Republican presidential candidate Nikki Haley’s campaign has banned another journalist from one of its events after he sought response to DailyMail.com’s exclusive reporting on resurfaced infidelity claims.
The Spectator’s DC gossip columnist, who writes under the pseudonym “Cockburn,” revealed in a column that a Haley co-worker kicked him out of an event in Amherst, New Hampshire, on Friday.
DailyMail.com was also asked to leave the same event, a meet-and-greet at Mary Ann’s Diner, and an aide to Haley has said that our outlet will not be allowed to cover her future campaign events.
The expulsions came after DailyMail.com published a story Friday morning exclusively reporting allegations that Haley falsely denied cheating on her husband when she was accused of having two extramarital affairs during her 2010 South Carolina gubernatorial campaign.
The Haley campaign did not respond to requests for comment on these allegations, even though DailyMail.com gave them 24 hours to do so.
Republican presidential candidate Nikki Haley attends a campaign stop at Mary Ann’s Diner in Amherst, New Hampshire on Friday. Journalists from two outlets were removed from the event
The Spectator columnist, who covered several Haley events in New Hampshire this week, wrote that he learned of the DailyMail.com report after arriving at the Amherst event.
“Of course, Cockburn was curious to see if Haley or her team had seen the story or had any reaction. He asked a young male staffer who was part of her entourage – and he said no,” the columnist wrote.
The Spectator journalist said that while he was watching Haley give a television interview, “an even younger male employee” came up to him and asked which outlet he was at.
The journalist wrote that when he told the employee he was writing for the British news magazine The Spectator, he barked “out” of the employee and sent him out of the restaurant, even though there were other reporters inside.
In a column later Friday, referencing New Hampshire’s state motto, the journalist said he “decided to live free rather than die at the hands of a neoconservative teenager — and headed out into the snow.”
Neither the Haley campaign nor the pseudonymous Spectator columnist responded to requests for comment from DailyMail.com on Saturday morning.
In addition, a DailyMail.com reporter and photographer was asked to leave Haley’s Friday morning event at Mary Ann’s Diner, a public restaurant where the former South Carolina governor spoke to voters.
‘Daily Mail has no credentials for any more events. I’m politely asking you to leave,” Haley spokeswoman Chaney Denton said, pointing to the door.
When asked if this would be in effect for the rest of the campaign, Denton said “yes.”
Denton later told an editor at DailyMail.com that the publication had been banned for “printing lies.”
Ironically, Haley answered questions from the press at the event and spoke generally about attacks against her. Donald Trump has stepped up his criticism of her as she has risen in the polls.
“If people hit me, this is political. To me, it’s not personal,” Haley said.
Nikki Haley is seen in 2015 with her husband Michael, a businessman and commissioned officer in the South Carolina Army National Guard. Haley regularly cites her husband as a major reason for her presidential bid and features him in campaign ads.
Shortly after the event, the DailyMail.com reporter was told that the application for credentials for a meeting in Manchester on Friday evening had been rejected.
“We apologize, but due to high interest and limited space, we CANNOT accommodate you for tonight’s event in Manchester, NH. Please do not attempt to attend as you will be turned away at the door,” the email said.
To cover an event, a news organization fills out an online form and then receives a confirmation email from the campaign confirming that it has signed up for the event.
DailyMail.com did not receive confirmation for Haley events on Friday, even though it was authorized to cover her two events on Thursday.
The former UN ambassador campaigned furiously in the Granite State on Tuesday ahead of the primaries.
The vote is seen as one of her last chances to close the gap with front-runner Trump, and a poor outcome would be disastrous for her prospects in the White House.
She also suffered a blow Friday when South Carolina Sen. Tim Scott censured her and revealed he would support Trump.
Haley’s campaign had tried to woo the Republican, whom she first appointed to the Senate while serving as governor, but ultimately went with the frontrunner, citing their “very good relationship.”
DailyMail.com has been covering Haley’s campaign since she launched her presidential bid in February 2023.
Our reporters have been to several of her events, including her official launch, and on the road with her in Iowa and New Hampshire.
Signed affidavits obtained by DailyMail.com, and now multiple witnesses claim Haley had sexual relations with Columbia lobbyist Larry Marchant Jr., 61, (left) and her communications adviser Will Folks before she was elected governor in 2010
DailyMail.com has covered many of Haley’s campaign events, including Thursday in New Hampshire, where she posed for photos with voters.
On Friday, Dailymail.com reported on new allegations of an affair that Haley previously denied. New witnesses came forward to say Haley’s denials of two alleged 2008 affairs are false, and that the alleged encounters were brazen and widely known among South Carolina politicians.
Will Folks, 49, and Larry Marchant, 61, both signed affidavits in 2010 alleging they had a sexual relationship with the then-South Carolina lawmaker before she became governor.
Although the contents of the affidavits were reported by major news media at the time, this was the first time they were published outside of Folks’ own document, which he published on his blog.
Haley, 51, denied both at the time, saying she was “100% loyal” to the father of her two children and husband of 28 years, Michael Haley — who deployed to Afghanistan with the National Guard in 2012.
Haley now often cites him as a reason for her presidential candidacy.
She has adopted a new, combative tone during her campaign as polls show her steadily climbing toward the nation’s first primary. Haley’s candidacy hinges on a strong finish in New Hampshire, including a close second-place finish.
Trump leads Haley by 15.7 points in the Polling average from RealClearPolitics of New Hampshire starting Saturday. However, the polls also show that Haley is on an upward trend: over the past two months she has steadily risen from below 20% to 34%.
Trump, in turn, is going after Haley.
“I don’t know if she’s a Democrat, but she’s very close. She is way too close for you,” the former president told voters at a rally in Portsmouth on Wednesday evening.
His campaign is also hitting her hard with ads across the state.
Haley finished a disappointing third in the Iowa caucuses on Monday, but polls show she could do much better in New Hampshire, where she has devoted a lot of time and attention. Trump won Iowa by 30 points.
