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Campaign Almanac: Nikki Haley campaign launches first TV ad in Iowa, New Hampshire
Also, new Vivek Ramaswamy ad features childhood piano teacher singing former pupil's praises
Nikki Haley’s presidential campaign is launching its first ad of the Republican presidential primary on Friday, highlighting “chaos in our streets” and calling for a president with “moral clarity.”
The spot, airing Friday, is part of a previously announced $10 million ad buy in Iowa and New Hampshire.
The 30-second spot will run on broadcast and cable TV and across digital platforms, according to Haley’s campaign. The former United Nations ambassador and former South Carolina governor had previously relied on TV advertising paid for by SFA Fund Inc., the super PAC backing Haley’s bid for the White House.
The ad, first reported by Politico, features video of Haley taking a vote during a United Nations Security Council meeting and visiting Israel. It also shows footage of shootings in the street, recent pro-Palestinian protests in front of the White House, and 2018 video of Iranian lawmakers burning a paper U.S. flag in Tehran.
“A president must have moral clarity and know the difference between good and evil,” Haley says in the ad. “Today, China, Russia, and Iran are advancing. There’s chaos in our streets and college campuses. Our security is threatened at home and abroad.
“It’s time for a new generation of conservative leadership,” Haley says in the ad. “We have to leave behind the chaos and drama of the past and strengthen our country, our pride, and our purpose.”
While Haley doesn’t directly mention former President Donald Trump, the current GOP presidential front-runner, Haley has said on the campaign trail — including at a campaign town hall in Dubuque earlier this month — that while she agrees with many of Trump’s policies and was "proud to serve in his administration“ that ”the reality is chaos follows him. … We don't want that chaos to continue to follow us when we have all these threats around."
The ad launch comes days after Haley was endorsed by Americans for Prosperity Action, the political arm of the influential conservative network led by billionaire Charles Koch. AFP Action, in its endorsement, promised to commit its nationwide coalition of activists to help Haley defeat Trump in the GOP primary contest, the Associated Press reported.
“Additionally, in the coming days, we’ll launch extensive mail, digital, and connected television campaigns to supplement those on-the-ground efforts,” AFP Action wrote in a memo of its endorsement.
Haley, though, remains far behind Trump in polls, both in Iowa and nationally.
“The world is on fire, and Americans are desperate for a leader with moral clarity who will make America strong and proud,” Haley campaign spokesperson Olivia Perez-Cubas said in a statement. “Americans are tired of the chaos and drama of the past. Nikki Haley is the one candidate who offers both a new conservative direction for the country and is a hands-down winner against Joe Biden.”
New ad shows softer side to firebrand 2024 GOP candidate
Ohio biotech entrepreneur and GOP presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy’s campaign launched a new TV ad Thursday running in Iowa and New Hampshire. The ad features Ramaswamy's childhood piano teacher, Mary Ann Jordan, singing her former star pupil's praises.
"I know Vivek Ramaswamy because I was his piano teacher. I would teach Vivek about the Constitution after his piano lessons. I taught Vivek to love liberty,“ Jordan says in the ad. ”Vivek is a true conservative. I put him in that same category with Ronald Reagan and Donald Trump. He has the same ability, and he's not afraid. I think our country would be very blessed to have Vivek.“
The ad features a photo of Ramaswamy at the piano as a child and video of Ramaswamy today playing the piano.
"She was probably the first true hard-line conservative that I met,“ Ramaswamy said in a statement. ”She brought a biography of Ronald Reagan one day. I was in high school them, and she brought it to me as an assignment to read it.“
The new ad, which shows a softer side to the firebrand 2024 GOP presidential candidate, is part of a current media buy and will run on cable and broadcast in Iowa and New Hampshire for the next two weeks, according to Ramaswamy’s campaign.
Trump coming to Cedar Rapids, Coralville ahead of Iowa caucuses
Former President Donald Trump will visit Ankeny, Cedar Rapids and Coralville in the next two weeks.
Trump, the current Republican presidential front-runner, will speak at a campaign event at Kirkwood Community College on Saturday. Doors will open at noon and Trump is scheduled to deliver remarks to the crowd at 3 p.m. He is scheduled to hold a campaign event earlier in the day at Whiskey River Ankeny in the Des Moines suburb.
Trump is scheduled to return to Iowa Dec. 13 for another campaign event in Coralville. The event will be held at the Hyatt Regency Coralville Hotel and Conference Center, according to Trump’s campaign. Doors will open at 3 p.m. and Trump is scheduled to deliver remarks at 6 p.m.
In state and national polling, Trump maintains commanding double-digit leads over the rest of the Republican primary field. In rolling averages of polls on Republican presidential candidates in Iowa, Trump’s support is at 47 percent at Real Clear Politics and 44.7 percent at FiveThirtyEight. Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis is at 17.3 percent at Real Clear Politics and 17.5 percent at FiveThirtyEight, or 29.7 and 27.2 points behind Trump, respectively. Former UN Ambassador Nikki Haley sits in third at 14.3 percent and 15.3 percent, respectively.
Trump has been noticeably absent from Republican primary events in Iowa, which will hold the first-in-the-nation Iowa Republican caucuses on Jan. 15, and has skipped the Republican primary debates, citing his commanding lead in early state and national polls.
The fourth Republican debate will be held next Wednesday night in Alabama. Trump again will be absent from the stage, opting instead to headline a closed-door fundraiser in Florida, according to ABC News.
Gazette-Lee Des Moines Bureau
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