By BRIAN PORTER | The Rocky Mountain Voice
Nikki Haley has suspended her campaign for President, but perhaps not her advocacy for traditional Republican conservative values.
Channeling Ronald Reagan, she termed this “a time of choosing” for former President Donald Trump, now presumed to be the Republican nominee for President for the third consecutive time.
“It is now up to Donald Trump to earn the votes of those in our party and beyond it who did not support him,” Haley said from Charleston, S.C. “I hope he does that. At its best, politics is about bringing people into your cause, not turning them away. Our conservative cause badly needs more people.”
The goal of the campaign was to help Americans have their voices heard, Haley said, and “I have done that; I have no regrets.”
She pledged to continue her support for certain conservative values.
“Our national debt will eventually crush our economy,” Haley said. “A smaller federal government is not only necessary for our freedom, it is necessary for our survival.”
Haley defined socialism as the “road to ruin for America” and Congress as “dysfunctional, and only getting worse”. She called for term limits on Washington politicians.
“[Congress] is filled with followers, not leaders,” she said.
The announcement that she was suspending her campaign for President also included concerns toward foreign adversaries and America’s place in foreign affairs.
“Our world is on fire because of America’s retreat. If we retreat further, there will be more war, not less,” she said. “We must bind together as Americans. We must turn away from the darkness of hatred and division.”
While she noted a future role as “private citizen”, Haley also indicated she would remain an advocate of policy which she had embraced on the campaign trail.
“I have always been a conservative Republican and have always supported the Republican nominee,” Haley said. “I wish anyone well who would be America’s president. Our country is too precious to let our differences divide us.”
Haley did not formally offer her endorsement of Trump.