Closing summary
In a defiant speech ahead of South Carolina’s Republican presidential primary on Saturday, Nikki Haley vowed not to drop out the race, saying: “I have no fear of Trump’s retribution.” Polls show Donald Trump is favored to win Haley’s home state, as well as the 15 states voting in the crucial Super Tuesday contests on 5 March. Haley said people calling for her to quit wanted “a Soviet-style election”, and denied aspiring to be Trump’s running mate or plotting a future presidential campaign.
Here’s what else happened today:
The Trump campaign released a memo saying “the end is near” for Haley’s campaign, while the two campaigns’ spokespeople did battle on X.
The supreme court opted not to hear a case that could have given its conservative majority the chance to weigh in on school diversity policies.
Scholars ranked Joe Biden as the 14th best president, and Trump as the worst ever.
Haley also addressed Trump’s attacks on her husband, Michael Haley. The former president has claimed he is “gone”, when in fact he’s deployed in Djibouti with the South Carolina army national guard.
Biden declined to weigh in on whether he’d rather face Trump or Haley in November.
Among the South Carolina politicians endorsing Donald Trump is Republican senator Lindsey Graham, who, the Guardian’s Martin Pengelly reports, has also been blacklisted by Russia for unrelated reasons:
The Republican senator Lindsey Graham, a key ally of Donald Trump, has been added to a list of “terrorists and extremists” kept by Russia’s state financial monitoring agency.
Tass, the state-run news agency, first reported the move by Rosfinmonitoring, which allows authorities to freeze Russian bank accounts, though in Graham’s case is likely to be chiefly symbolic.
The agency’s list includes more than 12,000 individuals and more than 400 companies, as well as domestic and foreign terrorist entities and Russian political opposition groups, according to the website opensanctions.org.
Meta, the parent company of Facebook, was reportedly added to the list in October 2022, for supposedly tolerating “Russophobia”. Its chief executive, Mark Zuckerberg, and other Meta employees have been banned from Russia or added to “wanted” lists.
Graham, a South Carolina senator and foreign policy hawk who has long advocated arming Ukraine against Russian invaders, has also been subject to a Russian arrest warrant, for making “Russophobic statements” during a visit to Kyiv.
Earlier today, Donald Trump’s campaign announced it had received the endorsements of 15 current and former sheriffs in South Carolina, adding to the former president’s substantial support in the state.
The sheriffs’ backing comes after Trump picked up endorsements from the state’s two Republican senators, Lindsey Graham and Tim Scott – the latter of whom briefly ran for president – as well as governor Henry McMaster and five of the state’s House representatives.
“As the only Law and Order candidate running for president, President Trump has the unique experience and bold leadership to protect our families and communities. He secured our border once before, and he will do it once again,” Chuck Wright, the sheriff of Spartanburg county, said as he endorsed Trump.
Donald Trump’s campaign spokesman Steven Cheung made a vulgar riposte on X to Nikki Haley’s vow not to quit the presidential race:
She's going to drop down to kiss ass when she quits, like she always does. https://t.co/VwcaXEkF7V
— Steven Cheung (@TheStevenCheung) February 20, 2024
To which Haley’s campaign manager replied:
What a move. @TheStevenCheung is the key to winning back suburban women! #AreYouTiredOfWinningYet https://t.co/vPQJJTAKZF
— Betsy Ankney (@betsyankney) February 20, 2024
The back and forth continued on X, but you probably get the point.
Both Donald Trump and Nikki Haley have argued to Republican voters that they are best positioned to defeat Joe Biden.
But what does the president think? As he was heading to California today, a reporter asked who he would rather go up against. Biden did not take the bait:
Q: "Who would you rather challenge in November; Nikki Haley or Donald Trump.
