Fact check Nikki Haley on the campaign trail

Former South Carolina governor Nikki Haley was the first prominent candidate to declare a challenge to former President Donald J. Trump’s bid for the Republican presidential nomination.

Since entering the race in February, Ms. Haley has championed social issues and used her experience as a former UN ambassador under Trump to criticize current US foreign policy.

Here’s a fact-check of her recent comments on the campaign trial.

Sex and gender issues

What Mrs. Haley SAID

“Roe v. Wade came in and threw out 46 state laws and suddenly said abortion, anytime, anywhere, for any reason.”
— at a CNN town hall in June

This is exaggerated. Ms. Haley exaggerates the scope of the landmark Roe v. Wade ruling, which established a constitutional right to abortion. The 1973 decision also prevented states from banning abortions before the fetus was viable, or when a fetus cannot survive outside the womb. That’s not the same as “anytime,” as Mrs. Haley said. That time was about 28 weeks after conception at the time of the decision and now, due to advances in medicine, is around 23 or 24 weeks.

Before the Supreme Court overturned Roe in June 2022, most states had laws banning the procedure at some point, with 22 states banning abortions between 13 and 24 weeks and 20 states banning viable abortion. A spokesperson for Ms. Haley noted that six states and Washington, D.C., had no restrictions when Roe was overthrown.

What Mrs. Haley SAID

“How should we get our girls used to having biological boys in their dressing rooms? And then we wonder why last year a third of our teenage girls seriously considered suicide.”
— at CNN’s City Hall

This lacks evidence. In February, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported record levels of sadness and suicidal ideation among teenage girls. And depression among teens, especially girls, has been on the rise for more than a decade. The causes are debated, but experts said there is no research pointing to the presence of trans youth athletes in locker rooms, or increased awareness of LGBTQ issues in general, as a causative or even contributing factor.

“I can say unequivocally that there is absolutely no research evidence to support that claim,” says Dr. Kimberly Hoagwood, a child psychologist and professor at New York University. “The reasons for the increased prevalence of depression and suicide among teenage girls are complex, but have been extensively researched.”

Dr. David Brent, a professor of psychiatry at the University of Pittsburgh, noted that rates of teenage depression have been on the rise since the 2000s, while widespread discussion and awareness of gender issues is a more recent development.

“It can be stressful for some people, including the trans kids,” he said. “But to try and say that’s the cause, well, you just can’t because this is a public health crisis that’s been going on for 15 years.”

Possible factors in rising rates of teen depression include economic stress, the rise of social media, lower puberty, increased opioid use and depression among adult caregivers, said Dr. Brent. There is also the general decrease in play and peer-related time, decreases in social skills and other social problems, Dr. Elizabeth Englander, a child psychologist and professor at Bridgewater State University, in an email. LGBTQ youth also have a higher risk of mental health problems, According to the CDC

“Even if anyone has found an association between association with trans or LGBTQ youth and increased depression in heterosexual youth (which, to my knowledge, no one has), it seems incredibly unlikely that such contact is a major cause of the current mental health crisis. health that we see in youth,” added Dr. Englander, calling Ms. Haley’s theory “outrageous.”

Foreign policy

What Mrs. Haley SAID

“If we really want to improve the environment, let’s start serious talks with India and China. They are our polluters. They are the ones causing the problem.”
— at CNN’s City Hall

This needs context. Ms Haley has a point that China is the largest emitter of greenhouse gases and India is the third largest emitter. according to the latest data from the European Commission. But the United States is the second largest emitting country.

In addition, India and China are the most populous countries in the world and emit less per capita than many wealthier countries. In 2021, China will emit 8.7 tons of carbon dioxide per capita and India 1.9 tons, compared to the United States’ 14.24 tons.

Ms Haley’s spokesperson noted that China and India’s emissions have increased in recent years compared to the downward trend in the United States and the United States. two largest coal producers.

Yet the two developing countries bear less historical responsibility than richer countries. The United States is responsible for about 24.6 percent of historical emissions, China 13.9 percent and India 3.2 percent.

