Nikki Haley: If charges are true, Trump was reckless with national security
2024 presidential candidate Nikki Haley sounds off on the indictment on 'The Story.'
Republican presidential candidate Nikki Haley said if the charges in the indictment against former President Donald Trump are true, he was "reckless" with the nation's national security.
Haley said her husband, Maj. Michael Haley, is about to deploy to Africa with the Army National Guard, so the indictment hits home somewhat.
"If this indictment is true, if what it says is actually the case, President Trump was incredibly reckless with our national security," she said Monday on "The Story."
"More than that, I'm a military spouse: My husband's about to deploy this weekend. This puts all of our military men and women in danger."
TRUMP INDICTMENT RIDICULED BY EX-REAGAN DOJ OFFICIAL, CITING JACK SMITH'S FAILURES IN MCDONNELL CASE
One allegation in the indictment is that Trump was heard on a 2021 recording at his Somerset County, New Jersey, golf club acknowledging he retained a classified document from the Pentagon about a potential attack on a foreign country.
Former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley (AP Photo/Charles Krupa)
Haley said that if the allegations are true, the former president should have known better.
"If you are going to talk about what our military is capable of or how we would go about invading or doing something with one of our enemies… it's reckless, it's frustrating, and it causes problems," she said.
Still, the former U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, who is facing off against front-runner Trump and eight other Republican candidates, said that while she worked for his administration he seemed to always be under attack.
Former President Donald Trump (Suzanne Cordeiro/AFP via Getty Images)
"When I was at the UN, I saw that the president never got an ounce of credit or a moment's peace. I also had to deal with the Russiagate because that's what they were swirling around all the time. And we saw that that was not a fact," Haley said.
"Two things can be true at the same time. One, the DOJ and FBI have lost all credibility with the American people. And getting rid of just senior management isn't going to be enough to fix this. This is going to take a complete overhaul."
Haley noted Trump may also face future indictments, including from Fulton County, Georgia, Democratic District Attorney Fani Willis, relating to allegations he pressured Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger to locate enough votes to win him the state in 2020.
Haley said Republicans must also be sure to nominate someone able to win a general election, saying President Biden and his potential successor, Vice President Kamala Harris, cannot be afforded another term.
"Welcome to the shadow campaign that is a future president, Kamala Harris: That is what they are trying to do," she said, commenting that Democrats do not want Biden in a debate with opponents like Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. because he would falter badly.
"This is really about Kamala Harris. This is really about the Democrats making sure that Kamala Harris is the presidential nominee for the Democrat side. And I think we're going to continue to see it go in that direction."