As Republican presidential hopeful Nikki Haley continues to face backlash for refusing to say the Civil War was about slavery — and subsequently earning more criticism for her attempts to backpedal — “The View” host Ana Navarro is pretty sure this wasn’t a mistake.
In fact, she’s confident that Haley and other are making “strategic” moves when it comes to addressing slavery.
During Friday’s episode of “The View,” Navarro criticized Haley for how she’s handled the situation, saying that the cause of the Civil War is “not a trick question.” But, she also criticized Ron DeSantis for piling on Haley for her comments.
Reminding the audience that DeSantis himself has tried to claim that there were upsides to slavery for Black people, Navarro argued that both he and Haley may actually be making these statements intentionally, but trying to claim they’re mistakes.
“I don’t think what’s happening in the Republican party with Nikki Haley, with Ron DeSantis, is a gaffe, is a verbal gaffe,” she said. “I think it’s a strategic decision not to antagonize racists who are part of the base!”
You can watch the full discussion from “The View” in the video below.