There has been shuffling in the field far behind Trump. Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis is running slightly ahead of Nikki Haley, the former South Carolina governor and former ambassador to the United Nations, but the lead could be countered by recent donations to Haley’s campaign.
The candidates could likely hear cat calls of “Roll Trump” when they gather on the University of Alabama campus, and while they will no doubt take aim at the former President, some are taking aim at Haley, too.
Primary voting is roughly a month away as the GOP’s Iowa caucuses kick off things on Jan. 15.
“One thing I think that is strange about this quote-unquote surge for Nikki Haley is that in the last couple of weeks is that Gov. DeSantis has received the endorsement of Kim Reynolds, the very popular governor of Iowa. He's received the endorsement of Bob Vander Plaats, the leading evangelical. So these are huge, and (Trump’s) support has gone down in Iowa as a result of that,” Bill Mitchell, of YourVoice Studios, a DeSantis supporter, said on American Family Radio Wednesday.
While well-known Iowans have publicly supported DeSantis, Haley has gotten a massive boost to her campaign funds from the network associated with billionaire Charles Koch.
Koch is hoping Republicans will turn the page from Trump and a top official with AFP Action, the political arm of Koch’s network, told CNN that Haley represents “a new chapter.”
Haley draws backlash for CBS interview
Haley has given her GOP opponents another means to separate from her. In a CBS interview after the most recent debate. Haley was asked what care should be allowed when a minor expresses interest in gender mutilation surgery.
“I think the law should stay out of it, and I think parents should handle it,” Haley said, a response that drew social media backlash by many conservatives.
Leading into tonight’s Tuscaloosa, Alabama get-together more focus is on Haley’s new friends than her social positions. Trump calls Koch a Republican In Name Only, and he’s not alone.
Haley has also accepted a quarter of a million dollars from Reid Hoffman, the co-founder of LinkedIn, a noted Democrat who has funded numerous anti-Trump candidates and causes and is a supporter of President Joe Biden.
“Nikki Haley has been endorsed by the Koch Network, which is literally the standard for Rhinoism in America," Mitchell told show host Jenna Ellis. "She’s been endorsed by Paul Ryan, once again, standard for Rhinoism in America. She's actually got donors now on the Democrat side that have donated to her."
Stefan Mychajliw, a spokesperson for political newcomer candidate Vivek Ramaswamy, agrees.
“Nikki Haley's not only taking money from billionaires across the country, but Democratic Biden donors who have said they are voting for Joe Biden and will support anyone in the Republican field just to take out Donald Trump," Mychajliw, in a separate radio interview, told Ellis.
Ramaswamy called Haley "Dick Cheney in three-inch heels" at the last GOP debate, Mychajliw reminded the AFR audience.
Mychajliw also went after Haley’s associations with China. In 2016, Haley celebrated “a great day for South Carolina” in an announcement ceremony for a manufacturing plant owned by China Jushi in a deal with the partially state-owned fiberglass company that brought jobs to her state.
"We want to thank Chairman Zhang and everyone at the Jushi Group for allowing South Carolina to be the first location of your first U.S. manufacturing hub," Haley said in the video obtained by ABC News.
“With the fact that Nikki Haley has profited off of going to war, she will absolutely send American troops and sons and daughters to die in a foreign world to personally profit and put money in her pocket,” Mychajliw said. “Vivek Ramaswamy is making that point very clear on the campaign trail and on the debate stage that he is an America first conservative and that he will not lead America into World War Three.”
DeSantis supporter Bob Vander Plaats, the Iowa conservative activist, tells AFN it does appear Haley is on the rise in the GOP primary. After observing many presidential contests, he views her as a Mitt Romney-like candidate who is not winning over the base during the primary.
"If she were in the General Election, she probably would win," he says of Haley. "I just don't think she'll win the nomination."
Regarding his choice for nominee, DeSantis, Vander Plaats says DeSantis must show "real energy" in the coming Iowa caucuses, even if he only comes close to defeating Trump. That finish could then change the GOP primary as it moves to New Hampshire and South Carolina.
Trump continues to lead the GOP field with 59.6% of the vote in an average of major polls. DeSantis is next at 13.3% followed by Haley at 10.9% and Ramaswamy at 5.1%.
Mitchell insists the polls are misleading because only about half those surveyed say their support for a candidate is solid support. Only half of that support, he says, is committed to Trump.
"If half of [Trump's] support is not solved at this point, because he's a fully known candidate, those people are probably going to go for the challenger when it comes time to pull the lever," Mitchell said.
Editor's Note: This story has been updated with comments from Bob Vander Plaats.
