Former U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley said Wednesday that the Democratic presidential debate in South Carolina revealed that President Trump was more than ready to face any progressive challenger in 2020.
Ms. Haley kicked off the American Conservative Union’s Conservative Political Action Conference in suburban D.C. by asking hundreds of attendees that arrived early if they were ready for the 2020 election. Several attendees of the ticketed event responded by shouting that they were ready for 2024 instead — when Ms. Haley may mount a White House bid of her own.
Ms. Haley did not directly respond to calls for her own presidential campaign but lavished praise on President Trump and roasted his Democratic opponents.
“You know what [Democrats] have forgotten? They’ve forgotten what I learned at the United Nations, which was every socialist country that we ever came in contact with wanted to be in America,” Ms. Haley said. “They wanted what we had: They wanted freedom of religion, they wanted freedom of speech, they wanted freedom.”
Ms. Haley said capitalism was the best force for prosperity and credited Mr. Trump for America’s economic success.
“President Trump brought capitalism back,” Ms. Haley said.
Mr. Trump will speak Saturday at CPAC, and organizers said they expect more than 10,000 attendees to participate in this year’s conference. CPAC organizers did not have an estimate of the ticketed-only reception for Ms. Haley.
• Ryan Lovelace can be reached at rlovelace@washingtontimes.com.
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