Former President Donald Trump is aiming to take some steam out of Nikki Haley’s surging campaign in New Hampshire by casting her as a flip-flopper on taxes.
The Make America Great Again Inc. super PAC started airing a TV ad Tuesday featuring video clips of how Ms. Haley, over two years, went from vowing to “not now, not ever” support a gas tax increase to supporting a 10 cent increase at the pump.
“That’s right, ‘High Tax’ Haley broke her promise,” the narrator says in the spot. “Repeatedly backing higher taxes hurts families. New Hampshire cannot afford Nikki ‘High Tax’ Haley.”
The Haley campaign hit back, blasting out an email highlighting news reports from 2018 in which Mr. Trump informed lawmakers on Capitol Hill he supported increasing the federal gas tax by 25 cents a gallon.
The Trump world’s increased focus on Ms. Haley follows a CBS poll that shows she has been gaining ground on Mr. Trump among likely GOP primary voters in New Hampshire, home to the Jan. 23 primary.
The survey also showed she is far and away the most “likable” and “reasonable” candidate in the Republican presidential race.
SEE ALSO: Haley says Trump shaking over her poll numbers
Mr. Trump has a 44% to 29% lead over Ms. Haley, who served as U.S. ambassador to the United Nations in his administration.
Ms. Haley is battling it out with Ron DeSantis to become the clear alternative to Mr. Trump.
Mr. DeSantis is running a distant second to Mr. Trump for the Jan. 15 Iowa caucuses, which are crucial for the Florida governor.
Gov. Chris Sununu of New Hampshire, who recently endorsed Ms. Haley, said Mr. Trump and his supporters are ratcheting up their attacks against her because she’s a threat.
“He is starting to run negative ads today against Nikki Haley. Why? Because he is afraid,” Mr. Sununu said Tuesday on NewsNation. “See, Trump has to win Iowa and New Hampshire because the national media has built it up that it is inevitable. So if he loses, and when he loses especially here in New Hampshire, well, now he has a real problem.”
“So he is on his heels,” he said.
SEE ALSO: Trump’s claims of ‘greatest economy’ under attack from GOP rivals
• Seth McLaughlin can be reached at smclaughlin@washingtontimes.com.
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