(CNSNews.com) – Former Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley on Monday night skewered Joe Biden over some of the most pressing foreign policy issues of recent years, calling the Democratic presidential nominee “a godsend to everyone who wants America to apologize, abstain, and abandon our values.”
Haley, the daughter of Indian immigrants who became the first minority governor of South Carolina, also used her address to the Republican National Convention to tackle the subject of race.
“In much of the Democratic Party, it’s now fashionable to say that America is racist,” she said. “That is a lie. America is not a racist country.”
But first, Haley focused on foreign policy, confronting Biden in an area that he considers to be one of his key strengths. (“The reason why Barack picked me to be vice president was because of my background in international affairs,” he told a Nevada townhall last February.)
In doing so, she underlined the Trump administration’s candidly critical approach to the U.N., in contrast to that of the Obama-Biden administration, which prioritized engagement.
“The U.N. is not for the faint of heart,” Haley said. “It’s a place where dictators, murderers, and thieves denounce America – and then put their hands out and demand that we pay their bills.”
“Well, President Trump put an end to all of that,” she said:
With his leadership, we did what Barack Obama and Joe Biden refused to do: We stood up for America. And we stood against our enemies.
Obama and Biden let North Korea threaten America. President Trump rejected that weakness, and we passed the toughest sanctions on North Korea in history.
Obama and Biden let Iran get away with murder and literally sent them a plane full of cash. President Trump did the right thing and ripped up the Iran nuclear deal.
Obama and Biden led the United Nations to denounce our friend and ally, Israel. President Trump moved our embassy to Jerusalem – and when the U.N. tried to condemn us, I was proud to cast the American veto.
In September 2017, days after the Kim Jong Un regime carried out its first nuclear test since Trump took office – but its sixth since 2006 – the U.N. Security Council adopted the toughest sanctions against Pyongyang yet. Although opposition from Russia and China prevented a total oil embargo, the measure banned more than 90 percent of the regime’s publicly-reported exports.
Haley contrasted Trump’s decision to withdraw from the Iran nuclear deal in mid-2018 to his predecessor’s payment to Tehran of $400 million in cash – in settlement of a decades-old legal claim, plus an additional $1.3 billion in interest. Critics worried the regime would use the windfall to finance malign activities across the region.
The third example cited by Haley touched on one of America’s most important bilateral relationships, usually enjoying strong bipartisan support. Weeks before leaving office the Obama-Biden administration deliberately chose not to veto a U.N. Security Council resolution describing areas including the location Jerusalem of the holiest site in Judaism as “occupied Palestinian territory.”
Haley contrasted that controversial decision to abstain with Trump’s decision to move the embassy to Jerusalem – a requirement in U.S. law which three former presidents had refused to observe. When the Security Council sought to overturn Trump’s recognition of Jerusalem as Israel’s capital, Haley vetoed the resolution.
Trump had “a record of strength and success” while Biden had “a record of weakness and failure,” she said on Monday.
“Joe Biden is good for Iran and ISIS, great for communist China, and he’s a godsend to everyone who wants America to apologize, abstain, and abandon our values,” she said.
“Donald Trump takes a different approach. He’s tough on China, and he took on ISIS and won. And he tells the world what it needs to hear.”
‘Even on our worst day, we are blessed to live in America’
Confronting the issue of race, Haley cited her experience as the child of immigrants who wore a turban and a sari, saying while they faced discrimination and hardship, “my parents never gave in to grievance and hate.”
“My mom built a successful business. My dad taught 30 years at a historically black college. And the people of South Carolina chose me as their first minority and first female governor,” she said.
“America is a story that’s a work in progress. Now is the time to build on that progress, and make America even freer, fairer, and better for everyone. That’s why it’s so tragic to see so much of the Democratic Party turn a blind eye toward riots and rage.”
Alluding to the “black lives matter” catchphrase, Haley continued, “of course we value and respect every black life. The black cops who’ve been shot in the line of duty – they matter. The black small business owners who’ve watched their life’s work go up in flames – they matter. The black kids who’ve been gunned down on the playground – their lives matter too. And their lives are being ruined and stolen by the violence on our streets.”
Haley recalled the killing by a white supremacist of nine African Americans in a church shooting in Charleston, S.C. five years ago, and the subsequent decision to remove the Confederate flag from the state Capitol grounds.
“After that horrific tragedy, we didn’t turn against each other,” she said. “We came together – black and white, Democrat and Republican. Together, we made the hard choices needed to heal – and removed a divisive symbol, peacefully and respectfully.”
“What happened then should give us hope now,” Haley said. “America isn’t perfect. But the principles we hold dear are perfect. If there’s one thing I’ve learned, it’s that even on our worst day, we are blessed to live in America.”
“It’s time to keep that blessing alive for the next generation. This president, and this party, are committed to that noble task.”
