Haley Slams DeSantis for ‘Copying’ Trump: ‘Republicans Deserve a Choice, Not an Echo’

L: AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta C: Jim Slosiarek/The Gazette via AP, File R: AP Photo/Lynne Sladky

Nikki Haley slammed her prospective rival for the Republican nomination for president, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, for “copying” former president Donald Trump in comments made to reporters on Tuesday afternoon.

“President Trump is right when he says Governor DeSantis is copying him — first in his style, then on entitlement reform, and now on Ukraine. I have a different style than President Trump, and while I agree with him on most policies, I do not on those,” said Haley.

“Republicans deserve a choice, not an echo,” she added, alluding to a 1964 book published by conservative activist Phyllis Schlafly in support of Barry Goldwater.

DeSantis expressed skepticism about the United States’ role in repelling the Russian invasion of Ukraine in a pair of statements shared with Tucker Carlson on Monday night, arguing that “a territorial dispute between Ukraine and Russia is not” a “vital” interest and even calling it a distraction from other important concerns. It marked a reversal of sorts for the governor, who as a congressman advocated an active, Reagan-esque role for the U.S. on the world stage.

Trump, who has warned that America’s support for Ukraine could lead to “World War III,” attacked DeSantis on Monday evening, characterizing DeSantis’s new stance on Ukraine as a “flip-flop.”

“He was totally different. Whatever I want, he wants,” continued the former president.

DeSantis had also expressed support for the reform of Social Security and Medicare while serving in Congress, but recently declared, “We’re not going to mess with Social Security as Republicans. I think that that’s pretty clear.” Haley has taken a more hawkish position on Ukraine and expressed more openness to reforming entitlement programs than both Trump and DeSantis. In response to Carlson’s questions about the conflict, Haley submitted that “America is far better off with a Ukrainian victory than a Russian victory.”

“If Russia wins, there is no reason to believe it will stop at Ukraine. And if Russia wins, then its closest allies, China and Iran, will become more aggressive,” continued Haley.

DeSantis has not yet declared his candidacy for the nomination, but he is expected to do so in the coming months. Polls show him in a tight race with Trump, with Haley trailing both.