Once thought to be a moderate Republican, former South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley has undergone an ideological shift to the right since her tenure as President Donald Trump's United Nations Ambassador—a post she left in late 2018.
Though she may no longer be a part of the Trump administration, she's remained an unwavering supporter of the President.
She made this clear in an appearance on Sean Hannity on Monday night.
Haley defended Trump's decision to launch an air strike that killed top Iranian military official Qasem Soleimani—a move which immediately sent tensions with Iran skyrocketing.
When Democrats condemned the escalation of force, Haley said they were "mourning" Soleimani, who orchestrated the deaths of hundreds of Americans.
Watch below.
"The only ones that are mourning the loss of Soleimani are our Democrat leadership and our Democrat presidential ca… https://t.co/16nmp6Lrur— Washington Examiner (@Washington Examiner) 1578412135.0
Haley said:
"The only ones that are mourning the loss of Soleimani are our Democrat leadership, and our Democrat presidential candidates."
In reality, Democrats condemned a sudden, reckless decision that would inevitably get a response from Iran.
Sure enough, on Tuesday night, Iran launched ballistic missiles at two military bases in Iraq where American troops are stationed, which Iranian leaders confirmed was in response to the death of Soleimani. No casualties have been reported.
Now, Haley's team is attempting to defend her comments on Hannity after widespread backlash.
A spokesperson for Haley told the Washington Post's Aaron Blake:
"Mourning comes in different forms...Leading Democrats are aggressively arguing that we would be better off if Qassem Suleimani was still alive today. That is effectively mourning his death."
People aren't buying it.
This is a laughable argument. Nikki Haley has become a joke. https://t.co/VpyBpQLAgO— Matt Lewis (@Matt Lewis) 1578490306.0
Dog sleeps on porch. Declines to hunt. https://t.co/uvnxOAhIgj— Charles P. Pierce (@Charles P. Pierce) 1578490261.0
that's ... not at all what mourning means https://t.co/OQfBh43Ib9— Josh Chafetz (@Josh Chafetz) 1578487613.0
Attention Democrats: According to Nikki Haley if you think the world would be a safer place if trump hadn't reckle… https://t.co/sEJyoRsTpm— Bryan 🇺🇸 🍑#FamiliesBelongTogether (@Bryan 🇺🇸 🍑#FamiliesBelongTogether) 1578490113.0
You have to be f**king kidding me. https://t.co/2USop3z4YE— brad hags (@brad hags) 1578492257.0
Taking out terrorists with well-thought out plans, avoiding dangerous blow-back (not a wild-west impulsive gun-slin… https://t.co/iC6yZYAbJC— David Reiss, M.D. (@David Reiss, M.D.) 1578493301.0
According to Nikki Haley, Trump and his supporters who say the Iraq war was a mistake are "effectively" mourning Sa… https://t.co/zpOsoPammI— Christian Vanderbrouk (@Christian Vanderbrouk) 1578490131.0
No. Just no. A lie is a lie https://t.co/6Ch1JD5Cd0— Wanted Dad or alive (@Wanted Dad or alive) 1578492002.0
Looks like someone is still campaigning for Vice President.