Haley rules out a No Labels bid for president
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Nikki Haley says she has ruled out joining No Labels as a third-party presidential candidate because she's not willing to choose a Democratic running mate for vice president.
Why it matters: The former UN ambassador is the lone Republican still challenging former President Trump for the party's nomination — and with her prospects dimming with each primary, there was some speculation she'd try a third-party bid.
- Not so, Haley said Friday at a roundtable with journalists.
- "If I were to do No Labels, that would require a Democrat vice president," Haley said.
- "I can't do what I want to do as president with a Democrat vice president."
The big picture: Haley repeatedly has said she is focused on next week's Super Tuesday contests, when 15 states and American Samoa will hold contests.
- Haley continues to criss-cross the country and raise money even as she faces increasingly long odds in the Republican primary and a major backer — the Koch-backed Americans for Prosperity Action PAC — stopped spending on her behalf this week.
- Meanwhile, No Labels has openly expressed interest in Haley. The group — which aims to tap into the dissatisfaction at the likely Biden-Trump matchup in this year's presidential race — has said it will decide whether to jump into the race after Super Tuesday.
- "I haven't talked to anybody" about a No Labels bid, Haley said.
- "I know they have sent smoke signals. But I'm a Republican, and at the end of the day, my sole focus is this primary."
Zoom in: Haley said her priorities — shrinking the government, pushing federal funds to states and a "peace through strength" foreign policy — would rule out sharing a ticket with a Democrat.
- "If I ran for No Labels, that would mean it's about me," she said.
- "It's not about me. It's about the direction I think the country should go."
Zoom out: During the past week Haley has campaigned in Minnesota, Utah and Colorado. Her campaign announced she raised $12 million in February.
- She has events scheduled in North Carolina, Massachusetts, Vermont, Maine and Texas in the run-up to Super Tuesday.
