Vivek Ramaswamy will not come anywhere close to winning the president in 2024. But he is sorely needed in the Republican Party.
While Ramaswamy shows his some immaturity, he more often shows savvy; particularly when he exposes the charlatans inside the Republican Party.
In this exchange during the debate, Ramaswamy conveys some deep thoughts. Much of what he says is considered political taboo. But he’s unafraid to say it. Charlie Kirk tweeted this telling moment:
One of the most noteworthy moments of the night when Vivek Ramaswamy attacks Nikki Haley:
"Nikki is corrupt. This is a woman who will send your kids to die so she can buy a bigger house."
pic.twitter.com/wNgme43DBX— Charlie Kirk (@charliekirk11) December 7, 2023
The host implied that Ramaswamy took a shot at Haley over her Christianity. However, Ramaswamy declined the bait. Instead, he said he questioned Haley’s authenticity.
And why not. After all, Haley said she wouldn’t run for the presidency if Trump ran. So she’s either a liar or a typical politician. Either way, that’s not good for the country.
Ramaswamy was correct in that Haley’s authenticity is the deeper issue. Because many people question her conservatism. She uses identity politics with the grace of a political ballerina. She’s particularly adept at using the “woman card”.
Ramaswamy complained that this nonsense has pushed America to the breaking point. Further, he chastised Republicans for playing the same game as the Leftists.
Then Ramaswamy using a classic debate tactic: use the opponent’s words (or actions) against her. In this case, Ramaswamy quoted Haley from a previous debate where she declared, “Only a woman can get this job done.”
How stupid is that statement.
It would be equally stupid to say, “Only a man can get this job done.” And no man would say it. Because they wouldn’t believe it. Just as Nikki Haley doesn’t believe her statement.
She hoped for a sound bite. But what of the ramifications of alienating 50 percent of your voter base? Moreover, nobody believes the statement; not even women.
What Haley did was succumb to a Leftist trope that allows man-bashing as a right of “woke” passage.
Also, Haley believes that as a woman she is off limits. I was overjoyed to see Ramaswamy go after Haley with the tenacity of an irritated killer bee. The look on her face was priceless, as she stood there, taking blow after blow from the political ingénue.
But Ramaswamy didn’t stop there. He called out Haley for her finances.
“I don’t have a woman problem,” Ramaswamy said. “You have a corruption problem and I think that that’s what people need to know. Nikki is corrupt.”
“This is a woman who will send your kids to die so she can buy a bigger house,” he added.
Vivek’s notes tonight ????#GOPDebate pic.twitter.com/Dtx4YE9Bmq
— Ryann McEnany (@RyannMcEnany) December 7, 2023
Haley, however, declined the opportunity for a rebuttal, saying “No. It’s not worth my time to respond to him.”
Perhaps not. But Ramaswamy has a point. Haley’s financial house was a disaster. According to Forbes:
Then 2024 presidential candidate Nikki Haley last served in office as the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, her family’s finances were a mess. Her parents owed over $1 million and were in danger of losing their Lexington, South Carolina home. A devoted daughter, Haley had loaned them hundreds of thousands of dollars in the past with her husband. But she could not solve all of her parents’ problems, with less than $100,000 sitting in her bank accounts and $185,000 coming in each year in salary.
Haley stunned Washington by resigning her role in the Trump administration in 2018, less than two years after taking office. A spokesperson for Haley claims that the family financial troubles had “no bearing whatsoever on Ambassador Haley’s decision to leave her position” and points to a section of Haley’s resignation letter in which she expressed support for “rotation in office.” But the same letter also suggested that Haley may have had money-making ventures on her mind: “As a businessman,” she wrote to Donald Trump, “I expect you will appreciate my sense that returning from government to the private sector is not a step down but a step up.”
I suggest reading the rest of the Forbes article to get an understanding of how Haley amassed millions. One irrefutable conclusion is that her tenure in the Trump administration certainly helped her stature. How does she repay the man who provided her with financial stability? She runs against him.
One other thing the Forbes article makes crystal clear: Haley is beholden to big money fat cats. Because despite improving her personal circumstances, Haley’s net worth is peanuts for a presidential candidate.
The final point Ramaswamy drove home is that politics is a blood sport.
He criticized Ronna McDaniel for her feckless leadership of the Republican Party, while driving home his final point.
He accused Haley of using identity politics more effectively than Kamala Harris. Then he said what all Americans should feel. Having two X-chromosomes doesn’t immunize one from criticism.
I didn’t watch the debate. But I read that pundits declared Nikki Haley the victor. Based on what people are talking about, I disagree. I believe Ramaswamy exposed Haley for what she really is. And it’s not conservative.
At one point, I wrote that Haley would make a fine VP.
Haley has a good record as a Conservative. She’s great on tax reform, and limiting taxes on cigarettes, for example.
Haley has been strong on legal immigration, and stands fast against illegal immigration.
Haley has stated that, as a daughter of immigrants, she believes the immigration laws should be enforced. Thus, she voted in favor of a law that requires employers to be able to prove that newly hired employees are legal residents of the United States. That law also requires all immigrants to carry documentation at all times proving that they are legally in the United States.
Haley signed an “Arizona-style” law cracking down on illegal immigration in June 2011. That law was challenged by Obama’s United States Justice Department on numerous grounds, such as claims the immigration law violates the Supremacy Clause.
In the article I pointed out more things. But here’s what I left out.
President Trump wants to usher in the era of a female president. And there is no woman I know more qualified to become that, than Nikki Haley.
This was true at the time. However, Haley sold out, as Ramaswamy so deftly proves every time they debate.
Haley hid the underlying Leftist feminist agenda. And Ramaswamy exposed it
Again, Ramaswamy is not presidential material today. But he’s on his way.
Trump should give him a position of authority in his second term. Ramaswamy is a flame-thrower, where things need to be set ablaze. The Republican Party needs people like him.
