Nikki Haley urges Trump to 'quit whining' about Harris and focus on policy-based attacking strategy

WASHINGTON, DC: Former UN Ambassador Nikki Haley, a centrist challenger to Donald Trump in this year's Republican primary, is calling out the former president for his relentless attacks on Vice President Kamala Harris.

In a recent Fox News interview, Haley told Bret Baier that Trump should “quit whining” about Harris and shift his focus to real issues, arguing that “she’s not going to give an interview” in response to his constant hectoring.

“The one thing Republicans have to stop doing: Quit whining about her. We knew it was going to be her. She’s not going to give an interview. They’re going to hold out as long as they can. That’s their right,” Haley said on Fox News’ 'Special Report' Tuesday, August 13.

“That doesn’t mean we can’t talk about what she believes in. And we should be getting out there and doing that.”

Haley also criticized Trump’s campaign strategy, emphasizing that “the campaign is not going to win talking about crowd sizes, it’s not going to win talking about what race Kamala Harris is, it’s not going to win talking about whether she’s dumb. You can’t win on those things. The American people are smart — treat them like they’re smart.”

Haley calls for Trump to critique Harris' record on key issues

Calling for a more issue-focused approach, Nikki Haley urged Donald Trump to set aside his history of name-calling, including mocking her as “Birdbrain” and focus on substantive policy critiques. “I take her at her word that she wants to ban fracking and kill a bunch of US jobs,” Haley said. 

“The target issues are the economy; the fact that Kamala wants to raise taxes; the fact that she’s taking money from those that didn’t go to college and has given it to those that did; the fact that when Afghanistan fell; the fact that when they lifted sanctions on Iran; the fact that when they, you know, actually said that they would help Israel and then pulled back. Where was Kamala when that happened? She was sitting right next to Joe Biden in the Situation Room.”

Haley, who also served as South Carolina’s governor, emphasized the need for Trump’s campaign to focus on Harris’s policy record rather than her public appearances.

“She’s not going to give an interview. They’re going to hold out as long as they can. That’s their right,” she reiterated. “That doesn’t mean we can’t talk about what she believes in. And we should be getting out there and doing that.”

Vance links Harris and Biden to economic woes

Donald Trump's running mate JD Vance took the opportunity during a speech in Michigan on Wednesday to criticize several of Kamala Harris’ policies, tying her record to President Joe Biden’s time in office and pointing out their shared failures regarding the economy and the southern border.

“Kamala Harris raised the price of American energy and Michigan suffered,” Vance said. “Good American jobs suffered.”

The GOP vice presidential nominee also reaffirmed to reporters that both he and Trump are focusing their attacks on Harris' policies.

“If you listen to what Donald J Trump says, if you look at what I say, we are prosecuting the case against Kamala Harris on policy,” Vance stated.

“We’re reminding people that Donald Trump delivered peace and prosperity, and Kamala Harris has delivered war all over the world and unaffordable groceries and housing here at home.”