Nicolle Wallace: Nikki Haley appeals to voters by being the 'kinder, softer, gentler' GOP candidate

again the characterization on the Republican side Nicole in Virginia too early but Trump leading no surprise there in Vermont too early with no characterization of the race other than that Nikki Haley obviously would love to get a win tonight um getting a win in Washington DC is the world's smallest win but it was a win and it gave her a bunch of delegates this past weekend she'd love to have another win tonight but the case that she's been making is listen I'm an accountant I know that I'm not

winning these places but I also know that the share of the vote that I'm getting is important it's not minuscule little number here and regardless of how many delegates it translates to regardless of whether or not I have the chance to overtake Donald Trump at any point I'm attracting a a large enough proportion of the vote that we should recognize that is a threat to Donald Trump in the general do you think that cases is factual do you think that she has a chance to add to it tonight well I thi

nk if you're Nikki Haley and you're really you know staring at the bottom of your Empty Glass of merlau or whatever it is she she drinks you wonder what would have happened if you'd made the fit argument against Donald Trump a year ago she's only running the way she's running today um in very very very recent history and when you listen to her voters she's got to wonder if she could have convinced more of them that he's a quote her voters today rans they called I don't have it here but they they

called him a lunatic they called him unfit they called him crazy there was a woman that we played that knew that he was found guilty of sexual assault that's the verdict in the eing I mean she connected with her voters on the facts of Trump in a way that no Republican really has in the time of trump so you're Nikki Haley and you're being honest you're wondering what would have happened if you'd run this campaign a year ago how do you how do you compare the um the the the Chris Christie Campaign

which did what you're suggesting to uh the Nikki Haley campaign Nikki Haley is the last one standing and is is that because and and I don't know is that because she did not offend Republican voters early by telling them in effect you were wrong and who you voted for last time you know what I mean she stretched it out to the point where she can say it now because she's the last one standing does the does the chrisy example show us that that as an early strategy would lose or was was Haley someho

w just a better candidate who would have done it better than Christie I mean this is where the vestages of my Republican ties sort of and I think I shared some of this reporting with you on an earlier primary night I mean I think Haley killed Christie in the back rooms Haley killed christe by getting the donor money Haley killed Christie by having people like Dina Powell walk in the halls of investment Banks and telling people she's the Kinder softer gentler Republican and under her everything w

ill be all right and Christy was too known and so I think I think the reason is Haley and not chrisy and you're right as an avatar for anti-trump republicanism he was first he was earlier he's louder and he's more trumpy but she killed him in the back rooms of what's left of Republican sort of money politics and two points on her Evolution which the party knew she was first introduced as a trump appointe yeah and so she did have to sort of evolve that story over time and look no one's sitting he

re saying oh my gosh she's sweeping tonight but she did better than every other candidate including those with buzz and money like Des santis so I think she did with the team around her figure out let's tell this story of how you slowly overtime lost faith with the person that you served which is how people met you which let me say it's ludicrous because the people that served with him were the ones that wanted to use the 25th Amendment it's like it's like the most nonsense IAL argument you coul

d ever make because all of the reporting about the 25th amendment was all sourced back to Trump's own cabinet and she was in those it's an asite argument but it is what she AR to La's point it is gentle right like what did she say she was like he was the right president for the time but now I think man's a lunatic and crazy and can't be there anymore he like saying there's nothing wrong with you you were right to pick him before I was right to serve him before but now looking ahead to a 2024 ele

ction of of course you wouldn't pick that old man and that's an onramp right and by the way she has something that Chris Christie doesn't have which is that she also could be a softer version of the row argument I think she took she could christe could never have taken advantage of the one thing she had going for her which is that she's a lady and so she could actually make a softer version it's still an anti-abortion argument but that is their biggest Peril period goinging into November it's st

ill the biggest threat to Donald Trump to Republicans down ballot and so I think because she's a woman she was able to stand on the stage with all those men including the Blustery Chris Christie and be the softer gentler including being a woman being more trustworthy to female primary voters I think she had that Advantage going in and she's just actually a better politician than Chris Christie I think she's just presents herself really well and she came across and I think the second piece that w

e don't really talk about anymore and it's so weird because I'm so used to talking about about Republicans is on foreign policy like she stood 10 toes down on Ukraine like she's the one one who mocked and ridiculed DeSantis on the issue of international spending and on us being an actor and a player in the world and I think she made that case better than Chris Christie so you know give her the investment banker she killed you know was used to be an establishment kind of Republican and she really

could you take us back into the Republican money rooms for just one more question I've never been there and I've always wanted ask did was Nikki Haley saying in the campaign what they wanted her to say did do they agree with that analysis that she should have sloped it up the way Ari describes her accurately as having done or did they actually want her to sound like uh Chris Christie I mean look Steph Ru is going to be able to speak to what they wanted her to sound like better than I can I mean

my my sources are more on the political side and on the political side she just manipulated the dynamic she manipulated the money better than he did she made the argument that she was going to be able to bring Republican voters along um I it's my understanding I have some sources on the chrisy side that it was underhanded and and and backhanded in some ways little there I mean I mean look I mean we're talking about her I mean whatever it was it worked