— CSPAN (@cspan) February 20, 2024
President Biden: "Oh, I don't care." pic.twitter.com/UxvbdrJAKB
The Guardian’s Adria R Walker reports that an Alabama supreme court decision could have major impacts on people seeking reproductive technology treatments like in vitro fertilization:
In a first-of-its-kind decision, the Alabama supreme court ruled Friday that frozen embryos are “children”, allowing two wrongful death suits against a Mobile fertility clinic to proceed. The decision could have sweeping implications for people seeking in vitro fertilization (IVF) or other assisted reproductive technology treatments and could increase criminalization of expectant people.
In 2021, a patient at Mobile’s Center for Reproductive Medicine wandered into the clinic’s cryogenic nursery and removed several embryos. According to the lawsuit, “the subzero temperatures at which the embryos had been stored freeze-burned the patient’s hand, causing the patient to drop the embryos on the floor, killing them”.
The three couples who lost their frozen embryos sued for wrongful death, but the clinic claimed that Alabama’s Wrongful Death of a Minor Act did not apply to embryos outside of the womb. Mobile county circuit court judge Jill Parrish Philips agreed with that argument and ruled to dismiss the case, but the state’s supreme court threw it out last week.
In something of a surprise, the conservative-dominated supreme court today declined to hear a case that could have allowed it to again weigh in on school diversity policies, Reuters reports:
The supreme court on Tuesday turned down a challenge to the admissions policy at a prestigious Virginia high school that could have restricted efforts to promote diversity in education.
In declining to take up an appeal by a group of students and parents challenging the admissions policies at Thomas Jefferson high school for science and technology, the court leaves intact a lower court decision upholding the admissions criteria that school officials argued was “race neutral” and designed to mitigate socioeconomic and geographic barriers for prospective students.
The coalition of parents and students had argued that the school’s admissions policy racially discriminated against Asian Americans when an admissions exam was replaced with an essay and it began admitting students from a broader cross-section of schools and gave weight to poorer students and those learning English.
The day so far
In a defiant speech ahead of South Carolina’s Republican presidential primary on Saturday, Nikki Haley vowed not to drop out the race, saying: “I have no fear of Trump’s retribution.” Indeed, polls show Donald Trump is favored to win Haley’s home state, as well as the 15 states voting in the crucial Super Tuesday contests on 5 March. Haley said people calling for her to quit wanted “a Soviet-style election”, and denied aspiring to be Trump’s running mate or plotting a future presidential campaign.
Here’s what else happened today so far:
The Trump campaign released a memo saying “the end is near” for Haley’s campaign.
Scholars ranked Joe Biden as the 14th best president, and Trump as the worst ever.
Haley also addressed Trump’s attacks on her husband, Michael Haley. The former president has claimed he is “gone”, when in fact he’s deployed in Djibouti with the South Carolina army national guard.
Updated
As Haley wrapped up her speech, she addressed Donald Trump’s attacks on her husband Michael.
At a recent campaign event, the former president had claimed Michael was “gone”, when he is in fact deployed with the South Carolina army national guard in Djibouti.
“Let’s finally leave the past behind and let’s forge a new American future. This vision has guided every generation. It summoned me to serve as governor of this great state and as ambassador for the greatest country in the world. And that same vision called my husband to serve in the uniform of the United States,” Haley said.
She also argued that quitting the race would be a boon to Joe Biden’s chances of re-election.
Polls show that voters are dissatisfied with both Biden and Donald Trump, and some surveys have found Haley would be a stronger candidate to beat the Democrat.
“Republicans will get stronger through a vigorous competition. We have plenty of time to hash this out. If the race ended today, we would have the longest general election in history. There are still eight and a half months before election day,” Haley said.
“Do we really want to spend every day from now until November, watching America’s most two most disliked politicians duking it out? No sane person wants that. But there’s another reason Trump is wrong. At the end of the day, the only candidate who’s helping Joe Biden is Donald Trump. Because Trump is the only Republican Biden can beat. The Democrats know it – they don’t even try and conceal it.”
Updated
Nikki Haley made a point to ding Donald Trump for his promotion of unfounded conspiracy theories about his 2020 election defeat.
