WASHINGTON – Nikki Halley the US ambassador to the U.N. has been leftembarrassed by none other than his trusted boss Donald Trump.
She is seen as a trusted hand who has won President Trump’s confidence, tothe extent that she is often spoken of as a possible Secretary of State.
There are occasions when she has even gone against the man she opposedearly in the presidential election cycle, such as disagreeing with his ideafor a Muslim-ban. And on Russia, she has frequently pushed for a harderline than Trump would allow.
On Monday, Haley found that she had not only gone out on a limb with herhard line on Russia, but also how temperamental her boss could be, when theWhite House publicly repudiated her announcement that tougher sanctionswere on the cards. The President, it was revealed, was not ready for it andthe matter was still under consideration. “Trump throws Nikki Haley underthe bus,” was an oft-heard expression following the debacle.
Trump’s Russia rollback added fuel to the already raging speculation aboutwhy he is inexplicably soft on Moscow to the extent of undercutting hisaides, intelligence agencies, and security mavens. Jokes abound of hisfondness for Russian leader Vladimir Putin, and the liberal media,particularly late night comedians, have gone to town about how he iscompromised by Moscow and is a stooge of Russia.