Sour Grapes: Nikki Haley Slams “Shallow” Trump After Missing Out on a Key Cabinet Appointment

Weeks after endorsing Trump as the best option, failed Republican presidential candidate and former United Nations ambassador Nikki Haley is singing a different tune after being excluded from the Trump cabinet.

“For those of us clear-eyed enough to see Mr. Trump’s flaws and honest enough to acknowledge them, the question is whether we’re better off with his policies or his opponent’s,” Haley’s backhand endorsement stated.

Haley’s resentment surfaced after Trump said that neither she, nor former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, would be invited into his new cabinet. However, the President-elect praised their conduct and thanked them for the role they played in his previous administration.

“I will not be inviting former Ambassador Nikki Haley, or former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, to join the Trump administration,” he posted on Truth Social. “I very much enjoyed and appreciated working with them previously, and would like to thank them for their service to our country.”

However, bitter Haley would have none of it and went on a tirade attacking Trump, claiming she was not interested in working with him in the first place, a classic case of “sour grapes.” 

Trump appointed House Conference chair Elise Stefanik (R-NY) to her previous position of UN Ambassador, a move that was well received within the GOP circles.

“I know the game he was playing. I don’t need to play that game,” she said on SiriusXM. “He can be shallow at times, and I think he showed that.”

“I had no interest in being in his cabinet. He knew that,” she added. “At this point, we should pray President Trump does well, we should pray that everyone he appoints does well.”

Haley’s support for Trump was wobbly at best, explaining why she challenged the former president during the Republican primaries, a stunt that saw her receiving the most votes for any Republican Trump challenger.

Save her last-minute endorsement of Trump, she maintained a low profile during the rest of the campaign which spoke volumes of her true feelings about the Republican flagbearer.

The Associated Press reported that she gave Trump a list of dates for which she would be available to support him but did not make any commitments.

Her cold attitude towards Trump also struck a chord with Democrats, who exploited the opportunity to court her supporters. In addition, she criticized Trump’s nomination saying it would lead to a Kamala Harris victory.

Haley even questioned Trump’s fitness to run the office after he seemingly confused her with Nancy Pelosi, a well-deserved mixup.

“They’re saying he got confused, that he was talking about something else, he’s talking about Nancy Pelosi,” Haley said.

“The concern I have is — I’m not saying anything derogatory — but when you’re dealing with the pressures of the presidency, we can’t have someone else that we question whether they’re mentally fit to do this,” Haley said about Trump. “We can’t.”

Responding to Haley’s reaction to Pelosi’s mixup, Trump campaign’s senior adviser Chris LaCivita did not mince his words. 

“It’s a distinction without a difference. It’s Nikki and Nancy,” he said. “What’s the difference?”

Undoubtedly, Haley had so much political baggage to be in the new Trump administration.