Haley cautions Republicans about Democrats potentially nominating a younger candidate to succeed Biden – Washington Examiner

Nikki Haley is warning the Republican Party that if Democrats do replace President Joe Biden with someone at the top of the ticket, it would be someone young, who would be in a stronger position to beat former President Donald Trump. 

In an interview with the Wall Street Journal, the former U.N. ambassador sent out a warning to her GOP allies about the makeup of someone who would replace Biden. After Biden’s poor debate performance in Thursday’s presidential debate, Democratic concerns about Biden’s place on top of the ticket have grown.

Haley warned that a Biden replacement wouldn’t necessarily mean good things for the former president’s campaign. 

“They [Democrats] are going to be smart about it: they’re going to bring somebody younger, they’re going to bring somebody vibrant, they’re going to bring somebody tested,” Haley told the outlet. “This is a time for Republicans to prepare and get ready for what’s to come because there is no way that there will be a surviving Democratic Party if they allow Joe Biden to continue to be the candidate.”

“Our enemies just saw that they have between now and Jan. 20 to do whatever it is they want to do,” Haley said.

She said Biden’s debate performance was “shocking,” overshadowing anything Trump may have accomplished on the debate stage.

“It was shocking, I think, for a lot of people,” Haley said. “What we saw was that Trump was strong, but I don’t even think that mattered because Biden was so amazingly unfit. The way he lost his train of thought, the way he couldn’t grasp topics of what he needed to talk about.”

Haley also said she spoke with Trump recently, and the two had a “good conversation.” It’s a switch from the pair’s rocky relationship after Haley’s presidential run largely built on describing Trump as “chaotic,” causing the two to have a falling out with one another. She said there was no talk about a role for Haley in a second Trump administration.

She previously noted Trump’s mental “decline” while on the campaign trail, but argued that Biden has hidden his own aging from voters. 

“What we have seen is so many people around Joe Biden and in his administration kept telling the American people, ‘He’s OK behind closed doors. He’s great behind closed doors,’ even though we were seeing signs that he wasn’t,” she said.

CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER

Haley also warned of down-ballot lowered enthusiasm among Democrats if Biden is kept at the top of the ticket. 

“If they continue down this path and they have Biden as their nominee, they are committing to hurting America,” Haley said.