Trump slams Nikki Haley in victory speech: 'If we don't win, our country is done for'
Despite having a clear lead in the second Republican primary race, Trump dedicated much of his speech to criticizing Haley, the former U.S. ambassador to the UN. He expressed dissatisfaction with her decision to continue competing despite failing to secure sufficient votes.
2:36 AM EST, January 24, 2024
During his speech, Trump stated, "I could've simply thanked everyone for the win, but instead, I feel obligated to question: 'Who the imposter was that took the stage before me and nearly claimed victory?'".
The former president expressed dissatisfaction with Haley's speech, which acknowledged his victory but failed to declare her withdrawal from the race, contrary to commentators' expectations. Trump pointed out that another of his opponents, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, had decided to withdraw from the race before the New Hampshire primary despite achieving better results than Haley in the first primary race in Iowa.
"Ron was second place and resigned, while she came in third and is still stubbornly hanging around," said Trump, but added that he is not overly angered. "I don't get mad. I settle scores," he declared. He suggested that if Haley won, she could become the target of an investigation over "minor issues that she doesn't want to discuss".
Trump leads U.S. elections
Trump also gave the floor to his former opponent, Vivek Ramaswamy, who argued that Haley's policies place America last, referring to her support for increased assistance to Ukraine. "If you want your pension cut and to pay more money for Ukraine so a kleptocrat can buy a new house - vote for Nikki Haley," he commented.
The former president also accused current President Biden and his administration of hating America and wanting to destroy it. He reiterated his belief that he was the rightful winner of the 2020 presidential election. "Are these people naive? I don't think so. No one can lie convincingly unless they are intelligent. Do they hate our country? They must hate our country," he said. Following this, he asserted that there was no alternative to winning the election. "If we don't win, our country is done for," he concluded.
After counting results from approximately 60 percent of the polling stations, Trump led over Haley with 54 to 45 percent of the vote. The Associated Press and other results analysis centers announced Trump as the winner shortly after voting ended, and Haley conceded her defeat soon after. Given its large number of moderate and independent voters, this state was considered the most viable chance for Haley to outperform Trump.
