United States Ambassador to the United Nations, Nikki Haley, stunned the world with resignation rumors on October 9. Notions of her resignation started circulating early in the morning, with a confirmation of the event by President Trump’s tweet, saying, “Big announcement with my friend Ambassador Nikki Haley in the Oval Office at 10:30 am”.
A graduate of Clemson University, Haley ran for office in the South Carolina House of Representatives in 2005, staying until 2010. From there, Haley successfully ran for the position of Governor, in which she led South Carolina from 2011 to 2017. She was regarded by many as a voice of reason, and she also was praised for her ability to lead, even when party affiliation or backgrounds were dissenting.
Haley’s undeniable abilities were noticed by Washington in the latter part of 2016, and president-elect Donald Trump decided to pick her for the position of the United States Ambassador to the United Nations. After a 94-6 vote by the Senate, Nikki Haley became the first female in Trump’s future administration. Haley accepted the offer graciously and resigned her gubernatorial position in South Carolina to make the trek to New York.
Throughout her time as an Ambassador, Haley saw first-hand the difficulties of maintaining the peace on a global stage. She was thrown head first into a world of Russia, North Korea and Iran, yet still managed to maintain an impressive level-headedness when things got messy. Haley, though a Republican, is one of a few politicians with supporters on all sides of ideological lines. Here widespread support made her sudden resignation on October 9, 2018 that much more shocking.
After some clarification, the final verdict on Ambassador Haley’s departure was the simple fact that she was exhausted from the demand of her position. During the October 9 press conference, Haley and Trump discussed Haley’s plans, all of which were kept under wraps until the midterm election season. President Trump stated that Haley discussed taking a break from the Ambassadorship at the end of 2018, which would be a natural stopping point given midterm timing.
Ambassador Haley and her leadership in the United Nations was full of international battles, some dire and others inconsequential, yet she was heeded as the voice of reason for many of her international colleagues, as well her domestic colleagues. After her resignation announcement, people of all parties wished her well in her future endeavors. Though not imminent, Haley claimed that she was not opposed to being back in the national spotlight, and that she was truly humbled by the opportunity of pursuing such a defining position.
