On Trump, Nikki Haley has a point
South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley took what I originally labeled on Twitter as “tacit swipes” against Donald Trump in her State of the Union Response Tuesday night, when she was critical of the “temptation” to give in to the “angriest voices.”
Gov. Haley later made it abundantly clear that she was, in fact, criticizing Trump, the multi-billionaire business mogul who continues to lead the GOP pack for president, but urged that he “not take it personally.”
“During anxious times, it can be tempting to follow the siren call of the angriest voices. We must resist that temptation,” Gov. Haley stated in her Tuesday address. “Some people think that you have to be the loudest voice in the room to make a difference … Often, the best thing we can do is turn down the volume.”
Radio talk show host Laura Ingraham blasted the governor as a voice of the “establishment,” continuing the refrain that opposition to Donald Trump is simply an extension of establishment angst and nothing more.
As someone who is leaning toward Sen. Ted Cruz in the Republican primary and can hardly be called “establishment,” I have to agree with Nikki Haley on this one. The rhetoric that we are seeing out of Donald Trump is consistently “angry,” bitter, and playing on emotions in a way that is atypical for Republicans, who are traditionally more thoughtful in their approach.
Although I understand and often feel the anger on the part of conservatives who are sick and tired of Republicans rolling over backwards on key issues of the day, I don’t see how Donald Trump is being at all constructive in what he brings to the table beyond “stirring the pot.” As Gov. Haley observes, we must be wary of the temptation to give into the angriest voices, because true leadership does not stem from pure emotion.
At the same time, we must also recognize that giving in to political correctness and walking on eggshells when it comes to speaking the truth is just as destructive. Finding that balance, much like Ted Cruz seems to have done, is the call to conservatives and Republicans in 2016.
