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It doesn't matter, though. Trump doesn't stick to her the way he does to Christie or Pence. She accepted a high position and she praised him, but she didn't get out there on his team and she didn't concede to him the way others did.
All that matters is whether she can unite people who don't particularly like Trump.
My wife asked me about a year ago if I could think of any candidates on the other team (she's a Democrat, I'm neither - never voted for anyone in either party for president) I would ever consider voting for. I mentioned Haley. I was impressed with how she handled herself in South Carolina and some of the things she said with the UN.
But the Haley this year is a different person. She's angry, less thoughtful. Not someone who seems to want to unite or inspire people. I'm left unable to answer my wife's question right now, which means I'll never be able to answer it in the positive.
I don't know what wins primaries, only that large numbers favor those who already have a name. Remember that it's a primary, and the MAGA designation is just a slogan for one candidate within the party. For someone to win and have a chance in the general, she has to walk that tightrope between differentiating herself enough to inspire people to vote and not alienating people she will have to count on in November.
Anyone who sits back and waits for the debates to make a mark is not going anywhere. Now's the time to get out to Iowa and New Hampshire and inspire people, get practice speaking, create a message.
One thing I learned when I lived in New Hampshire was to watch the news coming out of July 4th celebrations. The July 4th speeches, wherever the candidates are speaking, two years and one year before the general, tell you who's ready for the big stage. Didn't hear much last year, but COVID was still an issue.
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