Trump Promotes False ‘Birther’ Conspiracy Against Nikki Haley Suggesting That She’s Not A Real U.S. Citizen Eligible To Serve As President

Former President Donald Trump has promoted a false birther conspiracy against his opponent in the Republican presidential primary, former U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley, questioning if she is an American citizen eligible for the presidency.

On January 8, Trump went to Truth Social to post a screenshot of a post from The Gateway Pundit, a right-wing website, discussing the citizenship status of both Haley and her parents.

“In @NikkiHaley’s situation, reports indicate that her parents were not U.S. citizens at the time of her birth in 1972,” the publication wrote in the caption. “Based on the Constitution as interpreted by @PaulIngrassia, this disqualifies Haley from presidential or vice-presidential candidacy under the 12th Amendment.”

Haley was born in Bamberg, South Carolina.

In spite of the claim made by this publication, experts have noted that the 14th Amendment states that people who are born or naturalized in the U.S. are citizens.

“Having been born in South Carolina, [Haley] is clearly a ‘natural born citizen,’ without regard to the fact that her parents were immigrants,” Geoffrey Stone, a University of Chicago professor with expertise in constitutional law, stated.

Stone noted that the claims against Haley were wildly off the mark, arguing that there was no valid case that would disqualify Haley from the presidency due to her parents’ citizenship.

The former U.N. ambassador has continuously brought up the immigrant history of her parents on the campaign trail.

According to her office, Haley’s father, Ajit Randhawa, became an American citizen in 1978. Her mother, Raj Randhawa, was granted U.S. citizenship in 2003.

This is not the first time Trump has tried to draw attention to a political opponent’s eligibility as president.

Trump partially rose to political fame by promoting a conspiracy theory that then-President Barack Obama was not born in the U.S. and was instead born in Kenya, therefore making him ineligible as president.

When the 2016 GOP primary took place, Trump claimed that Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas), one of his opponents at the time, was not eligible due to his being born in Canada.

Trump has been targeting Haley at recent rallies, and his campaign also issued many press releases targeting her on immigration, China and her position on the gas tax during her time as governor. A Trump-aligned super PAC launched an ad in early January in which it attacked Haley on border policy.

Trump himself is facing eligibility questions. In December, Maine’s Secretary of State Shenna Bellows removed Trump from the state’s 2024 primary ballots, saying that he violated section three of the 14th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, which forbids those who participate in insurrection from holding a high position of government.

During a New Hampshire campaign event in late December, Haley stated, if she were to be elected president, then she would pardon Trump, noting that pardoning him would help America move on after years of divisive politics.