Nikki Haley is seizing on heightened suspicion of China inside the Republican Party to assemble an army of grassroots supporters, marking another key expansion of her political footprint in anticipation of a 2024 presidential bid.
Haley is asking people to sign a petition urging Congress to get tough with “communist China” amid rising criticism of Beijing’s questionable handling of the coronavirus in the weeks after the virus emerged in Wuhan. The issue aligns with a hawkish foreign policy Haley promoted at the United Nations, and since leaving President Trump’s cabinet, she has emphasized confronting China’s authoritarian regime.
Republican voters are increasingly anxious about China’s intentions and global influence. Haley’s petition is unlikely to be the factor that pushes Congress to crack down on Beijing. But as the pandemic persists and its devastating impact on public health and the economy unfolds, the exercise allows Haley to elevate her profile on a critical national security issue and steadily build a list of supporters that the former South Carolina governor could tap to fuel a presidential campaign.
“What are you going to do with a petition? The reality is, she’s building a list,” said Ed Rollins, a veteran Republican strategist who runs a pro-Trump super PAC.
Stand for America, a political nonprofit group formed by Haley after departing as Trump’s first U.N. ambassador, is hosting the petition. It makes five demands: Investigate China’s role in “covering up” the coronavirus outbreak; strengthen U.S. support for Taiwan; treat Beijing like a wealthy nation when calculating dues owed to international organizations such as the U.N.; end China’s dominance over the manufacturing supply chain; and force universities to disclose funding for academic programs that emanate from the Asian power.
According to Stand for America’s website, nearly 300,000 people had signed the petition as of Wednesday afternoon. A traditional tool of the trade for accumulating the names and contact information of potential supporters, Haley over time could use her list to raise money, enlist volunteers for a campaign, or aid Republicans who need access to grassroots conservatives.
“It’s a good way to generate a list for use later on and to build upon her international policy chops,” David Carney, a Republican consultant in New Hampshire, said of the petition strategy.
This was not Stand for America’s first petition. Last year, the group gathered names to pressure Congress to approve legislation promoting human rights in Hong Kong, which has had its freedoms threatened by the Chinese government. Chaney Denton, a spokeswoman for Haley’s organization, said the ambassador’s goal is to influence lawmakers by increasing grassroots support for her agenda.
“The goal of Stand For America is to educate about domestic and foreign policy,” Denton told the Washington Examiner. “If by spreading this information we add more members, that means it’s working. We will continue to mobilize concerned Americans on behalf of policies that keep America strong at home and abroad.”
Jockeying for the 2024 Republican presidential primary has started early for a number of possible contenders. Some have run ads in Iowa, and others have campaigned for GOP congressional candidates in New Hampshire and Wisconsin — with still others quietly reaching out to party power players to establish relationships and gauge interest in supporting a future bid.
Haley began making subtle moves last year with the launch of her political nonprofit organization. This year, she lured respected conservative operative Tim Chapman from Heritage Action, affiliated with the Heritage Foundation, to take over as executive director of the group. In March, Haley resigned from the board of Boeing, citing opposition to the aerospace manufacturer accessing federal rescue funds appropriated to keep essential industries afloat during the pandemic. The company ultimately declined the money.
Warning about the risks to U.S. security posed by China is consistent with Haley’s agenda and fits with the image she has cut as a Republican who advocates for American global leadership. But in using fresh worries about Beijing among Republican voters, Haley is able to maintain her alliance with Trump, with whom she gets along but does not always agree, and deepen her connection to the GOP base.
“Republican sentiment has solidified as aggressive on China, and we’re finding ‘get tough on China’ messages work in primaries we’ve polled over the past months or so,” said Chris Wilson, a Republican pollster who advised Texas Sen. Ted Cruz’s presidential campaign in 2016.
In a national poll conducted by Suffolk University for USA Today at the end of April, 83% of self-identified Republicans said they believed China initially hid the coronavirus from other nations, exacerbating the pandemic.