What Mrs. Haley SAID

“Last year we gave more than $50 billion in foreign aid. Do you know who we gave it to? We have given it to Pakistan which harbors terrorists who try to kill our soldiers. We gave it to Iraq that has Iranian influence that says “death to America.” We gave it to Zimbabwe, the most anti-American African country in existence. We gave it to Belarus, which holds hands with Russia as they invade Ukraine. We gave money to communist Cuba, which we called a state sponsor of terrorism. And yes, the most unthinkable, we give money to China.”
— at a June fundraiser in Iowa

This is misleading. In fiscal year 2022, which ended in September, the United States gave up $50 billion in foreign aid. But the six countries Ms Haley mentioned received a total of about $835 million in aid or 1.7 percent of the total. In addition, most foreign aid — about 77 percent, according to the nonpartisan Congressional Research Service — is channeled through a U.S. corporation or non-profit organization, international charity, or federal agency to carry out projects, and not transferred directly to foreign governments.

Zimbabwe received $399 million, Iraq $248 million, Pakistan $147 million, Belarus $32.8 million, Cuba $6.8 million and China $1.7 million.

The largest single contracts to help Zimbabwe and Pakistan were $30 million and $16.5 million to the World Food Program to provide meals and alleviate hunger. In Iraq, the largest $29 million contract was awarded to a United Nations agency. And in Cuba, the third-largest contract was executed by the International Republican Institute — a pro-democracy nonprofit whose board includes Iowa Senator Joni Ernst, the host of the fundraiser where Ms. Haley spoke.

By comparison, the country receiving the most foreign aid, about $10.5 billion or one-fifth of the total amount, was Ukraine, followed by Ethiopia ($2.1 billion), Yemen ($1.4 billion), Afghanistan ($1.3 billion) and Nigeria ($1.1 billion). billion).

Another $12 billion was spent on global relief efforts overall, including about $4 billion in grants to the Global Fund, an international group that funds campaigns against HIV, tuberculosis and malaria.

Domestic policy

What Mrs. Haley SAID

“We will stop giving hundreds of billions of dollars in handouts to illegal immigrants.”
— at CNN’s City Hall

This is disputed. Being unauthorized immigrants barred from taking advantage of most federal social safety net programs such as Medicaid and food stamps. But Ms. Haley’s spokesperson gave examples of recent payments by local governments that allowed unauthorized immigrants to participate in benefit programs: $2.1 billion in one-time payments to $15,600 to New York immigrants who lost jobs during the Covid-19 pandemic, totaling $ 2.1 billion; $1 million for payments to families in Boston during the pandemic; admit unauthorized immigrants to participate in California’s health care program for low-income residents, which could cost $2.2 billion annually.

However, these do not add up to “hundreds of billions.” That figure matches an estimate by an anti-immigration group that other researchers have heavily criticized for its methodological flaws.

The group, the Federation for American Immigration Reform, estimated in March that illegal immigration costs the United States and local governments $135.2 billion each year in education, health care, and welfare, and an additional $46.9 billion in law enforcement.

But the Cato Institute, a libertarian think tank, has found that an earlier but similar version of the estimate overstated the social benefits undocumented immigrants receive and understated the taxes they pay. According to Cato, the net costs are actually that $3.3 billion to $15.6 billion.

The US Immigration Board concluded similarly that education and health care accounted for more than half the cost, and that the benefits were provided to many American children of undocumented immigrants.

That’s an estimated 11 million unauthorized immigrants living in the United States excluded from the vast majority of federal government safety net programs. This was established by the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine in 2017 immigration, illegal and legal, benefited the economy.

What Mrs. Haley SAID

“Let’s start reclaiming the $500 billion of unused Covid dollars out there.”
— at CNN’s City Hall

This is exaggerated. Ms Haley exaggerated the amount of unused coronavirus emergency funding. In reality, the amount is estimated to be much smaller, about $60 billion. What’s more, a budget deal between President Biden and speaker Kevin McCarthy that was signed into law a day before Ms. Haley spoke rescinded about $30 billion of that leftover money.

Lawmakers have approved trillions of dollars in economic stimulus and public health funding, most of which has already been spent. The official federal government spending website estimates that Congress approved about $4.65 trillion in response to Covid-19 (referred to as “budget appropriations”) and disbursed $4.23 trillion (or “expenses”) as of April 30, suggesting about $423 billion has not been spent out the door. But that calculation doesn’t take into account the promises of payment (or “commitments”) that have been made, about $4.52 trillion. That’s a difference of about $130 billion, but some of the initially approved funding that was not spent and not yet committed has already expired.

In April, the Congressional Budget Office estimated that withdrawing voluntary funding from six bills between 2020 and 2023 — the four coronavirus packages, President Donald J. Trump’s latest spending measure, and President Biden’s $1.9 trillion stimulus package — would amount to about $56 billion. The Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget, a nonpartisan group that supports reduced government spending, estimated approximately $55.5 billion in unused funds.