GOP Strategist Slams Donald Trump for Nikki Haley Attack: 'Below the Belt'

Republican campaign strategist Scott Jennings told CNN's Jake Tapper on Sunday morning that Donald Trump's attack on his political rival Nikki Haley's absent military husband was a "below the belt shot."

The Context:

Haley, former South Carolina governor and ex-United Nations ambassador, and Trump have both been campaigning in South Carolina over the weekend as the Republican state primary approaches on February 24. While the former president is the frontrunner for the Republican presidential nomination and has won in the Palmetto State before, Haley is hoping to gain support in her home state.

What We Know:

At a rally in Conway, South Carolina, on Saturday, Trump questioned where Haley's husband Major Michael Haley, who is actively serving in the South Carolina Army National Guard, has been during her campaign.

"Where's your husband? Oh, he's away. He's away. What happened to her husband? What happened to her husband? Where is he? He's gone! He knew. He knew," the former president said.

The clip was shown on CNN's State of the Union during a round-table discussion with Tapper and a number of experts.

"Major Michael Haley is not with his wife because he's serving his country in Africa, I mean, where they are fighting terrorism," Tapper said.

"Yeah, he's an a**hole," said Jennings, who is the former special assistant to ex-President George W. Bush.

Tapper asked for clarification: "You're talking about Trump, to be clear?"

"Yes," Jennings said. "It will not be the first time he's been an a**hole. It won't be the last time he's been an a**hole, but that's what it is. Now, some people like it. And I know people are gonna slough it off as, 'Oh this is a tough political campaign.'"

He added: "The man is serving the United States in uniform overseas, so it's a below the belt shot against someone who is not going to beat him for the nomination."

Newsweek reached out to Trump's and Haley's campaigns via email for comment.

Views:

Haley quickly fought back against Trump on Saturday, sharing a video of the former president's comments about her husband on X, formerly Twitter.

"Michael is deployed serving our country, something you know nothing about," she wrote. "Someone who continually disrespects the sacrifices of military families has no business being commander in chief."

Meanwhile, when asked about Trump's comments on a separate segment of State of the Union on Sunday, Marco Rubio, a Florida Republican, defended the former president.

"I think they're a part of the increasing nastiness of this campaign and every campaign of American politics," the senator said. "I remember when Melania Trump was not visible for some period of time, you had people in the media and others snickering and speculating that she was no longer with Donald Trump. We find out later of course that she was caring for her ailing mother who was in the last weeks and days of her life."

He continued: "Trump gives as good as he gets," adding that he supports Trump "because Joe Biden's a disaster."

What's Next?

As the South Carolina Republican primary election approaches later this month, Haley will continue her upward battle against Trump.

Trump has remained popular with Republican voters, having won every state-level primary or caucus so far, aside from Nevada where he was not on the ballot. While Haley said she doesn't need to beat the former president in South Carolina, she must do better than she did in New Hampshire.

Trump won New Hampshire by 54.3 percent of voter support, while Haley trailed 11 points behind with 43. 2 percent.

"I don't think it necessarily has to be a win, but it certainly has to be better than what I did in New Hampshire, and it certainly has to be close," Haley said on NBC's Meet the Press late last month. "If we win – great. If not, we need to narrow it along the way to give people in Super Tuesday states a reason to see and have us fight on."

Update 2/11/24, 1:23 p.m. ET: This article has been updated with additional information.