‘I don’t get confused’ jibe wins Haley friends

new york — The public split between the White House and UN Ambassador Nikki Haley this week over Russia sanctions threw a spotlight on her at-times uneasy relationship with President Donald Trump, even as her deft rebuttal bolstered talk about her own future political fortunes.

Haley’s rejoinder to a putdown from a close Trump adviser about message confusion — she declared that “I don’t get confused” — was seized as a rallying cry among some women. But the episode also called into question her standing on Trump’s national security team ahead of tough decisions on North Korea, Iran and other fronts. Haley, now considered to be on the shortlist of future presidential candidates, has consistently taken a harder line than Trump on Russia. While that, at times, has drawn Trump’s ire, her hawkishness on other occasions has been appreciated by the president, who has allowed her to reprimand Moscow while he works towards a friendship with Russian President Vladimir Putin.

That dynamic broke down this week.

Trump was angry on Sunday when he saw Haley on television discussing new Russia sanctions that she said would be announced the next day. He blasted her for being out of step with the rest of the administratio.

Despite Haley’s words, no new sanctions were imposed. Asked for an explanation, Larry Kudlow, the president’s new economic adviser, told reporters that Haley “got ahead of the curve” and he added, “She’s a very effective ambassador, but there might have been some momentary confusion about that.”

The next day, Haley hit back, releasing a statement to Fox News that read: “With all due respect, I don’t get confused.” Kudlow apologised but Haley’s differences with the White House had already pushed into the open.

At the UN, responding to a shouted question about her relationship with the president, she simply said, “It’s perfect.” But the White House was left scrambling to explain. —