Republican presidential front-runner Donald Trump said Wednesday that South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley has sought campaign contributions from him in the past and might do it again were he not running for president.
“Number one, she’s very weak on illegal immigration. … I’ve known that for a long time,” Mr. Trump said on “Fox and Friends.”
“And she certainly has no trouble asking me for campaign contributions,” he said. “Over the years, she’s asked me for a hell of a lot of money in campaign contributions. So, you know, it’s sort of interesting. … Perhaps, if I weren’t running, she’d be in my office asking me for money. But now that I’m running she wants to take a weak side on immigration.”
“I feel very strongly about illegal immigration. She doesn’t,” Mr. Trump continued. “And I think the people in her great state — I love her state, I’m there a lot, and by the way I have a massive lead in South Carolina. In South Carolina, we have a massive lead … they’re incredible people, and they feel like I do. Believe me. Because they don’t like what’s happening in our country.”
In the GOP response to President Obama’s State of the Union address Tuesday, Ms. Haley had warned against listening to the “angriest voices” in anxious times. She said Wednesday Mr. Trump has contributed to what she called “irresponsible talk.”
“No one who is willing to work hard, abide by our laws and love our traditions should ever feel unwelcome in this country,” she said in the response Tuesday. “At the same time, that does not mean we just flat out open our borders. We can’t do that.”
SEE ALSO: Nikki Haley: Donald Trump has ‘definitely’ contributed to ‘irresponsible’ talk
• David Sherfinski can be reached at dsherfinski@washingtontimes.com.
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