What can Nikki Haley do for Donald Trump now?

Having listened to Fox News on this supposedly pressing matter, I think it might be a good idea to consider how far and to what end Donald Trump should be reaching out to Nikki Haley.

Republican unifiers have been urging Trump to extend his hand in friendship to his erstwhile opponent, with whom he traded nasty comments for several months. Supposedly, such an action would reconcile warring factions in the GOP and do so at a critical time.

Trump and his advisors are correct not to view Nikki as a suitable vice presidential choice.

Trump, Haley, and their rival constituencies must stand as one against a well-oiled, media-protected Democratic Party machine. But the victorious Trump should take the first step, I’ve been led to believe, in extending the olive branch. He, not Haley, was the big winner on Super Tuesday, and he’s also the candidate who took perhaps the cheaper shots at his opponent.

We’re also reminded that Trump has acquired many enemies, including quite a few in his own party. Many Republicans and independents say they still won’t vote for him, no matter how disastrously the Biden presidency has turned out. Trump’s continued insistence that he was cheated out of the presidency in 2020, his abrasive remarks in extemporaneous speeches — e.g., referring to Haley as a “bird brain” — and his boastful demeanor have all turned off moderate voters, and so it might be best for him to show a conciliatory face now that he’s sown up the Republican nomination.

How powerful is Haley anyway?

I’ve no problem with this commonly heard advice from GOP celebrities. After all, I do have my own reservations about Trump’s rhetoric and character, even if I am sympathetic to the populist movement he leads. Much of the advice about Trump’s need to be a bridge-builder seems sound, and I, no less than Brit Hume and Dana Perino, would be pleased if he took that advice.

Where I differ from some of those offering Trump counsel is that I’m not sure Haley is a powerful force in the Republican Party.

If she picked up roughly 30% of the votes in Republican primaries running against Trump, why should I assume that all or most of those votes came from Republicans? Many of them likely emanated from anti-Trump independents or Democrats, who crossed over in open primaries or changed party affiliations to cast a vote for Haley.

Most of Haley’s voters have declared that they would never vote for Trump. But how do we know those Trump-haters are mostly Republicans, as opposed to anti-Trump Democrats or left-leaning independents?

The Haley enthusiasts I’ve encountered would not join Trump’s bandwagon even if Nikki told them to. They are not for Trump but Haley, because “she’s good on Israel,” and because she doesn’t fit their image of a “fascist” or “bigot.” But this enthusiasm is not transferable to another Republican presidential candidate, especially not one associated with the right.

Without Nikki in the race, her followers, certainly the ones I know, will rally to Biden or perhaps to a presidential candidate of NPR’s choosing. At least some of the Haley voters I’ve heard interviewed on TV have confirmed this impression. This was especially the case during the New Hampshire primary when some of the Haley voters indicated their intention to vote not for Nikki but for Biden in the fall.

In any case, it’s hard to imagine the woke suburban females or Jewish Democratic professionals whom Haley attracted will now rally to Trump because she’s made up with her recent adversary.

In no position to deliver

Please note that I’m not discouraging Trump from being courteous and pleasant to Haley. I’m simply pointing out that I don’t see convincing evidence that she commands 30% of the Republican base. And I don’t believe she can induce her anti-Trump devotees to back the now inevitable Republican nominee.

Haley’s remark after she withdrew from the primary races that Trump would have to “earn” her voters may be true but not in the way in which that admonition was intended. Trump may have to struggle to win Haley’s voters not because she won’t release them but because she’s in no position to deliver most of them to Trump.

Trump and his advisors are correct not to view Nikki as a suitable vice presidential choice. It’s doubtful that making her Trump’s running mate would bring “party unity.” Haley holds quintessentially neoconservative views on foreign policy, which may not be those of Trump or his base. She’s also never been an ally of Trump’s — and is by no means a Trump loyalist.

Trump has better choices than Haley if he’s looking for a vice president. In fact, he has promising options even if he decides to pick someone other than a white male. Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-N.Y.), Arkansas Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders, and Rep. Byron Donalds (R-Fla.) are all articulate Trump loyalists, who would be excellent vice presidential picks. Trump needn’t worry that any of them would launch a court conspiracy.