In what is clearly a big boost for Nikki Randhawa Haley, the Indian-American Governor of South Carolina, the Republican establishment has handpicked her for a prestigious assignment: to deliver the Republican response to President Barack Obama’s State of the Union address on January 12.
The assignment comes at a most opportune moment for the 43-year-old Haley, one of the rising Republican stars who could be tapped by the party’ s presidential nominee as the vice-presidential running mate, given the fact that she is a well-regarded female governor who also belongs to a minority community. She also happens to be America’s youngest governor.
Announcing their choice of Haley for the Republican response to what will be Obama’s last State of the Union address, House Speaker Paul Ryan and Senate Majority leader Mitch McConnell lauded her for having emerged as “one of the most popular governors in America”
Speaker Ryan said Haley has led an economic turnaround and set a bold agenda for her State and getting things done. “In a year when the country is crying out for a positive vision and alternative to the status quo, Governor Haley is the exact right choice to deliver the Republican Address to the Nation,” he said.