Haley gives Trump advice for possible Biden replacement

Former U.N. Ambassador and Republican presidential candidate Nikki Haley offered former President Donald Trump and the party some advice to keep their guard up as Democrats grapple with President Joe Biden 's disastrous debate performance.

As Biden and Trump took the CNN studio stage on Thursday, it took only minutes for Democrats to start grumbling about how Biden might not be the right candidate. He repeatedly stumbled on his words and lost his train of thought, worrying viewers that his age was more of a concern than the White House had let on.

“It was shocking, I think, for a lot of people,” she told the Wall Street Journal. “What we saw was that Trump was strong, but I don’t even think that mattered because Biden was so amazingly unfit. The way he lost his train of thought, the way he couldn’t grasp topics of what he needed to talk about.”

She insisted the party would have to find a replacement for Biden, 81. However, as Republicans have jumped onto this idea, many have assumed it would be inherently beneficial to them — the Democratic Party would look disorganized and panicked, and whoever they get would be less of a political rival to Trump than Biden, the only person who's won against him. Haley instead suggested that a Biden replacement might not be the slam dunk Republicans assume it would be.

“They are going to be smart about it: they’re going to bring somebody younger, they’re going to bring somebody vibrant, they’re going to bring somebody tested,” she said. “This is a time for Republicans to prepare and get ready for what’s to come because there is no way that there will be a surviving Democratic Party if they allow Joe Biden to continue to be the candidate.”

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After Haley dropped out of the race in March, politicos wondered whether Biden or Trump would make the first move to court her more moderate supporters. Biden has made efforts , including an ad titled " If You Voted For Nikki Haley ," which capitalizes on the "birdbrain" nickname Trump gave Haley during the primary. However, in a phone call last week with Trump, the first between the two since she suspended her campaign, the Journal reported she spoke with him about how to win over the 21% of primary voters who have voted for her.

Haley said there was no talk of a role for her in a second Trump administration. She previously served as the U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations under Trump.