Hours after her unexpected appearance on Saturday Night Live, where she ridiculed party front-runner Donald Trump’s refusal to debate her, Republican presidential candidate Nikki Haley continued to poke fun at the man’s age, legal issues, and recent gaffes.
Speaking on CNN’s State of the Union, Haley attacked the former president for trying to block a law on immigration that was being discussed in Congress, claiming that his campaign was centered on painting him as a victim rather than a supporter of the American people.
By ordering Republican senators to veto legislation that would bolster border security, Trump is “absolutely playing politics” and preventing President Joe Biden from celebrating an immigration win.
“He shouldn’t be getting involved, telling Republicans that wait until the election because we don’t want this to help Biden win,” she said. “We can’t wait one more day.”
Haley has come under a series of attacks from Trump recently, including taunts about her gender and ethnicity. He mistakenly said Haley — then a private citizen — was in charge of security at the US Capitol during the insurrection on Jan. 6, 2021, confusing her with former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi.
During her CNN interview, Haley called Trump “flawed” on a personal level, while also taking aim at both his and Biden’s age.
“Why are we allowing ourselves to have two 80-year-olds who can’t serve eight years, who both are diminished, whether it’s in their character or in their mental capacity?”
Haley lost her first two races in Iowa and New Hampshire, so she is still a long shot to get the nomination. In South Carolina, where she held the office of governor, where the primary is being held this month, polls place her far behind.
Nevertheless, a number of well-known Wall Street professionals and wealthy Democratic contributors, like as Reid Hoffman, the co-founder of LinkedIn, have given to Haley, partly due to their dismay at the idea of Trump and Biden facing off again in November.
Haley said that voters should be concerned about Trump’s numerous legal problems and that his campaign is still pushing the idea that he is a victim.
“We have got a country in disarray and a world on fire,” she said. “We need a president that’s going to give us eight years of focus and discipline, not one that’s going to be sitting there ranting about how he’s a victim and how this isn’t right and how this isn’t just.”
“He hasn’t once talked about the American people, and that’s the problem I have with all of this,” she added.
