Nikki Haley doesn’t have a prayer to become the next President of the United States, although she is a viable VP candidate for sure.

I’ve always had a generally positive impression of her. She is smart, was a good governor, and one of the most reliable and well-spoken of the Trump appointees.

With that said, I was pretty stunned by her cheap shot at Ron DeSantis. I am pretty sure that it will alienate quite a number of people, although to me it’s pretty clear that Republican voters are not the intended recipients of her message.

Hey @Disney, my home state will happily accept your 70,000+ jobs if you want to leave Florida.

We’ve got great weather, great people, and it’s always a great day in South Carolina!

SC’s not woke, but we’re not sanctimonious about it either. pic.twitter.com/uf1PWQjGc5

— Nikki Haley (@NikkiHaley) April 26, 2023

Looking at the language of the tweet her message is clear: she is on board with the ‘Ron DeSanctimonious” slam on the governor of Florida.

For primary voters, outside the bedwetters in the donor class, the battle with Disney is a net plus for DeSantis, and Haley must know that. A Reuters/Ipsos poll came out today telling us as much. Democrats hate the battle with Disney–unsurprisingly–but Republicans overwhelmingly approve of Governor DeSantis’ battle with the Mouse.

Americans are divided along party lines on teaching about sexual orientation or gender identity in schools, with three-quarters of Republicans opposed to it and a similar proportion of Democrats in favor. Independents were evenly divided in the Reuters/Ipsos poll.

Polling shows DeSantis trailing former President Donald Trump among Republican voters.

DeSantis has argued that his actions against Disney were rightfully rolling back special treatment for the company. Some 64% of Republicans in the Reuters/Ipsos poll agreed, with 37% of them siding with the vast majority of Democrats, who said DeSantis was punishing Disney for exercising free speech. Independents also leaned toward viewing DeSantis’ actions as punitive.

With numbers like those it is risky to bet against DeSantis’ move. Were she still Governor of South Carolina it would play well because Disney jobs would be welcome, but it is not appealing to national Republican primary voters.

So clearly the message was not meant for them. It was meant for Trump.

Looking at Haley as a possible running mate for Trump puts a whole different spin on her chances. She would actually be a good choice for Trump. She is smart, good-looking, articulate, conservative, and appeals to moderates. She would be a great fit. Not sure it would help Trump much, given that precisely 0% of people would change their votes based on his VP pick. But still a good choice.

I really haven’t thought about Haley and the presidential race together because she is a non-factor in picking the presidential candidate.

And despite this, I still don’t care. As of now, the race is Trump v DeSantis, and both men know it. Trump’s very first campaign ad is not about the future, Donald’s accomplishments, or how bad Biden is. It is a slam on DeSantis. Ed wrote about it here, earlier today.

The Trump campaign is up on TV with this 60-second spot. Airing nationally

This is the first TV ad spending of the 2024 cycle from @TeamTrump pic.twitter.com/UzGxcm2w0d

— Medium Buying (@MediumBuying) April 26, 2023

Could this obvious pandering to Trump help keep Nikki Haley in the race for the long haul, as donors invest in her campaign to curry favor with Trump?

How would I know? It’s possible. What other reason could you have to donate to her?

At least the minor mystery (to me) of why she jumped into the race is cleared up: it’s all about Trump.

Everything these days seems to be.