To Fix Sagging Favorability Numbers, Nikki Haley Needs to Apologize for Sexist Remark

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Contact: Rebecca Hain

Telephone: 513-479-3335

To Fix Sagging Favorability Numbers, Nikki Haley Needs to Apologize for Sexist Remark

WASHINGTON / August 30, 2023 – During the August 23 presidential debate, Republican candidate Nikki Haley made the claim, “If you want something said, ask a man. If you want something done, ask a woman.” (1) But the Bureau of Labor Statistics reports that men tend to gravitate to occupations that involve high levels of physical labor and “doing,” while women prefer jobs that are focused on social interaction and “saying.” In other words, the truth is the exact opposite of Haley’s statement (2).

Haley’s sexist remark triggered a wave of criticism:

Commentator Janice Fiamengo wrote, “She’s a feminist who thinks she’ll win points with Republican women by denigrating men. Shame on any Republican woman who lets her get away with it.” (3)
Hadley Heath Manning of the Independent Women’s Forum criticized Haley for playing the woman card. Instead, Haley needs to “make the case for herself as an individual first, not as a woman.” (4)
Male Positive Media stated, “Nikki Haley’s comment is unnecessary and anti-male. Please treat men with more consideration than this if you want to be taken seriously.” (5)
Title IX for All asked, “Why do some female politicians – the Nikki Haleys and Hillary Clintons – feel the need to gratuitously put down male politicians simply based on their sex?” (6)
An attorney sent an email to the Haley press office stating the quip “was ill-advised. Claiming women are better than men or vice versa is a strategy for losers, no matter who does it.”
One woman wrote Haley, “Sex/Gender is not indicative or ability or capability, neither are race, religion, or ethnicity. I wonder how your husband, son, and new son-in-law feel about your remark? Put on your walk-back shoes and get busy.”

The stiffest criticism came from commentator Paul du Quenoy, who wrote in NewsMax, “Haley’s crude stereotyping of half of humanity as feckless dolts who cannot get anything done — and dismissal of all of her rivals on the basis of gender — should disqualify her from any position of responsibility….The 1.1 million men who have died in our country’s wars might take great exception to Haley’s sexist implication that men don’t ‘do’ anything.” (7)

In addition, SAVE (Stop Abusive and Violent Environments) sent text messages to voters in Iowa and New Hampshire objecting to Halley’s message and pointing out that “men work the dirtiest jobs, men suffer 93% of all occupational deaths, and many men put in 60-hour weeks to support their wives and children.” (8)

In April, Haley’s favorability ratings were evenly divided, according to FiveThirtyEight polling. Since then, her ratings have steadily deteriorated. As of last week, 6.1% fewer Americans saw her in a favorable versus unfavorable light (9).

Males compose one of the largest segments of the American electorate. If Haley hopes to win over men, she needs to offer an apology for her “ask a man” remark.

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