Nikki Haley, the former U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, said she didn’t ask for former President Donald Trump’s blessing to run for the White House in 2024.
In an interview with NBC’s “Today” broadcast Thursday, the former South Carolina governor confirmed she called Trump in the weeks before announcing her bid.
“I’m gonna keep that phone call personal,” Haley said. “I didn’t ask, I told that I thought we needed to go in a new direction.”
Haley on Wednesday officially launched her campaign in Charleston, South Carolina, calling for a “new generation of leadership” and becoming the first Republican to challenge Trump for the party’s nomination. During that event, she didn’t mention the former president once.
Trump, who announced his run for office in November, had previously said Haley called him to say she was considering a presidential bid.
“I said, ‘You should do it,’” Trump recalled telling her. “I talked to her for a little while. I said, ‘Look, you know, go by your heart if you want to run.’”
In making her decision to run, Haley walked back an earlier statement she made in April 2021 that she wouldn’t launch a presidential bid if it meant challenging Trump.
“When I first said I wouldn’t run against him, Afghanistan hadn’t fallen, we didn’t see the rise in inflation like we’ve seen,” she said, adding that the results of the midterm elections also factored into her decision.
Republicans underperformed in November and only narrowly won back the House, while Democrats maintained control of the Senate.
In her campaign launch video, Haley dwelled on the fact that Republicans have “lost the popular vote in seven out of the last eight presidential elections.”
“This has to change,” she said.
Haley has refrained from directly criticizing Trump in her latest appearances.
Asked to explain how she could say the Republican Party needs Trump after condemning his role in the Jan. 6, 2021, insurrection, Haley replied: “When I see something right, I praise it. When I see something wrong, I criticize it.”
Haley, the daughter of two Indian immigrants, was first elected governor in 2010. She was reelected in 2014 but left the position halfway through her term to join Trump’s Cabinet.
In a post on Truth Social on Wednesday, Trump suggested Haley’s appointment to the ambassador role was done as a favor to the people of South Carolina since Henry McMaster, who was lieutenant governor at the time, would replace Haley in the state’s top job.
McMaster joined Trump on stage during one of his first events this campaign cycle last month in South Carolina, where Trump said the governor would lead his campaign in the state.
Haley, who was not present at Trump’s campaign event, is likely to face a crowded primary with more Republicans, including Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and former Vice President Mike Pence, expected to join the race.
During her interview on NBC, Haley was asked to explain her position on the country’s role in Russia’s war against Ukraine.
“The war in Ukraine and Russia is not about Ukraine; it’s about freedom — and it’s a war we have to win,” she said as the conflict approaches its one-year mark.
Haley cautioned, though, that the U.S. shouldn’t write “blank checks” to Kyiv, echoing a frequent talking point among House Republicans.
She said the U.S. should offer Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy the ammunition and equipment he needs to defend his country, but “not money.”