South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem swiped at Nikki Haley on Twitter as President Trump’s imminent exit from the White House accelerates political positioning for the 2024 Republican primary.
In a Saturday tweet, Haley highlighted a food pantry for needy children run by a Christian charity in a small community north of Dallas. The pantry operates on the campus of the local high school and was set up like a grocery store. Students “pay” for food with points assigned according to the size of their families — an effort to eliminate the stigma that sometimes discourages the poor from seeking help.
Haley’s focus on that innovative aspect of the pantry prompted a response from Noem. She retweeted the post by the former ambassador to the United Nations on Sunday with a quote from the late conservative economist Milton Friedman: “There is no such thing as a free lunch.” Haley and Noem are considered potential Republican presidential contenders for 2024. Representatives for both women declined to comment.
https://t.co/E2om4mZsw6 pic.twitter.com/pl40f69YCK
— Governor Kristi Noem (@govkristinoem) January 17, 2021
Haley, who turns 49 on Inauguration Day, and Noem, 49, tend to share conservative sensibilities on domestic issues. But they delivered opposing messages earlier this month at the Republican National Committee winter meeting in Amelia Island, Florida.
During a luncheon to RNC members, the governor did not criticize Trump for his behavior in the aftermath of the Nov. 3 election that some Republicans blame for the loss of two Senate seats in Georgia and the siege of the Capitol by his grassroots supporters. Haley, who is generally supportive of Trump, said he bared responsibility for both during an evening keynote speech.
Noem’s criticism of Haley might appear antagonistic to some — in that she was promoting the work of a religious charity as opposed to lauding a government program funded by taxpayers.
Haley’s political nonprofit organization, Stand For America, a group she launched as the precursor to a possible White House bid, sends a weekly email to supporters discussing various domestic policy issues. Included in that is usually a feel-good story referred to as “what we’re smiling about.” The topic in that category last week was an NBC News article about the Texas food pantry, which precipitated the former ambassador’s tweet.
It might have caught Haley’s eye because she serves on the board of a charity she founded to provide educational opportunities to needy children in South Carolina, where she served as governor before Trump tapped her for the U.N. Meanwhile, Noem in the past year emerged as a conservative folk hero and sought-after campaign surrogate for refusing to order economic lockdowns and mask mandates in South Dakota in response to the coronavirus pandemic.