She said people who wanted her to quit were advocating for “a Soviet style election where there’s only one candidate and he gets 99% of the vote”, and then said:
We don’t anoint kings in this country. We have elections and Donald Trump of all people should know, we don’t rig elections.
Nikki Haley denied that she was looking to be Donald Trump’s running mate, or staying in the race to boost her chances in a future presidential year.
“South Carolina will vote on Saturday, but on Sunday, I’ll still be running for President. I’m not going anywhere. I’m campaigning every day until the last person votes because I believe in a better America and a brighter future for our kids. Nothing good in life comes easy. I’m willing to take the cuts, the bruises and the name calling because the only way you get to the blessing is by going through the pain,” Haley said.
And then:
Dropping out would be the easy route. I’ve never taken the easy route. I’ve been the underdog in every race I’ve ever run. I’ve always been David taking on Goliath. And, like David, I’m not just fighting someone bigger than me. I’m fighting for something bigger than myself. I’m used to people questioning my intentions.
So, I’ll make a few things clear. Some people used to say I was running because I really wanted to be vice-president. I think I’ve pretty well settled that question. Other people say I’m trying to set up a future presidential run. How does that even work?
If I was running for a bogus reason, I would have dropped out a long time ago. The rest of the fellas already did that. They have their own plans. I don’t judge them. But I’m still here, fighting for what I know is right. And I don’t care what the party leaders and political leaders want. I’ll keep fighting until the American people close the door. That day is not today. And it won’t be on Saturday. Not by a longshot.
'I have no fear of Trump's retribution,' Haley says
Nikki Haley, who once served as Donald Trump’s United Nations ambassador but is now his sole remaining rival for the Republican presidential nomination, said she is not afraid to continue her campaign:
We’ve all heard the calls for me to drop out. We all know where they’re coming from: the political elite, the party bosses, the cheerleaders in the commentator world. The argument is familiar. They say I haven’t won a state, that my path to victory is slim. They point to the primary polls and say I’m only delaying the inevitable. Why keep fighting when the battle was apparently over after Iowa?
Look, I get it. In politics, the herd mentality is enormously strong. A lot of Republican politicians have surrendered to it. The pressure on them was way too much. They didn’t want to be left out of the club.
Of course, many of the same politicians who now publicly embrace Trump, privately dread him.
They know what a disaster he’s been and will continue to be for our party. They’re just too afraid to say it out loud. Well, I’m not afraid to say the hard truth out loud.
I feel no need to kiss the ring. I have no fear of Trump’s retribution. I’m not looking for anything from him.
Updated
'I'm not' dropping out of race, 'we have a country to save', Haley says
Nikki Haley got right to the point in her speech in Greenville, South Carolina ahead of the state’s Republican presidential primary on Saturday, saying she had no plans to abandon her campaign.
“Some of you, perhaps a few of you in the media, came here today to see if I’m dropping out of the race. Well, I’m not. Far from it, and I’m here to tell you why,” she said.
She continued:
I’m running for president because we have a country to save.
Since the start of my campaign I’ve been focused on the real issues our country faces, the ones that determine whether America will thrive or spiral out.
I’m talking about the millions of students who don’t know how to read or do basic math. The families who can’t afford groceries, much less a first home, the total lawlessness on our southern border.
I’m talking about the murders in our cities, the fentanyl on our streets, the children who’ve been killed in their mom’s car by stray bullets. And I’m talking about the American weakness that led to wars in Europe, and the Middle East, and the urgent need to restore strength before war spreads and draws America further in. These are the challenges I’m here to tackle.
Haley to deliver remarks on 'state of the presidential race'
In a few minutes, Nikki Haley will take the stage in Greenville, South Carolina to deliver remarks on “the state of the presidential race”, according to her campaign.
Polls show the former South Carolina governor is trailing Donald Trump ahead of her home state’s Republican primary on Saturday.
