Haley Campaign Press Release - Nikki Haley is the Establishment's Worst Nightmare

By: Ralph Norman
Online here

Donald Trump likes to say he will "drain the swamp." That was a winning message in 2016, when he was the quintessential outsider. Fast forward eight years … and the outsider has become the insider.

When Trump left the White House, the D.C. swamp was alive and growing — just like our country's federal debt, which grew by a stunning $8 trillion under Trump. Now, the same people Trump once rejected — the political class in D.C. — are flocking to him in a show of establishment support.

If Republican primary voters want someone who will truly shake up Washington, they have a better choice.

In South Carolina politics, no one has been more anti-establishment than Nikki Haley. She has been a thorn in the side of the establishment from the moment she decided to challenge the longest-serving state representative in the Legislature.

In 2004, challenges to entrenched incumbents were uncommon, and Haley's primary opponent was a 30-year incumbent of the S.C. House. How dare she challenge him?

She dared, and she won.

Some candidates go to Columbia and quickly become one of the crowd. Not Haley. When she realized South Carolina's Legislature didn't take recorded votes on every bill, she changed things.

When elected politicians tried hiding their votes from the people who pay their salaries, Haley launched a campaign to put legislative votes on the record. Republican leadership didn't like it, and when she refused to back down, they punished her by stripping away her leadership position on key committees.

Haley took her case to the people of South Carolina.

In May 2009, Haley launched her gubernatorial campaign on this issue. She ran against better-known and better-funded candidates. She was too conservative, too ambitious, too young. How dare she challenge South Carolina's established political order?

She dared, and she won.

One of Haley's first acts as governor was to sign the transparency legislation she pushed for as a legislator, declaring, "This is about accountability in South Carolina … because elected officials work for the people and not the other way around."

During her six years as governor, Haley fought both Democrats and Republicans on behalf of taxpayers.

When the establishment fought for a gas tax increase, she killed it. When legislators voted for higher spending, she published legislative report cards on her Facebook page and called them out. She vetoed $459 million in wasteful spending. And she pushed the Legislature to pass much-needed ethics reform.

Haley took her characteristic toughness to the United Nations and the U.S. State Department — two institutions that are allergic to change and disruption. She not only took on America's enemies, she took on the foreign policy establishment at the State Department that wanted to maintain the status quo at all costs. How dare an outsider like Haley rock the boat?

She dared, and she won.

Today, as a presidential candidate, she stands in stark contrast to Donald Trump, who rubber-stamped massive increases in federal spending. She regularly criticizes both Democrats and Republicans for the runaway spending that led to the highest inflation in 40 years. She has repeatedly criticized the D.C. bailouts — from the bank bailouts to the COVID bailouts. She routinely calls for term limits and mental competency tests for politicians as well as term limits for federal bureaucrats.

Nikki Haley is the anti-establishment candidate taking on the D.C. insiders who have rallied around Donald Trump. She is the candidate who will take on both Democrats and Republicans. She will always put the American people first. After all, she's been doing it since she toppled a 30-year incumbent Republican years ago.

Ralph Norman represents South Carolina's 5th Congressional District.