Nikki Haley Delivers Absolutely Savage Burn of Vivek Ramaswamy at GOP Debate

Nikki Haley finally snapped at Vivek Ramaswamy during the Republican debate Wednesday night.

Ramaswamy warned about the dangers of social media but also said he was trying to connect with younger voters through TikTok. Ramaswamy joined TikTok two weeks ago, just days after he referred to the app as “digital fentanyl.”

Haley tore into him for his flip—and for his talking points in general. “Honestly, every time I hear you, I feel a little bit dumber for what you say,” she said.

She described TikTok as “one of the most dangerous social media apps” and called Ramaswamy untrustworthy.

But before you give her too much credit: Haley’s attack on Ramaswamy is particularly ironic considering the highly complimentary blurb she wrote for his book Woke, Inc., which was published in 2021.

Republicans love to hate on TikTok, warning that the Chinese-owned app is a threat to national security and data privacy. But the app is still hugely popular among young people. Restricting TikTok in any way could actually backfire on lawmakers and alienate younger voters.

It’s a big night for DeSantis, and he’s putting on a smile—a creepy facsimile of one, anyway.

At the second Republican presidential debate on Wednesday, Ron Desantis once again tried to smile normally and once again failed.

Viewers watching the debate couldn’t help but notice that when speaking about vetoing “bloating spending bills,” DeSantis plastered a faltering smile on his face, which quickly fell into a disturbed grimace.

DeSantis had the exact same problem during the first Republican debate last month, when his failed attempt to smile quickly became a viral meme.

DeSantis has demonstrated a slew of robotic behavior, from short-circuiting before the press, to seeming like a stock photo model in a series of pictures from 2015 meant to communicate that he was just a regular human man.

At this point, not every viewer is buying that the awkward DeSantis can even hold a conversation.

Joe Biden used Republicans’ own words Wednesday to take aim at their party’s 2024 front-runner.

Trump once again skipped the Republican debate, but his presence was still felt. Florida Governor Ron DeSantis finally found an ounce of spine and called Trump out for not attending the debate.

“He owes it to you to defend his record, where they added $7.8 trillion to the debt. That set the stage for the inflation that we have now,” DeSantis said to applause.

Biden had a simple and hilarious response.

Republicans repeatedly blame Biden for the high debt and inflation. They claim that some of his signature policies, such as to provide financial aid during the pandemic or the Build Back Better Act, are the main contributors.

In reality, Republicans raised the debt ceiling multiple times under Trump. And inflation is high in part because Trump made the U.S. economy weaker.

Joe Biden aired an ad on Fox News just 10 minutes before the beginning of Wednesday’s Republican presidential debate.

Just moments before the debate, the pro-Biden political ad targeted what was sure to be a central issue on the debate stage: jobs.

The ad clearly stated all that Trump failed to do for workers and the U.S. economy

“He says he stands with auto workers, but as president, Donald Trump passed tax breaks for his rich friends while automakers shuttered their plants, and Michigan lost manufacturing jobs,” the ad said directly to Republican voters tuning in to watch the debate.

Trump is noticeably absent from the debate.

The ad also highlighted what Biden has done for the economy, including increasing wages, emphasizing that he has followed through on his commitment to support workers. 

“Joe Biden doesn’t just talk, he delivers,” the ad said. On Tuesday, Biden visited striking auto workers on the picket line in Michigan, a first for a sitting president.

Donald Trump argued that he didn’t fraudulently inflate the value of his real estate holdings because he could sell them to Saudi buyers at any price he chooses.

The revelation comes in one small footnote in a ruling Tuesday that Trump and his company had committed business fraud for years. The lawsuit, brought by New York Attorney General Letitia James, found that Trump had dramatically inflated his net worth, by as much as $3.6 billion in one year. She accused Trump of lying about the value of various real estate assets.

But in a deposition, Trump “seems to imply that the numbers cannot be inflated because he could find a ‘buyer from Saudi Arabia’ to pay any price he suggests,” New York state Supreme Court Judge Arthur Engoron wrote in his ruling.

“This statement may suggest influence buying more than savvy investing,” he added in a footnote.

The lawsuit alleges that Trump claimed his Trump Tower apartment in Manhattan was three times its actual size and worth $327 million. No New York City apartment has ever sold for that much, James said.

He also valued Mar-a-Lago at $739 million. In reality, it’s worth about a tenth of that amount. Trump’s valuation was based on the property’s potential for residential development, but the terms of its deed prevent the land from ever being used that way.

Trump and his allies have always had troubling connections with Saudi Arabia. In 2019, Trump administration officials revealed to Congress that they transferred nuclear technology to Riyadh at least twice, after the killing of U.S. resident and Washington Post journalist Jamal Khashoggi. These incidents occurred despite U.S. intelligence concluding that Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, referred to as MBS, hired the hit men who killed Khashoggi.

Trump has also hosted LIV Golf tournaments at his clubs. The Saudi-backed golf league is widely seen as an attempt to sportswash the country’s human rights record.

Beyond Trump, his son-in-law Jared Kushner launched an investment fund after they left the White House. One of the first investments Kushner received was $2 billion from a Saudi sovereign wealth fund. Last week, MBS suggested that money would stay with Kushner if Trump were reelected in 2024.