You can watch the speech live here:
Speaking of surveys, the Guardian’s Martin Pengelly reports that a poll of scholars ranked Joe Biden as the 14th best president in US history, and Donald Trump as the worst ever:
Donald Trump finished 45th and rock bottom of a list ranking US presidents by greatness, trailing even “historically calamitous chief executives” who failed to stop the civil war or botched its aftermath.
Worse for the likely Republican nominee this year, his probable opponent, Joe Biden, debuted at No 14.
“Biden’s most important achievements may be that he rescued the presidency from Trump, resumed a more traditional style of presidential leadership and is gearing up to keep the office out of his predecessor’s hands this fall,” Justin Vaughn and Brandon Rottinghaus, the political scientists behind the survey, wrote in the Los Angeles Times.
Rottinghaus, of the University of Houston, and Vaughn, from Coastal Carolina University, considered responses from 154 scholars, most connected to the American Political Science Association.
Yet another poll indicates that Nikki Haley is far behind Donald Trump among Republican voters in her home state South Carolina.
A just-released Emerson College Polling/The Hill survey finds Trump with 58% support and Haley with 35% support, a gap of 23 points. Seven per cent of voters say they’re undecided.
Updated
Regardless of the outcome of Saturday’s primary in her home state South Carolina, the Associated Press reports that Nikki Haley has a full schedule of campaign events planned.
The former South Carolina governor plans to stop in Massachusetts, North Carolina, Washington DC, Minnesota, Michigan, Virginia, Colorado and Utah after the primary. Her campaign has also bought $500,000 in advertisements to air in Michigan ahead of its primary on 27 February.
Haley vows to stay in race ahead of South Carolina speech
Nikki Haley has told the Associated Press she has no plans to exit the presidential race, and cast doubt on Donald Trump’s ability to win the general election.
“What is the rush? Why is everybody so panicked about me having to get out of this race?” the former South Carolina governor told the AP in an interview ahead of her 12pm speech. “That’s about the most ridiculous thing I’ve ever heard. If I get out of the race today, it will be the longest general election in history.”
The AP reports that he campaign won’t say if there is a state where they think Haley can beat Trump. In her interview, Haley cited Trump’s legal troubles to warn he may not be able to beat Joe Biden.
“Instead of asking me what states I’m gonna win, why don’t we ask how he’s gonna win a general election after spending a full year in a courtroom?” she said. “Ten days after South Carolina, another 20 states vote. I mean, this isn’t Russia. We don’t want someone to go in and just get 99% of the vote.”
After explaining the reasons why they believe Nikki Haley is doomed, Donald Trump campaign advisers Chris LaCivita and Susie Wiles outline their plans.
It’s a revealing look into the strategy they’ll execute as they shift into taking on Joe Biden in the general election:
Acknowledge that Nikki Haley is irrelevant and not newsworthy — and unworthy of said attention.
The Republican National Committee becomes one with the Donald J. Trump for President campaign.
Convention planning, fundraising, strategy, and state party tactics — including full coordination with the NRCC and the NRSC — begin in earnest.
The General election (even though we have always known it started months ago) begins, and the case to Fire Joe Biden is prosecuted.
Updated
Trump campaign says 'the end is near' for Haley
In a newly released memo, top Donald Trump campaign advisers Chris LaCivita and Susie Wiles argue Nikki Haley has no path to winning the Republican presidential nomination.
“We won’t bore you with the reams of data that show an ass-kicking in the making in South Carolina, but we will show you the very serious math problem Nikki Haley has. This is the diagnosis she refuses to accept: The end is near,” they write in a memo that predicts her campaign will “end” after South Carolina’s primary on Saturday.
Here’s more:
Currently, President Trump has 63 delegates. If we were overly generous and applied a ‘worst case’ model reflecting Nikki Haley’s loss in New Hampshire across the remaining states and Congressional Districts, President Trump would earn 114 Delegates the week following the South Carolina Primary. On Super Tuesday, under this very favorable model for Nikki, President Trump would win 773 Delegates. President Trump would win an additional 162 Delegates the following two weeks, after Super Tuesday. And, on March 19, under this most-generous model for Nikki, President Trump would win the Republican nomination for President.
