The husband who influenced Nikki Haley's 'hawkish' views

For Nikki Haley, her military husband has had a major influence on the tough foreign policy she has set for the United States.

“I would be lost without him,” Nikki Haley wrote of her husband, Michael Haley, in her 2012 memoir.

Michael was born in Ohio into very difficult circumstances. His father was an alcoholic and had been in trouble with the law. The family home had no electricity or running water. When Michael was a toddler, he and his four siblings were placed in foster care. Their mother wanted to raise them, but was in a traffic accident and suffered a traumatic brain injury and was unable to care for them.

Michael and his siblings were again placed in foster care. Bill Haley, a steel mill manager, and Carol Haley, a teacher, adopted 4-year-old Michael and his younger sister, Lee Anne. Michael's three remaining siblings were adopted by different families.

Nikki Haley and husband Michael in Charleston on June 17, 2023. Photo: AP

The Haley family moved from Ohio to Hilton Head Island, South Carolina. Michael graduated from high school there and lost contact with his siblings for more than 15 years after being adopted.

Nikki admits that Michael's life influenced her anti-abortion political stance.

"In politics, people tend to think that if you're a Republican, you support what the party says," she wrote in her memoir. "But I support abortion because I value life. Every day I have the opportunity to be with the love of my life, knowing how lucky I am that someone saved his life."

They met in college, while Michael was dating someone else. In 1989, Nikki, 17, began attending Clemson University and Michael, 19, was attending nearby Anderson University. Michael's roommate, John, Nikki's childhood friend, introduced the two.

They quickly became friends and spent a few weekends together, but after Michael admitted he had a girlfriend, Nikki didn't want to continue. The following weekend, they met again at a party. Even though he had a girlfriend, Michael continued to approach Nikki.

"I didn't want to get in the way of their relationship, but I thought it was funny that every time she walked away, he would come up and talk to me. It was like boys," Nikki recalled.

The following week, Nikki learned that Michael and his girlfriend had broken up. She and Michael began dating, and Michael came across as honest and straightforward. He even transferred to Clemson to spend more time with Nikki.

Nikki’s parents are Indian immigrants. She was raised Sikh. When she married Michael in 1996, they had two weddings, one Sikh and one Christian. She converted to follow her husband and was baptized at St. Andrew’s by the Sea in Hilton Head before the wedding. They have a son and a daughter.

Michael, a major in the South Carolina National Guard, served a year in Afghanistan in 2012 when Nikki was governor, making him the first spouse of a governor to serve in a war zone.

In June 2023, he was deployed to Djibouti, Africa, for a year. “I’m both happy and sad,” Nikki said. “I’m very proud. As military wives, this is the time we start a year of praying for my husband’s safety while deployed overseas and his safe return.”

During the campaign, Haley repeatedly said her husband's profession was one of the reasons she was motivated to run for president, helping her determine her foreign policy priorities if elected.

She released an ad called "American Power" featuring her husband returning from Afghanistan, sharing his struggles after leaving the war zone. Nikki pledged to improve health care and benefits for veterans.

During the debates, Haley often spoke about the benefits of military intervention abroad. Haley criticized President Biden's approach to withdrawing troops from Afghanistan and reaching a prisoner exchange deal with Iran, saying these moves showed American weakness. She emphasized that the US needed to strengthen its military to regain its position on the international stage.

Nikki Haley's family. Photo: Instagram/Nikki Haley — Nikki Haley's family. Photo: *Instagram/Nikki Haley*

She stressed the importance of providing aid to Ukraine as well as steadfast support for Israel in its fight against Hamas. She stressed that the US could not allow its biggest rivals, China and Russia, to "outdo each other."

"We have to be smart, we have to be ready. I'm tired of talking about the Department of Defense. I want a Department of Advancement. Every enemy has to fear us," Nikki said in October 2023.

However, Nikki's views may not win her points with many Republican voters, as she trails Trump in the polls. US military operations abroad have been a focus of interest since the Iraq war, but that view appears to have changed after Donald Trump entered politics and promoted the slogan "America First".

Nikki's traditionally "hawkish" views "may not be the arguments that the majority of loyal Republican voters want to hear," commented Guardian editor Moira Donegan.

Meanwhile, Nikki emphasized her tough stance on deterrence to avoid serious conflicts. "Trump says I love war. It's the exact opposite. I can't be a soldier's wife and love war. I just want to prevent war," she said.

Hong Hanh (According to People, AFP, ICD, CBS )

Source link