Several years ago, Nikki Haley delivered the Margaret Thatcher lecture to a small group gathered outside the U.S. Capitol building. She said, “The Iron Lady taught us a great lesson. Things were going badly (for) the United Kingdom in the late 1970s. Inflation soared. The economy stagnated. Because of socialism, the United Kingdom was on the road to ruin. Then Margaret Thatcher hit the brakes.”
Former aide to Margaret Thatcher, Nile Gardiner congratulated Haley saying, “I think I can say that you are the closest America has to an Iron Lady.” That was way back then.
Her real name is Nimrata N. Randhawa but she has gone by Nikki all her life. She is the proud daughter of immigrant parents. Her father, Ajit Singh and her mother, Raj Kaur Randhawa came to America to take part in the American Dream. In her 2012 memoir, “Can’t Is Not an Option: My American Story,” Haley talks about the racial bias she and her family faced in almost every aspect of their lives. Not considered white enough and not considered black enough, she had to fight to make it in racist America. She says, “I faced racism when I was growing up,” for being a brown girl.
However, in a recent interview with Brian Kilmeade of Fox News she changed her tune. ”We’re not a racist country.” She plays to the Pied Piper folks. The lady talks tough and stands tall when delivering her messages of change and hope for a better America but the Iron Lady seems to have a core that is as soft as a marshmallow or more appropriately more like Jello that wiggles and moves when pressure is placed on it. America was and still is a racist country. Hard work and ambition may help you to achieve the American Dream but that is besides the point and she knows it.
Remember when she refused to acknowledge that slavery was the root cause that plunged the U.S. into a civil war from 1861 1865? Slavery was morally wrong, that was the message delivered by the Civil War. However, Haley’s answer went like this, “I think the cause of the Civil War was basically how government was going to run, the freedoms and what people could and couldn’t do.” When Dylann Roof, a 21-year-old white supremacist and Neo-Nazi cold-bloodedly murdered nine Black members of a Bible study group, the Confederate flag was removed from the Capitol, however, Haley had this to say, “For many people in our state, the flag stands for traditions that are noble – traditions of history, of heritage and ancestry,” conveniently forgetting or simply choosing to forget that the “flag is a deeply offensive symbol of a brutally oppressive past.” Sydney Blumenthal in his opinion piece, “Nikki Haley’s comment on the US civil war was no gaffee,” says, “The unexpected incident showed Haley to be slight, frightened and cowardly. Her deeper problem is that she is a slave to her party.” Margaret Thatcher was dubbed “the Iron Lady” for her uncompromising politics and leadership style. Nikki Haley has a long ways to go and filling those shoes takes unwavering strength, strong will and standing up for what is right. Melting like a tub of butter when the sun hits is not going to do it.
“Be careful who you trust. Salt and sugar look the same.” Unknown
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