Republican presidential contender Nikki Haley ripped GOP front-runner Donald Trump in the wake of the massive $83 million verdict he received for defaming writer E. Jean Carroll — saying that the nation “can do better” than the former president.
“Donald Trump wants to be the presumptive Republican nominee and we’re talking about $83 million in damages,” Haley wrote on X after the jury revealed the staggering penalty Friday.
“We’re not talking about fixing the border. We’re not talking about tackling inflation,” Trump’s onetime UN ambassador complained. “America can do better than Donald Trump and Joe Biden.”
Her dig followed Trump’s own blistering response to the verdict in Manhattan federal court.
“Absolutely ridiculous!” he raged on Truth Social, dismissing the trial as a “Biden Directed Witch Hunt.”
Trump — who has pleaded not guilty to 91 felony criminal counts in New York, Georgia, Florida, and Washington, DC — railed against his legal woes Saturday, posting “WITCH HUNT!!” and “ELECTION INTERFERENCE!!” on social media.
Nikki Haley said the nation “can do better” than former president Donald Trump after a Manhattan jury hit him with an $83 million defamation penalty. ERIK S LESSER/EPA-EFE/Shutterstock
Trump slammed the defamation trial as part of a political “witch hunt.” AP
Haley hit Trump in a post on X after the Manhattan jury returned its huge verdict. X/Nikki Haley
Writer E. Jean Carroll, who accused Trump of rape, left the courtroom Friday after winning her defamation suit — and an $83 million award. Getty ImagesFriday’s verdict turned on multiple statements Trump has made against Carroll, who accused him of raping her in a Manhattan department store dressing room on an unspecified date in the 1990s.
Trump has repeatedly denied Carroll’s charges — calling the “Ask E. Jean” columnist a “whack job” who would “pay dearly” for the allegations. But a previous jury found Trump liable for sexual assault.
Haley returned to her home state of South Carolina Saturday to drum up support ahead of its Feb. 24 Republican primary — in which she trails Trump by a 30-point margin, according to the RealClear Politics polling average.
