Ahead of Super Tuesday’s results, Republican strategist Sarah Logwell said Republican presidential hopeful Nikki Haley could do “real damage” to Donald Trump if she withholds her endorsement of him.
Voters in 16 states and one U.S. territory are heading to the polls to make their decision in the Democratic and Republican presidential primaries on Tuesday, as President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump aim to solidify their leads.
Additionally, Haley, Trump’s only serious challenger left in the Republican race, is aiming to make headway Tuesday following her first primary win of the season on Sunday in Washington, D.C. However, polls suggest that Trump could see substantial victories in all 16 GOP primary races on Super Tuesday, with some surveys suggesting he could receive about three-quarters of the votes in some states.
In an interview with CNN on Tuesday, Longwell discussed the possibility that Haley will drop out of the race following Tuesday’s results, adding that if she drops out and continues to withhold her endorsement of Trump, it could do “real damage” to him.
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Longwell said that withholding the endorsement provides a “permission structure” to allow criticism of Trump to stand and impact voter decisions.
“I do think she is going to drop out after this and my whole-hearted hope is that she does not endorse Donald Trump because that would build a permission structure for all the Republicans she has been talking to who really like her and has been making the case about how unfit he is,” Longwell said. “If she withholds her endorsement, her criticisms against Trump stand and they do real damage to him.”
Newsweek has reached out to Haley’s and Trump’s campaign via email for comment.
Haley has ramped up her criticism of Trump in recent weeks leading up to Super Tuesday, calling him unfit for the office and predicting that he will lose the general election to Biden.
Longwell’s comments came after Haley said she no longer feels bound by a pledge to the Republican National Committee (RNC) that she would support the GOP presidential nominee.
In order to participate in primary debates hosted by the RNC last fall, every candidate signed a pledge to support the eventual Republican nominee.
In an interview with NBC News on Sunday, Haley was pressed by host Kristen Welker if she felt obligated by the pledge. In response, Haley seemed to dodge the question but suggested she did not.
“No, I think I’ll make what decision I want to make, but that’s not something I’m thinking about….When you all ask Donald Trump if he would support me, then I will talk about that,” Haley said.
Meanwhile, despite facing calls to drop out of the race, Haley has vowed to stay in it. Last week, Trump took to Truth Social to taunt Haley’s efforts, adding that she will do worse on Super Tuesday.
“Haley got trounced last night, losing the Great State of Michigan by over 42 Points,” Trump wrote. “Looking forward to Super Tuesday where she is doing even worse, if that’s possible. I’m leading every State by over 60 Points! People don’t like her, and they know, as per the polls, that she can’t beat Biden, or any Democrat!”
Uncommon Knowledge
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Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.