Haley Believes Texas Has the Right to Secede: ‘It’s Up to Them’

Former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley has stated that states, including Texas, have the right to secede from the United States if they choose to do so, a stance that goes against over 150 years of legal precedent.

This is not the first time she has expressed this view.

Haley made the comments on Wednesday during an interview that focused on Texas’ ongoing border dispute with the federal government. When asked if she would use force as president to prevent Texas from seceding, Haley responded with, “I believe in states’ rights. I believe that everything should be as close to the people to decide. We know that’s not going to happen, that’s not the issue. I think states have the right to make the decisions that their people want to make.”

She also added, “If that whole state says we don’t want to be part of America anymore, I mean, that’s their decision to make, but I don’t think government needs to tell people how to live, how to do anything. I mean, I think that we need to let freedom live.”

Haley had previously mentioned in 2010 that the U.S. Constitution gives states the right to secede.

However, in 1869, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that the U.S. is “an indestructible union.” In Texas v. White, the court ruled that “When Texas became one of the United States, she entered into an indissoluble relation.”

Despite being a distant second to GOP front-runner Donald Trump for the Republican presidential nomination, Haley has vowed to stay in the race through Super Tuesday on March 5. She is not on the ballot for the Nevada caucuses next week, ceding every delegate to Trump there. She’s also trailing Trump by 26 points ahead of her home state primary on Feb. 24.