Nikki Haley remarked Thursday that she wasn’t surprised President Biden dropped out of the race and "never thought" he would be the eventual Democratic candidate.
Haley, who ran for the GOP nomination in 2024 before eventually endorsing Donald Trump, was asked by CNN's Jake Tapper for her thoughts on Biden deciding to drop out of the presidential race. Haley memorably called for Biden to take a mental competency test in February and predicted he wouldn't be able to finish a hypothetical second term.
"I wasn't surprised, and I didn't take happiness in it. I mean, I think through the whole campaign, I fought for mental competency tests. I wasn't doing it to be disrespectful. I wasn't doing it to be mean. I was doing it because I think it's not just Joe Biden," Haley responded.
She continued, "There is an issue that we have in D.C. where people will go into office and they won't let go, and then their staffers and their family keep propping them up. And it's a problem for the American people. And so, I never thought he would make it to the election. I always said a vote for Joe Biden is a vote for Kamala Harris, and I think that's what's playing out."
FLASHBACK: BIDEN BEING REPLACED ON TICKET WAS ‘FANTASY’ DISMISSED BY MEDIA
Despite criticizing Democrats, however, she suggested putting out a candidate younger than former President Trump could benefit them in the race.
"The Democrats are very smart to put in a younger candidate. I think that‘s what America has craved, but I think what you look at is they put in the weakest candidate they could put in," Haley said.
Haley repeatedly argued throughout her campaign that everyone was aware of Biden’s mental decline leading up to the election.
"And let's be very clear if they think it's going to be President Biden, a vote for President Biden, it's actually a vote for President Harris," Haley told "Fox & Friends" in 2023. "We are running against Kamala Harris. Make no bones about it. The New York Times knows it. Every liberal knows it. They know that it's Kamala Harris that's going to end up being President of the United States if Joe Biden wins this election."
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Biden officially dropped out of the presidential race on Sunday with a statement on X. He later endorsed Harris as the Democratic candidate, and she has quickly consolidated support and become the de facto nominee.
