Nikki Haley knows that she is running back in the presidential primary pack behind Donald Trump and Ron DeSantis. Her entire primary strategy has to be to draw distinctions between herself and the two front-runners.

Last night, the former governor of South Carolina and former U.S. ambassador to the United Nations participated in a CNN town hall hosted by Jake Tapper. While her town hall didn’t make nearly as many headlines as Donald Trump’s CNN town hall, it is worth taking a look at Nikki Haley’s answers and the way she tried to separate herself from Trump and DeSantis, the only candidates getting double digits in the polls. None of Jake Tapper’s questions asked her to point out the differences between herself and Vivek Ramaswamy or Tim Scott or Mike Pence, and we all know why. The reality has become that there is a two-tiered primary for Republicans. The top tier is Trump and DeSantis, and the second tier is everyone else. Nikki Haley would like to move herself from the second tier up to the top tier. Did this town hall help her work toward that goal?

Well, perhaps. The problem is that the answers that Haley gave on certain topics is unlikely to win any general election support. Let’s look at her answers on federal entitlement programs, meaning Medicare and Social Security.

Haley accused Trump and DeSantis of failing to level with Americans about the sustainability of popular programs like Medicare and Social Security, arguing that big changes need to be made to keep both solvent.”

“I think they’re not being honest with the American people,” Haley said of her GOP primary rivals, who have both promised not to touch entitlements.”

On the trail, Haley has called for raising the retirement age for people currently in their 20s and limiting Social Security and Medicare benefits for wealthier Americans.”

Recent comments aside, the Trump administration’s budget proposals included cuts to such social programs and DeSantis previously expressed support for privatizing Medicare and Social Security during his first campaign for Congress in 2012.”

“We can’t keep kicking this can down the road,” Haley said. “And I know that Trump and DeSantis have both said we’re not going to deal with entitlement reform – well, all you’re doing is leaving it for the next president and that’s leaving a lot of Americans in trouble.”

Now, Nikki Haley isn’t wrong. We absolutely need federal entitlement reform. The problem is that there is a reason why it’s called “the third rail of American politics,” and you can see why in the next line from the CNN recap article.

In a statement, the Democratic National Committee’s rapid response team accused Haley of “shamelessly campaigning to end Social Security and Medicare as we know it — which would hurt hard working families and seniors across the country.”

And there’s the problem. No matter how badly reform is needed, there is zero political will to change the system until it is absolutely bankrupt, and the person who is president when that happens is the one who will bear the political burden. In the meantime, even mentioning entitlement reform causes hysteria from Democrats, who get away with dishonestly framing the conversation because the liberal media dishonestly covers the conversation. This is not a political pledge that Nikki Haley – or any candidate – can run on and win votes. The general public is too used to the system, Democrats are more than happy to raise taxes in perpetuity to keep handing the checks out, and the mainstream media doesn’t cover the issue fairly. So even though her honesty should win her points, the conversation is a non-starter.

Haley also tried to draw distinctions between her position on Ukraine, versus Trump and DeSantis.

While Trump and DeSantis have made headlines with their wobbly positions on the Russian invasion of Ukraine, Haley made a clear case for continued American involvement in the war, arguing that victory for Russia would set off an even more deadly global crisis.”

“This is bigger than Ukraine,” Haley said during the CNN town hall, “this is a war about freedom and it’s one we have to win.”

Haley’s comments represented a clear break from Trump, who appointed her ambassador to the United Nations, who has often touted his good relationship with Russian President Vladimir Putin – a man she labeled a tyrant.”

“For them to sit there and say this is just a territorial dispute, that’s just not the case,” Haley added in a barb aimed for DeSantis who initially labeled the war that way before backtracking.”

So, “we have to win” in Ukraine. More than a year after the invasion happened, it seems both sides are just fighting not to lose. It’s all well and good to say “we have to win,” but Haley offered no ideas for how that would happen. Yeah, it’s a town hall, but after over a year of shoveling money and materiel into Ukraine, I would like to hear some kind of diplomatic strategy that would bring about an end to the conflict.

She also hit Biden right between the eyes regarding Afghanistan, which was much deserved. Haley did also respond to Trump’s recent “congratulations” to Kim Jong Un over North Korea being given a seat on the World Health Organization’s executive board. Again, she isn’t wrong here.

“I don’t think we should congratulate dictators. Congratulate our friends. Don’t congratulate our enemies. It emboldens them when we do,” Haley said after referring to Kim as “a thug.”

On abortion, Haley declared herself pro-life, but clearly didn’t want to get too deep into what she would or wouldn’t do, instead trying to find common ground.

“We can all agree on, banning late-term abortions. I think we can all agree on encouraging adoptions and making sure those foster kids feel more love — not less,” Haley said.”

“We can agree on doctors and nurses who don’t believe in abortion, shouldn’t have to perform them. I think we can agree on the fact that contraception should be accessible,” she added.”

“And I think we can all come together and say any woman that has an abortion shouldn’t be jailed or given the death penalty. Can’t we start there?”

She also had some very specific answers regarding securing the southern border.

Here's how we FIX the southern border once and for all:

➤ 25,000 more Border patrol and ICE agents
➤ Mandatory E-Verify
➤ Defund sanctuary cities
➤ No tax dollars to illegal immigrants
➤ Remain in Mexico
➤ End catch & release, start catch & deport

— Nikki Haley (@NikkiHaley) June 5, 2023

And she was given the chance to talk about her family, and her husband’s impending deployment – for a year! – to Africa with the South Carolina Army National Guard.

So proud of my husband @WMichaelHaley and all of our military brothers and sisters who answer the call of duty. pic.twitter.com/1f6LkMPcaB

— Nikki Haley (@NikkiHaley) June 5, 2023

Did Nikki Haley make any major missteps during her town hall? No. Did she make any headway in drawing away support from other candidates to herself? Also no. Haley is a known quantity with years in the public eye. She’s made good impressions and questionable ones in the past, but this town hall is unlikely to move the needle in any significant way for her. For all of Haley’s declarations that she’s not “playing for second,” that seems to be precisely where she’s stuck.

Now, it is very early in the primary and anything is possible. Nikki Haley would be a vast improvement over Joe Biden or Kamala Harris, unquestionably. But first, she has to get to at least 10 percent in the Republican primary polls. And until that happens, she is clearly still in the second tier of Republican primary candidates.

Featured image: original Victory Girls art by Darleen Click