Nikki Haley Hits Back At White House: 'I Don't Get Confused'

Rebecca Shapiro
Updated

Nikki Haley, U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, sharply responded to the suggestion that she was confused when she said that President Donald Trump’s administration would be imposing more sanctions on Russia.

“With all due respect, I don’t get confused,” the ambassador said in a statement to Fox News’ Dana Perino, who read the comment during her Tuesday show.

Haley was responding specifically to Trump’s newly appointed economic adviser Larry Kudlow, who said earlier on Tuesday that the ambassador “got ahead of the curve” when she told CBS’s “Face the Nation” on Sunday that Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin would announce additional sanctions on Russia for supporting Syrian dictator Bashar Assad.

Nikki Haley said on Sunday that the U.S. would impose additional sanctions on Russia, only to be contradicted by the White House. (Photo: JIM WATSON via Getty Images)
Nikki Haley said on Sunday that the U.S. would impose additional sanctions on Russia, only to be contradicted by the White House. (Photo: JIM WATSON via Getty Images)

“There might have been some momentary confusion about that,” Kudlow told reporters in West Palm Beach, Florida, a day after reports surfaced that Trump had reversed his position on imposing sanctions. The reversal surprised fellow Republicans and seemed to clearly undermine Haley.

Kudlow walked back his comment in an interview with The New York Times, saying he was wrong to say Haley was confused.

“She was certainly not confused. I was wrong to say that — totally wrong,” he said. He added that Haley was not informed of a change in policy.

White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders said a decision on additional sanctions would be finalized “in the near future.”

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This article originally appeared on HuffPost.