Former GOP presidential candidate Will Hurd, who is backing Nikki Haley for president, said Thursday he thought the former South Carolina governor would survive the controversy around her remarks about the Civil War.
“People are trying to use this as a thing because she has momentum, and that momentum is not going to change,” Hurd, a former House lawmaker from Texas, said in a CNN interview.
Haley, during an event in New Hampshire on Thursday night, was asked about the cause of the Civil War. She gave an answer about government and didn’t mention slavery, the actual basis of the war.
Haley on Thursday sought to clean up the political mess, saying that “of course the Civil War was about slavery” and arguing the person who asked the question was a Democratic plant. President Biden’s campaign knocked Haley, as did former President Trump’s presidential campaign and fellow GOP candidate and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis.
Haley has been gaining on Trump in New Hampshire, which will hold its pivotal primary in January. Trump is the heavy favorite to win the nomination, but Haley has been seen as a rising challenger.
“Was it an imprecise answer? Of course,” Hurd said in the CNN interview, before noting that she had pivoted and given a clear answer.
“She was clear that the Civil War was because of slavery. She’s made that clear.”
The former Texas congressman painted the issue as a disingenuous attempt to hurt Haley.
“Well, she’s clearly defined it right,” Hurd said, referring to the Thursday clarification. “I don’t think this is going to be an issue for her. I don’t think with the voters, it’s not going to hurt her momentum.”