Now, if we ignore this model and follow what the current data — both public and private — suggests, President Trump will win the Republican nomination one week earlier, on March 12, with 1,223 Delegates. Which is all to say, before March Madness tips off next month, President Trump will be the Republican nominee for President.
Donald Trump may not have to worry too much about winning the Republican presidential nomination, but he’s still entangled in several legal matters, both criminal and civil. The Guardian’s Hugo Lowell reports that a judge’s decision last week set the stage for his first criminal trial to begin in a matter of weeks:
Donald Trump’s legal calendar is coming into sharper relief after a New York judge affirmed last week that the ex-president’s first criminal trial – on charges that he manipulated the 2016 election by concealing hush-money payments to an adult film star – will proceed to trial in Manhattan next month.
A federal case in Washington over the former president’s alleged plot to overturn the 2020 election had been expected to go first. But when Trump filed appeals on grounds of presidential immunity last year, the presiding US district judge, Tanya Chutkan, was forced to put the case on hold.
Judge Juan Merchan on Thursday scheduled Trump’s hush money trial to start on 25 March in Manhattan and last roughly six weeks. Allowing a week for jury selection and deliberation could mean a verdict might arrive around mid-May.
That is the straightforward part.
Donald Trump’s campaign is keeping up its attacks on Nikki Haley, and insisting she has no path to the nomination.
Here’s the message being pushed by campaign adviser Jason Miller:
Nikki Haley cannot win a single state and has no pathway to victory.
— Jason Miller (@JasonMillerinDC) February 20, 2024
Haley should do the right thing today and drop out and unite behind President Trump to defeat Joe Biden.
This is Haley’s moment of choosing. Salvage her political career (what’s left of it) with an eye toward…
Haley does not plan to drop out – report
When she speaks at 12pm today, Nikki Haley will “address the state of the presidential race”, according to her campaign. Such language is often used before a candidate pulls the plug on their run for office, but NBC News reports that the former South Carolina governor is not doing that today:
Haley’s been clear: she’s staying in the race thru Super Tuesday. I’m told this isn’t a drop out, as some speculating may jump to, but rather another instance of defying calls to drop out and giving her sense of where the race stands as well as her place in it. https://t.co/pLqGB51fwc
— Ali Vitali (@alivitali) February 20, 2024
It’s unclear where Haley is hoping to catch up to Donald Trump’s lead in delegates. She’s trailing the former president in most state-level polls, including of the 15 states voting in the 5 March Super Tuesday primary, which could decide the Republican nominee.
Updated
Haley to address presidential race ahead of crucial South Carolina primary
Good morning, US politics blog readers. Today at noon eastern time, we’re going to hear from Nikki Haley, the former South Carolina governor who is the last major challenger remaining to Donald Trump for the Republican presidential nomination. Her speech in Greenville, South Carolina, comes before the state’s Republican primary on Saturday, which is viewed as crucial for Haley to win, or at least come close to winning, in order to continue her campaign. Yet polls generally show Trump with an overwhelming advantage in the Palmetto state, meaning Haley supporters may be in for more disappointment.
Trump is meanwhile busy convincing people that his nomination is inevitable. Politico reports that today his campaign will release a memo arguing that the former president will have an insurmountable lead in Republican delegates by the middle of March. We’ll let you know what Haley has to say about all that when she speaks at 12pm.
Here’s what else is going on today:
Joe Biden is flying to Los Angeles, where he’ll participate in an evening campaign reception.
Congress has been deadlocked for weeks over passing legislation to approve military aid to Israel and Ukraine, and potentially tighten border policy, but perhaps there’ll be some news in the negotiations today.
White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre will take reporters’ questions sometime after 1pm.
Updated
