Nikki Haley Said This While Defending Her Controversial Statement About The Civil War And Slavery

Nikki Haley is still managing the fallout from her earlier omission of slavery while addressing the causes of the Civil War. As part of her defense on Thursday, she justified her response by stating, "I had Black friends while growing up," according to the reports by Mediaite. Last month, during a town hall event in New Hampshire, an attendee asked the former South Carolina governor about the reasons behind the Civil War, and she notably omitted any reference to slavery in her response. Following significant criticism, she admitted her mistake and conceded that omitting this crucial historical fact was an error in her initial answer.

Recently, CNN anchor Erin Burnett directed a question to Hale about her previous gaffe. She said, “Chris Christie, though, said you came out and gave that answer not because you’re in his words ‘dumb or racist,’ but because you’re unwilling to offend anyone by telling the truth. What do you say to that?" At a town hall event hosted by CNN, Haley responded to the question by drawing from her background of growing up in the southern United States within an Indian family. “If you grow up in South Carolina, literally in second and third grade, you learn about slavery. You grow up and you have, you know, I had Black friends growing up. It is a very talked-about thing," Haley said, as reported by Washington Post.

"We have a big history in South Carolina, when it comes to, you know, slavery, when it comes to all the things that happened with the Civil War, all of that," she continued. Haley further added, "It was not just slavery that was talked about, it was more about racism that was talked about. We had Black friends, we had White friends, but it was always a topic of conversation." Moreover, as reported by The Daily Beast, she explained the process that led her to reach that particular conclusion.

Haley said, “I was thinking past slavery, and talking about the lesson that we would learn going forward. I shouldn’t have done that. I should have said slavery but, in my mind, that’s a given that everybody associates the Civil War with slavery.” As reported by the New Republic, she expressed that in South Carolina, half of the population viewed the Confederate flag as a symbol of heritage and tradition, while the other half associated it with slavery and hate. "My job wasn’t to judge either side,” Haley continued, highlighting that a leader does not determine what is correct.

Recent polling data implies that Haley might pose a formidable challenge to the former President's pursuit of the White House. Her remarks during the town hall, including the possibility of pardoning Donald Trump, stirred attention. Simultaneously, Ron DeSantis, in Iowa's town halls on Thursday, accused the president of supporting abortion rights. Though both Haley and DeSantis are seen as significant challengers to Trump in the Republican primary, they remain underdogs. However, Haley's campaign has been gaining momentum in recent weeks, according to the Daily Mail's report.