Nikki Haley's Stump Speech: A Political Symphony of Charm and Contradictions
Watching Nikki Haley’s stump speech is not unlike meeting your partner’s mother for the first time. She makes you feel it’s in your best interest to agree with her even if you have your reservations. Haley leads with logic and carries herself like a matriarch, when she speaks you feel like it’s disrespectful not to listen intently.
“This woman is the real deal”, Judy Sheindlin, otherwise known as the television personality Judge Judy, said of Haley while introducing her to an eager crowd in Exeter, New Hampshire.
“Nikki Haley!”
They chant after Sheindlin introduces her as the next president of the United States.
The baseline of “Eye of the Tiger” vibrates through the auditorium as she strides onto the stage with the determination of a New Yorker running late for work. Towering over Sheindlin’s petite frame, she bends down almost a foot to accept a kiss on the cheek.
“I hope y’all enjoyed my playlist, I love music,” she says with a charming smile.
She goes on to tell an anecdote about her affinity with the New Hampshire governor's song choice - “Welcome to the Jungle” by Guns and Roses.
She animatedly draws you in with arms outstretched and inflection in her syrupy southern draw, reminiscent of a mother-in-law telling you a story about her child when they were younger.
“Mottley Crue was my first concert, and Guns and Roses opened for them.” She says to the collectively beaming crowd.
As a viewer, it's not hard to see that this relatability, through music, storytelling, and the casual jeans and sweater she’s chosen rather than, say, a Hillary-style pantsuit, is what sets her apart from the candidates who came before her.
And she knows it. She masterfully validates the emotions of both sides of her audience: the independents looking for a reason not to vote for Joe Biden and the Republicans looking for a reason not to vote for Donald Trump. As a viewer, you nervously wait for her to say something too emboldened, too liberal, too right-wing conservative. But she never does.
Despite being in desperate need of votes against her opponent, she doesn’t try to convince them as to why they should vote for her. Instead, she speaks to them as if they already agree with her, like she’s a musician performing for her dedicated fans. She does it so naturally that it becomes increasingly difficult to discern what issues she is genuinely passionate about and which are to cater to her staunchly conservative potential voters.
Within the first three minutes of taking the mic, she works term limits into the conversation and is met with rumbling applause. Unlike some of her competitors though, it does not come off as malicious, but sensible. She gives you, the potential voter, permission to think Joe Biden is too old to do a decent job, again validating that you are both a reasonable and decent person.
Her not-so-secret weapon is the “No offense…but” trope. She leads into the comment about Biden’s age the same way she always does.
“When I say that I’m not being disrespectful, We all know 70-year-olds who can run circles around us.”
“And then we know Joe Biden.”
Then, quickly absolving herself of targeting one man with -
“Congress has become the most privileged nursing home in the country.”
As a Democrat, watching Haley speak can leave you questioning your own beliefs, but before you beat yourself up for agreeing with the Republican former governor of South Carolina, remember this is the same woman who convinced her husband to change his first name.
“I think it’s time we send an accountant to the White House.”
She says with a coy smile, reminding you that she has a stronger financial background than you probably thought she did.
She continues approaching her applause points with a sense of confidence that feels so palpable you forget that she is often directly contradicting herself.
She validates young people who care about the environment, saying
“I want to tell you everybody in this auditorium cares about the environment.”
Not even one minute after she vowed to “get the EPA out of the way” and resurrect the keystone pipeline - and the first time I watched the speech, I almost didn’t even notice.
She quickly explains that her harsh stance on the EPA is actually in the name of common sense, a tactic that breaks down the viewer's defenses and causes them to listen.
“Electric cars are heavy. Our roads and bridges can’t hold them. You do it in a way that you transition so it makes sense.”
This argument speaks to everything that makes Haley, Haley. Calculated, but more relatable than Hillary Clinton. Conservative, but open-minded and willing to negotiate. Not hostile, not unwilling to listen to her voters. The maternal warmth of a mother and the strength of a daughter of immigrants. A peacekeeper with the ability to infiltrate your die-hard bipartisanship and have you questioning your own beliefs.