Our country needs a multi-faceted, vibrant leader. My career as a U.S. Air Force officer, professor of nursing, and New Hampshire state legislator has given me the opportunity to work alongside great leaders. Our next president needs to embody the best qualities of a great leader, which I like to call “the four C’s”: character, courage, competence, and communication.
Nikki Haley clearly has these qualities, and that is why I’m very proud to support former governor and United Nations Ambassador Nikki Haley for president of the United States of America.
Character. Character is who you are as a person—not just in the public spotlight, but in the quiet moments when the cameras are gone. Moral character encompasses behavior that may never personally benefit you but rather exhibits grace, poise, and integrity. Nikki’s character was shaped early in her life story.
Growing up in an Indian family in rural South Carolina, she personally experienced prejudice and discrimination without becoming bitter. Her character is evident in the way she interacts with Granite Staters on the campaign trail. During 22 events in New Hampshire, Nikki stayed to talk with each person who wished to speak with her. She has been asked all kinds of questions and treats each individual with respect. That’s campaigning “the New Hampshire way.” I’ve learned a lot about Nikki Haley from observing her unscripted moments. She sees the best in all people—and in America.
Courage. it takes courage to make unpopular decisions. It takes courage to work with a contentious Congress. It will take even greater courage to bridge deep divides and move our country forward.
Nikki’s courage is clear. She is resolute in her beliefs. She engages with her critics in the same fashion as with her supporters. She refuses to engage in personal attacks and genuinely seeks to lift up all people. Nikki Haley has always been a political outsider. When she first ran for office against a 30-year incumbent Republican, no one thought she had a chance. She won. When she entered the legislature, she took on her own party’s leadership and introduced a bill to put legislative votes on the record. Republican leadership punished her, but Nikki did not back down. Pat Benatar’s “Hit Me with Your Best Shot” played in the background when Haley signed that legislation into law after being elected governor.
It took courage when Nikki stood up to the bullies at the United Nations and told the world’s tyrants what they needed to hear. It took courage when she took on the Washington establishment as a presidential candidate, calling for term limits and competency tests for politicians over the age of 75. Nikki’s policies will dramatically shake up the entrenched D.C. political environment.
Competence. Nikki Haley has been tested and has proven her competency. As governor, she faced a hurricane, a 1,000-year flood, and a horrific mass shooting. Throughout it all, Nikki offered steady leadership and her signature compassion. When natural disasters descended on South Carolina, Nikki was proactive with life-saving evacuations and was a constant presence throughout the recovery process. During the mass shooting, it was her leadership that brought South Carolinians together and averted the violence and riots that consumed so many other states.
Crisis is inevitable. From foreign aggression to deadly pandemics to economic instability, the next president will face complex challenges. America desperately needs a competent leader with foresight and problem-solving skills who can handle the toughest situation with the utmost competence. That woman is Nikki Haley.
Communication. Our next president needs to be able to discuss complex and consequential issues directly with the American people. Our next commander-in-chief will manage multiple foreign threats, an out-of-control debt crisis, a broken southern border, a fentanyl crisis, stubborn inflation, and much more. We need a leader who can deliver results and clearly communicate with the American people.
Nikki Haley’s resume is second to none. She has been a domestic CEO as governor, she has foreign policy experience as Ambassador to the United Nations. I am confident that she will comfortably and competently sit with any foreign leader at the (head of the) table.
Differences are what make our country “America the Beautiful.” The American people have had enough of intentional divisiveness. Nikki Haley has the character, courage, competence, and exceptional communication skills to bring us together and direct our country’s future as our next president of the United States of America.
