that point. Let me tell you why. While we are seeing all of this
federal intrusion come into our state, the way I will handle it is I'm going to get a coalition of
governors together that turns around, let's take the health care situation, for example. I'm going
to get a coalition of governors, it turns out. Speaker 1: All right. So now she's doing her
political nonsense. So states don't have a right to secede. It this is a subject of
much legal controversy. Texas V White from 1869 is one case that's pointed to where the Supreme
Court ruled that unilateral secession isn't constitutional. Meaning if a state alone says
we want to secede and become our own country, that is not in the Constitution, that you can do that.
There is the idea that either. But there's the idea that through the consent of states,
it could be agreed that some state would leave the United States. But Nikki Haley saying, listen,
states can do it, states can succeed. It also it's not accurate as much as it is kowtowing to what
are really pretty horrible groups, in this case, Sons of the Confederate Veterans. So this is going
to be a very tough primary and it's going to be tough not just because it is Trump is a formidable
challenger, not in terms of policy, but in terms of rhetoric with the nicknames and the attacks,
etc.. There is one aspect of challengers to Trump that is good for Trump, and it is the following.
And this is why there were some rumors that he wanted Nikki Haley to get in. And many people
said, Sir, why, why, why? When you look at head to head polling, Trump versus DeSantis in many
head to head polls, the Santos actually is ahead of Trump in 2024 polling. When
you do polling that includes Mike Pence and Nikki Haley and Mike Pompeo and whoever else,
the more candidates there are in the hypothetical 2024 polls, the worse that Ron DeSantis does and
the better that Trump does in comparison. So that would be a reason for Trump to want a crowded
field. That being said, I am not particularly bullish. If I were a betting man. I don't know
that I'm betting on Nikki Haley to be the next Republican nominee. So there it is, quite,
quite a wild first day for Nikki Haley, if this is day one. Imagine what week one is going to bring.