(TheConservativeTimes.org) – Entrepreneur and 2024 presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy’s campaign slammed conservative pundit Ann Coulter. In a recent tweet, she said that “Nikki and Vivek are involved in some Hindu business,” describing the back-and-forth between Ramaswamy and former South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley in a manner that some have deemed “racist,” despite Hinduism being a religious belief. Furthermore, while Ramaswamy is a Hindu, Haley was raised as a Sikh and later converted to Christianity.
Tricia McLaughlin, communications director for the Ramaswamy campaign, said that Ann is entitled to her tweet, but that Ramaswamy will earn and receive the support of Christian voters. McLaughlin doubled down, saying that “Vivek shares and lives by the same Judeo-Christian values that this nation was founded on,” about grouping Christianity and Judaism as the founding principles of the United States. Some on the right have been critical of describing America as Judeo-Christian since none of the founding fathers were Jewish.
Coulter’s post originated from the heated exchange between Ramaswamy and Haley over foreign policy. Ramaswamy did not support the additional provision of U.S. foreign aid to Ukraine during the war with Russia. Haley attacked him, stating that the U.S. should assist Ukraine, Taiwan, and Israel. Haley doubled down, even going as far as to say that the U.S. needs Israel rather than vice versa. Commitment to Israel also came from former Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson, who toted an Israel-USA lapel pin, signaling his support for their state.
After the debate, FiveThirtyEight determined that DeSantis, Ramaswamy, and Haley had the best debate performances according to likely Republican primary voters. Despite this, Haley remains amid the pack of other candidates according to their aggregate polling, while Ramaswamy broke into the double digits. Former President Donald Trump is leading with 51.6%, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis at 14.8%, and Ramaswamy is at 10.3%. Meanwhile, the other debate-goers are all beneath 5%. Former Vice President Mike Pence is at 4.2%, South Carolina Sen. Tim Scott is at 3.7%, former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie is at 3.5%, Haley is at 3.4%, Hutchinson is at 0.7%, and North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum is at 0.5%. With only months away until the first primaries begin, candidates are trying to catch up to the momentum of the Trump campaign.
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