Nikki Haley Is Officially Running for President Against Trump

The former South Carolina governor and U.N. ambassador knows a thing or two about small business–after all, her parents were once small-business owners

Former South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley announced on Tuesday that she is joining the presidential race, marking her official run against her old boss, former President Donald Trump, INC reported.

Haley, who is a member of the Republican party and was the ambassador to the United Nations during the Trump Administration, has a small-business background. Her family once owned a retail business in South Carolina called Exotica International, which sold apparel, among other items, and eventually expanded to a 10,000-square-foot facility. The company closed its doors in 2008 when Haley’s parents retired.

During her first term as South Carolina’s governor, Haley cut taxes for small businesses, grew the local economy, and saw unemployment numbers dip.

“There’s no doubt that Nikki Haley has been business-friendly,” says Kent Syler, a professor of political science and public policy at Middle Tennessee State University.

But some critics–such as the American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations, a Washington, D.C.-based firm for unions–have pointed out that many jobs that are a byproduct of Haley’s policies during her governorship paid below $15 per hour.

Still, during her reelection bid, she received an endorsement from the National Federation of Independent Business, a Nashville-based business advocacy group. The NFIB praised Haley for slashing taxes for small businesses and for reversing the financial strain enveloping the state’s unemployment system, which at one point was nearly bankrupt.

During the earlier stages of the pandemic, Haley publicly praised Congress for getting aid to small businesses through the Paycheck Protection Program. But by June 2020, she was encouraging Congress to exercise more caution. In a tweet at the time, she wrote: “It’s important that Congress not pass another relief package that isn’t tailored to the people who need the most help. Nothing is free, this money will have to be paid back.”

Some entrepreneurs even outside of South Carolina are already warming to her candidacy. Take Brad Anderson, the founder of the Denver-based internet marketing company Fruition, which was listed at No. 3,154 on the 2015 Inc. 5000.

“Nikki Haley understands that if small businesses are doing well, they hire more people, which in turn increases spending, and the economy overall improves,” Anderson wrote in an e-mail to Inc. “Nikki Haley is someone I could support as a small business owner.”

Anderson is hopeful Haley’s enthusiasm will ensure small businesses stay top of mind during the upcoming presidential campaign. It may also suggest the primaries will get crowded–and heated, as Haley once vowed to not run against her former boss.

The decision to throw her hat into the ring this early indicates it could be a more contentious race for the Republican presidential ticket than expected, Syler says. “Nikki Haley getting out there this early is somewhat surprising and signals that Republican candidates aren’t going to fear Donald Trump as they did in 2020,” he explains, adding that “there’s going to be a lot more competition.”

Source: https://balkantimes.press/en/nikki-haley-is-officially-running-for-president-against-trump/