Trump Launches Xenophobic Attack On Haley (His Former UN Ambassador)

Despite frequent claims on the right, Nikki Haley did not change her name for politics. Nikki (Punjabi for “little one”) was her middle name at birth and the name she was always called growing up. Haley is her married name.

But it was only a matter of time before Trump dragged some part of Nimarata Randhawa–Haley’s birth name–into the primary season. Trump sycophant Vivek Ramaswamy already did this in an effort to mock Haley and gain favor with Trump supporters.

Trump may have originally been relaxed, and even encouraging about Haley’s run, but now that Haley and Trump are in a tie heading into New Hampshire, both of their comments are getting a little harsher. In her last Iowa debate performance, Haley said, "Just because President Trump says something doesn't make it true.” That might be the mildest possible criticism, but it’s still seen as high heresy in some Republican circles.

Trump naturally responded by calling Haley “wacked out” (again, spelling is not his thing), a “birdbrain,” and reminding everyone that she is other, other, other. Seeing that New Hampshire, like Iowa, is whiter than a bottle of bleach spilled on snow, that may seem like a good bet. But Trump’s unleashing his birtherism also harkens back to some of his most noteworthy moments of public ridicule.

As recently as December, Trump was reportedly checking out Haley as a potential vice president. That might seem to conflict with Trump putting up a social media post saying she was ineligible. It might also be a bit uncomfortable to have Haley on the ticket when Trump has promised to end birthright citizenship.

But in a pinch, both of them could probably make this work. Of course, this is only possible if Haley survives the worst thing Trump could throw at her.