Donald Trump on Saturday shot down a report that Nikki Haley, his bitter presidential primary rival, has vaulted into “active consideration” to become his running mate.
“Nikki Haley is not under consideration for the V.P. slot, but I wish her well!” Trump wrote on Truth Social, signing the post “DJT.”
Earlier, Trump campaign press secretary Karoline Leavitt scoffed at Haley’s rumored rise.
“Only President Trump will rule a contender for Vice President in or out, and anyone claiming to know who he will choose is lying,” Leavitt posted on X.
The responses came hours after Axios reported that two unnamed “people familiar with the dynamic” said Haley joined the Trump veepstakes this week due to her strong showing in Indiana’s May 8 Republican primary.
While Trump won the contest handily with 78% of the vote, Haley scored nearly 22% — despite suspending her campaign in March.
The Hoosier State’s GOP primary was open to registered Democrats and independents as well as Republicans, and ad campaigns urged such crossover voting to influence hotly contested down-ballot races.
But Haley’s performance in suburban areas of deep-red Indiana set off alarm bells for some GOP strategists, Politico reported.
Haley has refused to endorse Trump in the two months since she dropped out of the primary after suffering punishing losses on Super Tuesday.
“It is now up to Donald Trump to earn the votes of those in our party and beyond it who did not support [him],” she said in her resignation speech. “And I hope he does that.”
For his part, Trump has made no move to reach out to his former UN ambassador — who he derided as a “birdbrain” on the campaign trail — since she ceded the primary.
“She was OK, but she was not presidential timber,” Trump said at a January rally as he reflected on Haley’s time in his administration.
“Now when I say that, that probably means that she’s not going to be chosen as the vice president,” he continued. “When you say certain things, it sort of takes them out of play, right?”
