Since President-elect Donald Trump announced last week that he wanted South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley to be the U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations, there’s been a palpable sense of relief among those concerned about the allegedly hard right coterie in the cabinet of the incoming administration.
Trump said Haley is “a proven dealmaker, and we look to be making plenty of deals. She will be a great leader representing us on the world stage.”
Once a strong Trump critic, Haley accepted the offer. “When the president believes you have a major contribution to make to the welfare of our nation, and to our nation’s standing in the world, that is a calling that is important to heed,” she said in a statement.
However, even as Trump looks inward to rebuilding the country’s infrastructure and reviewing, altering, or rejecting trade and environment agreements deals, Haley’s deal-making capabilities will be tested
quickly as she seeks to represent Trump’s positions – against the Paris Climate Change Treaty driven by President Obama, his chastising of China and lauding of Russia, both permanent members on the Security Council, and positioning Washington to clear the “mess” in Syria. The plus point is Haley will work from a position of strength. The U.S. pays more than a quarter of the U.N. Peacekeeping budget of $8 billion, and 22 percent of the organization’s regular budget, a Reuters report pointed out.
As the youngest governor in the country, Nimrata Randhawa Haley, an Indian-American Sikh who converted to Christianity upon marrying her husband Michael Haley, has been a ‘Rising Star’ in the Republican party for years. She was often alluded to as a potential next vice president and even future presidential material.
Despite doubters who point to her lack of foreign policy credentials, Haley is being hailed by virtually all sides in the political spectrum as a shrewd and good choice.
Nowhere more than in the community from where she sprang to reach this position.
The majority-Democrat Indian-American community that once may have had reservations about her stand on issues like abortion or labor unions, are cognizant of how historical a step this is in the more than 100-year history of Indians who came to the shores of this country. Their first cabinet appointee!
She’s No Sarah Palin
Establishment Republicans rattled by President-elect Trump’s unprecedented brash style and rhetoric during the campaign are calmed by Haley’s appointment. She will go through a Senate confirmation which will probably be less than challenging in a Republican controlled body. Democratic senators may not want to appear as bullies trying to put Haley’s sparse foreign policy experience to test.
Besides, Haley is a quick study as her political rise from an accountant in her mother’s company to governor and vice chair of the Republican Governor’s Association, to second-in-command to the Secretary of State indicates.
She’s no Sarah Palin, they believe. Rather, she is a bold, self-confident, frank personality who is quick to accept her shortcomings, and a reasonably well-travelled, business-oriented governor whose state has prospered under her watch. In her speech to the conservative Federalist Society Nov. 18, Haley began by admitting she knew little about law to an audience of high-powered attorneys.
“She will make a fantastic Ambassador to the U.N.,” said Raj Shah, director of research and deputy director of communications at the GOP. “For Indian-Americans there could not be a better person for this post. She has achieved a lot and has a bright future and continues as a rising star,” Shah added.
As a cabinet-level appointee, Haley would be in the inner circle of the President, though it is up to Trump if he would situate her within the National Security Council. The post of Ambassador to the U.N. has been a cabinet-rank office since the Eisenhower presidency with breaks under the two Bushes.
Inclusive Cabinet
Both Democrats and Republicans agreed that Haley’s pick indicated the President-elect may have an inclusive and diverse set of people and the cabinet won’t be stacked by loyalists.
Haley had criticized Trump numerous times during the primaries, but declared her support for him once he became the party nominee for president.
“First we should applaud President-elect Trump for tapping a high profile talent that reflects the diversity of America with such a prestigious post,” said Aneesh Chopra, President Obama’s early appointee as Chief Technology Officer for the nation. “It is both a testament to the strength of Nikki Haley’s leadership capability and I hope, a reflection that President Trump may seek to serve all Americans,” Chopra told News India Times. As the former CTO, Chopra had a hand in the Obama-led U.N. initiative – International Open Government Partnership – where governments engage civil society to build open societies. He hoped Haley would further that.
“It’s a very good move on the part of President-elect Trump and shows his cabinet will be diverse and that he respects minorities, particularly Indian-Americans,” said News India Times publisher and Padma Shri recipient Dr. Sudhir Parikh. “Governor Haley is to be congratulated for her ascent in the Republican Party,” he added. Anand Ahuja, founder of Indian-Americans for Trump 2016, called Haley’s choice a reflection of Trump’s deal-making skill in picking a woman of color, a skilled politician, and from the South. “Contrary to perception, Trump will support and accommodate his opposition,” Ahuja said. Long time Democratic Party activist Shekar Narasimhan of Virginia, a strong supporter of Hillary Clinton, but also member of bipartisan business groups, was very pleased with Haley’s choice.
“We wanted to have an Indian-American in the cabinet and are very happy it happened,” Narasimhan said. “Of course, we would have preferred if it was in Hillary Clinton’s cabinet. But this first ever cabinet position in history is so good for the community.”
Sampath Shivangi of Mississipi, a longtime Republican and an elected delegate to several party conventions, also saw it as Trump’s effort to “fill the quota” for women and minorities. Also, “Haley is of Sikh heritage and she has never denied her Indian heritage. .. That will help U.S.-India relations at the U.N. also,” Shivangi told News India Times. He also noted that Trump’s ideas about doing away with “radical Islam” would be defended by Haley at the U.N. and could cause some problems.
One of the former high-profile Republican Party activists from Florida, Dr. Zach Zachariah was confident Haley will do a great job as U.N. Ambassador. “She is a very good governor. I think she is eminently qualified,” said Zachariah, once a strong supporter of former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush for president, who rallied behind Trump after the New York billionaire won the primaries.
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