South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley followed her response to President Obama’s final State of the Union address with criticism of multiple Republican presidential candidates. After implicitly attacking Donald Trump in the GOP’s formal response to Obama’s speech, Haley set her sights on Florida Sen. Marco Rubio and former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush.
“When I see something wrong, I say it,” Haley told reporters. “I have disagreements with other presidential candidates. Jeb Bush passed Common Core and Marco Rubio believes in amnesty, which I don’t. There’s lots of things. But I will say tone matters, message matters, and responsibility matters.”
Haley said the Republican Party needs to be responsible in its message going forward and punted on an opportunity to criticize Ted Cruz when asked if the Texas senator is one of the angriest voices out there.
The South Carolina governor’s willingness to criticize Rubio on immigration comes as no surprise, given her past statements and reported animosity for Rubio staffers who worked against her in the past. Haley appears poised to be a contender to serve as the GOP’s next vice presidential nominee, which has become a hot topic of discussion in recent months. The Republicans’ Palmetto State primary will take place on February 20.
