Former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley defended her failure to cite slavery as a cause of the Civil War Thursday morning, accusing a town hall attendee who asked her a question the night before of being a Democratic “plant.”
The Republican presidential candidate faced immediate backlash after he was asked about the source of the conflict at a Berlin, NH, event Wednesday afternoon.
Haley initially responded that the war broke out because of a disagreement over “how government” should be run, and became defensive when the audience said she was surprised he didn’t mention slavery in his answer.
“What do you want me to say about slavery?” Haley responded. “Next question.”
On Thursday, Haley told the “Good Morning New Hampshire” radio show that “of course the Civil War was about slavery.”
“We know that. That’s the easy part. What I’m saying is, what does it mean to us today? What it means to us today is about freedom. That’s what it means. It’s about individual freedom, economic freedom, individual rights. The goal we are to ensure we do not return to the stain of slavery but what is the lesson in all that?” Haley said.
Nikki Haley was asked what caused the American Civil War and gave a lengthy answer, without mentioning slavery. SkyNews / X
He then accused President Biden and the Democratic Party of sending a “plant” to “do this kind of thing.”
“Why did Biden do that? Why didn’t he do that to any other candidate?” asked Haley, noting polls show him beating Biden by a large margin in a hypothetical general election matchup.
Haley, 51, has surged in both national elections and in state elections — especially New Hampshire, where a recent poll has put her within striking distance of former President Donald Trump.
Abraham Lincoln, the 16th president of the United States, delivered the famous Gettysburg Address at the dedication of the Gettysburg National Cemetery during the American Civil War. Getty Images
“Look what this is for,” he told host Jack Heath, then added: “They want to run against Trump. At the town hall, I answered every question and they planted questions there.”
“It’s definitely a Democratic factory,” Haley said of her questioner. “When [we] asked him, he didn’t want to answer. He did not give his name to reporters.”
Andrew Romeo, a campaign spokesman for Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, derided Haley’s remarks as “[e]shameful attempt at cleanup.”
“Though [the ‘plant’ story] is true … If he can’t deal with basic questions like the causes of the Civil War, what does he think will happen to him in the general election,” he wrote to X. “Democrats will eat his lunch.”
At an afternoon town hall in North Conway, NH, Haley took another stab at the issue.
“We are doing the right thing and slavery is no more,” he said. “But the lesson of the larger issue with the Civil War is — let’s not forget what came of it — which is the role of government, individual freedom, freedom for everyone, freedom of speech, freedom of religion, freedom to do things. and be whatever you want without anyone or the government stopping you.
“That should be the goal we always try to take from that, right?”
Haley’s initial remarks Wednesday night resulted in backlash from some of her GOP rivals, with DeSantis responding “mockingly” at X, and former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie’s campaign juxtaposing his latest “Truth” ad with her comments.
Biden himself also responded to Haley’s praise, writing on his personal X account: “It’s about slavery.”
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Source: thtrangdai.edu.vn/en/
