Nikki Haley blasts Trump for questioning her eligibility

Indian American Republican presidential contender Nikki Haley blasted rival front-runner Donald Trump for casting doubt on her eligibility to be president because she is the daughter of Indian immigrants.

She declined to say Sunday whether the former president’s such attacks on her were racist, but warned that his rhetoric is likely to get worse.

“I think that’s for everybody else to decide. I think, you know, the fact that he continues to go down these paths of saying things, you know, is this who we want as a president?” she said on NBC’s “Meet the Press” Sunday.

READ: Nikki Haley vows to fight on after New Hampshire defeat (January 24, 2024)

“Is this who we want our kids to see? I don’t think so. And, look, he’s just going to become more unhinged, … It’s going to get worse, because that’s what he does when he feels like he’s not in control,” Haley said.

Haley also told NBC she is committed to staying in the race through Super Tuesday and beyond “as long as I keep growing per state.”

However, Haley, the only remaining key challenger to former President Donald Trump, wouldn’t say whether she’d still be in the race by the time the party’s nominating convention rolls around in July.

“Yes or no, are you in this race through the convention, beyond Super Tuesday? Yes or no?,” Haley was asked.

READ: Nikki Haley calls Trump and Biden “equally bad” for the nation(January 22, 2024)

“As long as I keep growing per state, I am in this race,” Haley said. “I have every intention of going to Super Tuesday. Through Super Tuesday we’re going to keep on going and see where this gets us. That’s what we know we’re going to do right now. I take it one state at a time. I don’t think too far ahead.”

Super Tuesday, set for March 5 this year, will see more than a dozen states holding their primaries, including California and Texas, with roughly one third of the delegates.

But a number of populous states will hold their primaries after that date, including Florida, Illinois, Ohio, New York and Pennsylvania. The final presidential primaries will be June 4.

READ: Haley calls Trump ‘threatened’ and ‘insecure’ over ‘birther’ claims (January 19, 2024)

Haley earned 19% of the vote in Iowa caucuses, and managed to win roughly 43% in New Hampshire, but still fell short to Trump, who won the first-in-the-nation primary with close to 54% of the vote.

Though Nevada’s vote comes next for Republicans, both candidates have largely turned their attention to Haley’s home state of South Carolina, which will vote Feb 24.

Haley said Sunday she doesn’t need a win in South Carolina to keep her campaign alive. But she is gunning for a stronger performance than she had in New Hampshire.

“I need to show that I’m stronger in South Carolina than New Hampshire. Does that have to be a win? I don’t think that necessarily has to be a win,” Haley said. “But it certainly has to be better than what I did in New Hampshire, and it certainly has to be close.