Nikki Haley rejects third-party No Labels presidential bid, says she wouldn't be able to work with a Democratic VP
Nikki Haley rejected the idea of running for president on the No Labels third-party ticket as the Republican nomination moves further out of reach with every GOP primary loss.
During a roundtable with journalists ahead of a rally in Washington, D.C., Friday, Haley denied she'd ever talked with No Labels about a possible candidacy and dismissed the group's efforts to reach out as "smoke signals."
"All the talk about the independent No Labels, all that — I haven't talked to anybody about that," Haley told reporters. "I know that they have sent smoke signals, but I'm a Republican."
No Labels plans to meet virtually after next week's Super Tuesday contests to decide whether it will go forward with plans to give ballot access to a "unity ticket" with a Republican and a Democrat. The group also floated the possibility of a presidential ticket that would include a Republican and an independent, rather than a Democrat. The group has expressed some interest in putting Haley at the top of the ticket.
The former South Carolina governor and former ambassador to the United Nations has consistently rejected a third-party bid, and on Friday she discussed her opposition to the idea.
"If I were to do No Labels, that would require a Democrat vice president. I can't do what I want to do as president with a Democrat vice president."
Haley indicated that a bipartisan ticket would not be feasible for her because her policies would be incompatible with those of a Democratic running mate.
"I want to shrink the size of the government and get it efficient," Haley told reporters. "I want to make sure that we get our kids reading again by putting more of those federal funds pushing it down to the state level, from education to health care to welfare, mental health. I want to take all of that out of the scene and send it to the state. I can't do that with a Democratic vice president."
Haley also said that she's on a mission to save the country from a Trump-Biden election.
In the final stretch before Super Tuesday next week, when the largest number of states will vote during the primary campaign, the former South Carolina governor has been on a campaign swing across the country. She has not won any of the nominating contests but declined to comment about whether she planned to continue her campaign beyond March. 5.
"I don't look all the way down the road," Haley told reporters. "I've never been like that all of my life. I'm certainly not doing that in this election."
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Nidia Cavazos is a 2024 campaign reporter for CBS News.
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