FIRST ON FOX: Former U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley is teasing an expected announcement of a 2024 White House bid next week in a new video being released Wednesday — which highlights her past as a fighter at the U.N. and in South Carolina, and hints at new battles against President Biden.
“Where will you stand?” asks the video, obtained by Fox News Digital, with a date of 2/15/23, which is when Haley is expected to announce a presidential run.
The teaser begins with former U.N. Ambassador Jean Kirkpatrick’s famous speech to the Republican National Convention in 1984 in which the Reagan-era diplomat said San Francisco Democrats “always blame America first.”
“The American people know better.”
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Nikki Haley, former ambassador to the United Nations, during the Republican Jewish Coalition (RJC) Annual Leadership Meeting in Las Vegas, Nevada, US, on Saturday, Nov. 19, 2022. (Ronda Churchill/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
Haley is the daughter of immigrants from India who grew up to become South Carolina’s first female governor, and the youngest governor in the country, before going on to serve as U.N. ambassador under the Trump administration.
The video nods toward ongoing issues affecting the U.S. today that Haley has been outspoken on, including the border crisis, Iranian nuclear ambitions, foreign policies threats from China and Russia — and the power of Big Tech. Narrated over those images is the poem “No Enemies” by Victorian Scottish poet Charles Mackay. The verse takes aim at those who brag about never having made enemies.
“If you have none, small is the work that you have done. You’ve hit no traitor on the hip, You’ve dashed no cup from perjured lip, You’ve never turned the wrong to right,” the poem says. “You’ve been a coward in the fight.”
The poem is reported to have been a favorite of Margaret Thatcher — Britain’s first female prime minister whose battles included hard-left labor unions and foreign aggressors, and who is believed to have kept the poem in a scrapbook. Haley has repeatedly cited Thatcher, nicknamed “The Iron Lady,” as a source of inspiration.
Haley has not yet announced that she is running for the White House, but last week said there was going to be a “big announcement” on Feb. 15. Multiple sources have told Fox News Digital that she will announce a presidential bid, making her the second Republican to do so after former President Donald Trump announced last year.
“My family and I have a big announcement to share with you on February 15th!” Haley tweeted. “And yes, it’s definitely going to be a Great Day in South Carolina!”
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Haley will likely tout her record as a job creator and leader during two terms as governor of South Carolina. Meanwhile, her time at the U.N. saw a number of key battles on the international stage — in which she secured sanctions on North Korea, lead the withdrawal of the U.S. from the Human Rights Council, defended Israel, and was a key figure in ramping up pressure on the Iran regime over its nuclear ambitions.
The video cites some of her previous remarks, in which she called America “the greatest force for good in human history, and we should never be ashamed to say that.” In another, she says that she wears heels because if she sees something wrong “we’re going to kick ‘em every time.”
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Since leaving office, she has advocated for a strong foreign policy, continued warning of creeping socialism in the U.S., and as a daughter of immigrants has pushed back against claims from the left that America is a racist country.
Haley has long been eyed as a potential GOP presidential contender, as she traveled the country the past two years through her political group Stand for America, helping fellow Republicans running in the 2022 elections.
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Haley’s travels brought her numerous times to Iowa, New Hampshire, and Nevada, which hold the first, second and fourth contests in the Republican presidential nominating calendar. Haley’s home state of South Carolina votes third in the GOP primary schedule.
It remains to be seen who else will throw their hats into the ring. Among the other top Republicans who appear to be moving towards launching bids are Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, former Vice President Mike Pence, former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, and former two-term Govs. Larry Hogan of Maryland and Asa Hutchinson of Arkansas.
Fox News’ Paul Steinhauser contributed to this report.
