Nikki Haley Torn Apart After Refusing to Admit the Civil War Was About Slavery: 'Sickening'

Presidential hopeful Nikki Haley gave a startling answer when she was asked what she believed sparked the Civil War at a New Hampshire town hall on Wednesday, December 27.

"Well, don’t come with an easy question," the former South Carolina governor quipped. "I think the cause of the Civil War was basically how government was going to run, the freedoms and what people could and couldn’t do. What do you think the cause of the Civil War was?"

The voter who had asked her the question reminded her that he was not the one running for president before expressing his disappointment in her strange comment.

"In the year 2023 it’s astonishing to me that you would answer that question without mentioning the word 'slavery,'" he replied.

Haley responded, "What do you want me to say about slavery?" to which the man said, "You’ve answered my question, thank you."

Not only is the topic of the legality of slavery in the United States what many typically associate with the historical event, but most historians agree slavery was the primary humanitarian and economic issue that led to the Civil War.

Haley promptly received waves of backlash on social media for her remarks. President Joe Biden took to X, formerly known as Twitter, to share the video of her response at the town hall.

"It was about slavery," he wrote.

Democratic Party chair Jaime Harrison also shared the clip, noting: "Not stunning if you were a Black resident in SC when she was Governor."

"Same person who said the confederate flag was about tradition & heritage and as a minority woman she was the right person to defend keeping it on state house grounds," he continued of Haley. "Some may have forgotten but I haven’t. Time to take off the rose colored Nikki Haley glasses folks. "

"She knows she’s competing for [Donald] Trump’s base, sickening though that she’s lowering herself to this level," a separate user penned, while another added, "Oh, I don't know, Nikki, say something about how slavery devastated people's lives? Pretend ... like it matters to you."

A third said, "Nikki Haley is unqualified and unfit to be President of the United States. Period."

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Despite the intense backlash, some critics questioned the point of the voter's question to Haley and what answer would have been more appropriate for her to give.

"We want @NikkiHaley to acknowledge that the Civil War was fought over the southern states claiming it was their 'states' rights' to allow slavery. That is what we want her to say," an X user explained. "We do not want her to pander to the republicans’ racist base with coded language designed to hide their support for racism and slavery. Ask any Democratic candidate. They are never afraid to condemn slavery."