Don Jr. Talks About: Nord Stream, Haley & Trump’s VP Pick

Paresh Jadhav

Stream

Former United Nations Ambassador Nikki Haley is gearing up for what could be an intense Republican primary contest in her home state of South Carolina, having already been criticized by Donald Trump and other members for her foreign policy views.

Voters have begun encouraging Haley to withdraw from the race following Trump’s comments about her husband being deployed overseas with the military.

Don Jr. Talks Nord Stream

Donald Trump and his opponents in both Europe and North America have found an unlikely common ground to oppose Nord Stream 2, a pipeline project which would carry Russian natural gas beneath the Baltic Sea to northern Germany. Yet this opposition may prove misguided for multiple reasons.

First, Nord Stream 2 pits Germany against its neighbors: Poland and Lithuania both receive substantial transit fees from Russia for gas supplies, so both have voiced opposition to Nord Stream 2, fearing it could reduce revenues they receive as transit fees from Moscow.

Ukraine, which relies heavily on Russia for natural gas supplies and stands to lose billions annually in pipeline transit fees from Nord Stream 2 (and other similar Russian projects), has strongly opposed the project.

Haley 3rd Party Run

Trump’s campaign team hopes that former Ambassador Rehn may give him an extra push toward victory and gain him momentum for their fight for the Republican nomination.

At stake in Saturday’s South Carolina primary is how many Republican delegates she can secure for the runoff election. This contest features many different Republican factions: evangelical and social conservative voters; anti-tax Tea Party activists; national security hawks and business traditionalists.

Haley seeks to appeal to these groups with her blend of domestic policy ideas and tough foreign policy talk, while criticizing Trump for cozying up to dictators like North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and Chinese President Xi Jinping.

Polls indicate she faces an uphill struggle against Trump, who holds an overwhelming lead in Iowa and New Hampshire – two states which vote before South Carolina – with many potential voters raising concerns that she could be too closely aligned to “establishment” figures and could potentially become divisive within her party.

Stream

Trump VP Pick

As she works to secure the Republican nomination, Haley is facing stiff opposition from Trumpworld allies; yet she insists that her real battle will be against Democrats this fall and not with Trump himself.

Her journey toward nomination remains challenging; in recent polls she trails Donald Trump by more than 30 points in South Carolina alone and struggles in other early primary states.

But she is working to strengthen her support. On Sunday, she unveiled plans to pardon participants in the Jan. 6 Capitol attack and its subsequent uprising – sparking interest among an audience member who served time for participating in it.

She continues to tout her credentials as a foreign policy expert, with strong support among Republicans opposed to intervention overseas and voters wary of involvement overseas proving pivotal for her in her veepstakes bid. Trump has confirmed several top party figures on his shortlist – Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R), Tim Scott (R-SC), Vivek Ramaswamy, Byron Donalds (R-FL) South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem as well as former Hawaii Rep Tulsi Gabbard (who served under Democratic views but later adopted conservative positions).

South Carolina

South Carolina’s Republican primary has consistently awarded its winner with the nomination since 1980, making this contest one of the most pivotal in Nikki Haley’s efforts to unseat Donald Trump. While she enjoys support among most conservatives in her home state, she may struggle to convince those who no longer support Trump and therefore may see no reason why they should vote for Haley as vice president.

At a campaign event in Mount Pleasant, with an overflow crowd spilling out into back hallways and watching on a video monitor, Haley tried to convince attendees she is best equipped to run against President Donald Trump in 2024. She focused on her national security credentials while touting her business background; appealing to voters from across the GOP spectrum; yet there remained an unsettled feeling; some committed hawks worried she may be too soft on Russia and China.


Leave a Comment