Nikki Haley is addressing the widespread criticism surrounding her response to a voter’s inquiry about the cause of the Civil War at a recent campaign event.
The 2024 Republican presidential candidate faced backlash as her reply omitted any mention of slavery, a pivotal aspect of the historical context surrounding the Civil War.
“The first thing I should have said was slavery,” Haley said on “Cavuto Live” Saturday. “I completely agree with that. When you grow up in the South, slavery is a given. Like when you think of the Civil War, you know it was about slavery. That’s never been in question.”
In a Wednesday New Hampshire town hall, the former governor of South Carolina initially omitted mentioning “slavery” as the cause of the Civil War when responding to a voter’s question.
“I think the cause of the Civil War was basically how government was going to run — the freedoms and what people could and couldn’t do,” she said at the event.
“I mean, I think it all comes down to the role of government,” she added. “We need to have capitalism. We need to have economic freedom. We need to make sure that we do all things so that individuals have the liberties so that they can have freedom of speech, freedom of religion, freedom to do or be anything they want to be without government getting in the way.”
The voter expressed shock at her omission of the word “slavery.” When questioned about it, Haley responded, “What do you want me to say about slavery? Next question.” Following criticism from various quarters, including the White House and fellow GOP contenders, Haley clarified her stance, asserting that while she believes slavery sparked the Civil War, she considers the “bigger issue” to be defining the government’s role in people’s lives.
“I’m a Southern governor who actually asked and got the Confederate flag to come down in front of the statehouse. So slavery, if you grow up in South Carolina, you know that that’s a huge part of history,” Haley told Fox News host David Asman on Saturday.
“But you take it for the lesson that it is, which is, yes, that’s a stain on our history, but where do we go with it from here? What is the role of government? What rights do individuals have and what freedoms do they have?” she continued.
“We want to always fight for freedom of speech, freedom of religion, freedom for a person to do anything they want to do without government or another person getting in their way. If you went on and heard the rest of the explanation, that’s what I was trying to say. But yes, I should have said slavery right away.”
