Nikki Haley spotlights endorsement of Otto Warmbier’s mother ahead of NH showdown

DOVER, New Hampshire — As part of her closing pitch to Granite State voters, Nikki Haley is revisiting an early endorsement she scored from the mother of Otto Warmbier.

Haley’s campaign is spotlighting Cindy Warmbier in a three-minute TV spot blanketing the New Hampshire airwaves, as she barrels toward a high-stakes clash with former President Donald Trump.

“When we were begging the Obama administration for help, they told us to be quiet and be patient. Nikki told us the opposite. She told me it’s OK to be afraid like I am now, but I had to push through the fear,” Cindy Warmbier said in remarks highlighted by the ad.

Otto Warmbier was apprehended in North Korea in 2016, while he was a college student.

He was later released back to the US in 2017 with severe brain damage and ultimately died at age 22.

The spot comes as Haley’s team is banking heavily on a strong performance in New Hampshire to prove that she has the wherewithal to take on former President Donald Trump.

Trump and Haley have splintered over North Korea in the time since her departure as his US ambassador to the UN.

The 77-year-old former president sought to mend relations with North Korea’s Kim Jung Un.

He met with him in both 2018 and 2019.

“I don’t believe that he [Kim] would have allowed that to happen,” Trump said in 2019, suggesting Kim wasn’t responsible for Otto Warmbier’s condition.

“And some really bad things happened to Otto — some really, really bad things. But he tells me that he didn’t know about it, and I will take him at his word.” 

Haley, who had just concluded her stint in the Trump administration at the time, broke with Trump on that.

“Americans know the cruelty that was placed on Otto Warmbier by the North Korean regime. Our hearts are with the Warmbier family for their strength and courage. We will never forget Otto,” Haley posted on X.

Both Haley and Trump have intensified attacks on one another ahead of the New Hampshire primary.

This week, the two Republican presidential hopefuls seemingly ruled out joining forces on a ticket.

“She is not presidential timber,” Trump declared in Concord, New Hampshire, Friday. “Now when I say that, that probably means that she’s not going to be chosen as the vice president.”

Earlier in the day, Haley also took a possible VP post off the table.

“I don’t want to be anybody’s vice president. That is off the table,” Haley said in Amherst, New Hampshire, the Washington Post reported.

For months, Haley and been evasive on the question.

Some of Trump’s closest allies had fretted over the prospect and warned of a revolt.

New Hampshire’s primary contest will take place next Tuesday.

Trump is far out in front with 46.8%, followed by Haley at 33.3%, and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis at 6% in New Hampshire, according to the latest RealClearPolitics aggregate.