Former U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Indian American Nikki Haley made a strong pitch for U.S. President Donald Trump on the first night of the Republican National Convention (RNC). Ms. Haley, considered a possible candidate for a 2024 presidential run, used her speech to address two core vulnerabilities for the GOP: an economy in distress due to COVID-19 and deep unrest in race relations around the killing of African Americans by police officers .
“… the President is the clear choice on jobs and the economy. He’s moved America forward, while Joe Biden held America back,” Ms. Haley said.
However, the Obama administration had inherited a recession and oversaw the first phase of what has become the longest period of growth in recent history (critics have argued that the recovery was shallow).
Ms. Haley spoke about her immigrant story and her record as Governor and sought to make a case for an alternative approach to resolving race issues in America.
‘Proud daughter of immigrants’
“America is not a racist country. This is personal for me. I am the proud daughter of Indian immigrants. They came to America and settled in a small southern town. My father wore a turban. My mother wore a sari. I was a brown girl in a black and white world,” she said. “We faced discrimination and hardship. But my parents never gave in to grievance and hate. My mom built a successful business. My dad taught 30 years at a historically black college. And the people of South Carolina chose me as their first minority and first female Governor,” Ms. Haley said, calling for America to build on progress made so far.
“That’s why it’s tragic to see so much of the Democratic Party turn a blind eye toward riots and rage. The American people know we can do better. And, of course, we know that every single black life is valuable,” she said.
Ms. Haley spoke about black policemen who had been shot in the line of duty, black business owners whose business have been burned and those who had been affected by the violence on the streets (a reference to the looting that had occurred after the killing of George Floyd ).
“Their lives matter too,” Ms. Haley said. Just on Sunday evening, a black man, Jacob Blake, was hospitalised in a critical condition after being shot in the back by police officers in Kenshoa, Wisconcin, in front of his three children. The incident has sparked nationwide protests and the national guard has been activated in Wisconcin.
In her speech, Ms. Haley appeared to play down a significant moment in her Gubernatorial career – when the Confederate flag (considered by many as a symbol of racism) was taken down following the murder of nine African Americans in a Church by a white supremacist.
“After that horrific tragedy, we didn’t turn against each other. We came together ... Together, we made the hard choices needed to heal – and removed a divisive symbol, peacefully and respectfully.” Significantly, Ms. Haley’s action as Governor is not consistent with Mr. Trump’s view of flying the Confederate flag. In June this year he said it was flown as a symbol of Southern pride not racism and he has repeatedly supported its being flown.
Criticises U.N.
Ms. Haley said it was the “honour of a lifetime to serve” as America’s U.N. ambassador but criticised the U.N. as a place that denounces America.
“Now, the U.N. is not for the faint of heart. It’s a place where dictators-murderers-&-thieves denounce America… and then put their hands out and demand that we pay their bills,” she said. Well, President Trump put an end to all that.”
Ms. Haley also emphasised a theme for the evening: portraying Mr. Trump as strong and Mr. Biden as weak.
“This President has a record of strength and success. The former Vice President has a record of weakness and failure. Joe Biden is good for Iran and ISIS… great for Communist China... and he’s a godsend to everyone who wants America to apologise, abstain, and abandon our values,” Ms. Haley said.
