Nikki Haley has issued an ominous warning to Donald Trump after slamming President Joe Biden’s debate performance.
Haley told The Wall Street Journal that given how poorly Biden performed on Thursday night, the Democratic Party will likely replace the current nominee with a younger, more coherent candidate.
She said: ‘They are going to be smart about it: they’re going to bring somebody younger, they’re going to bring somebody vibrant, they’re going to bring somebody tested.’
Trump and the Republicans need to ‘get ready for what’s to come,’ she said.
Biden’s team have repeatedly denied that he will step aside, but rumors of potential replacements are swirling as the president and his team hunker down at Camp David.
Nikki Haley told The Wall Street Journal that given how poorly Biden performed on Thursday night, the Democratic Party are likely going to replace him with a younger candidate
In Thursday’s 90-minute debate, Biden appeared to repeatedly lose his train of thought and struggle to finish sentences.
After the debate, Biden himself said: ‘I don’t walk as easily as I used to. I don’t speak as smoothly as I used to. I don’t debate as well as I used to.’
His performance sparked panic among the Democrats with former key Barack Obama adviser David Axelrod saying there was a ‘sense of shock’ in the party and there would be ‘discussions about whether he (Biden) should continue’.
Haley insisted that the Democratic party has been left with no other option but to replace the aging president.
She told The Journal: ‘What we saw was that Trump was strong, but I don’t even think that mattered because Biden was so amazingly unfit.
‘The way he lost his train of thought, the way he couldn’t grasp topics of what he needed to talk about.
‘This is a time for Republicans to prepare and get ready for what’s to come because there is no way that there will be a surviving Democratic Party if they allow Joe Biden to continue to be the candidate.
‘If they continue down this path and they have Biden as their nominee, they are committing to hurting America.’
Top contenders for a potential replacement include Vice President Kamala Harris, California governor Gavin Newsom or Michigan governor Gretchen Whitmer.
But Biden stepping aside may not help Republican chances, Haley warned, saying that a replacement will be younger, sharper and more charismatic.
Top contenders for a potential replacement include Vice President Kamala Harris, California governor Gavin Newsom or Michigan governor Gretchen Whitmer.
Regardless, Haley called for all politicians over the age of 75 to be required to undergo a mental fitness test.
She said Washington is ‘full of older people,’ and voters need to know ‘who is up to the challenge and who is not’.
Biden’s campaign team did not directly respond to Haley’s comments, but spokesman, Ammar Moussa told The Journal: ‘To the millions of Nikki Haley supporters who are tired of Donald Trump and his MAGA allies constantly attacking them, running moderates and independents out of the party, and repeatedly refusing to commit to accepting the 2024 election results, you have a home in President Biden’s coalition.’