Former U.N. Ambassador and Republican presidential candidate Nikki Haley is looking to turn being insulted by a major news network host over her age into something that could ultimately benefit her campaign.
The former South Carolina governor was criticized by CNN host Don Lemon during a segment last Thursday on “CNN This Morning” in which he described her as not “in her prime” because she is a woman in her 50s.
“For all of you who took issue with the haters saying that we are past our prime… this one’s for you,” Haley wrote on Twitter Tuesday, including images of beer koozies stamped with her campaign logo and the phrases: “Past My Prime?” and “Hold My Beer.”
“We’ve got this,” she added, including a link to her campaign website.
Lemon faced sharp backlash for his remarks, including from his colleagues at CNN, who, according to insiders at the liberal network, no longer like him and are choosing not to come to his defense.
One CNN insider told Fox News that women at the network were especially upset by Lemon’s comments, and that some referred to his words as “stupid.” According to the New York Post, Lemon’s co-anchor, Poppy Harlow, walked off the set following the exchange.
Haley fired back at Lemon on the same day he made the remarks, arguing that liberals couldn’t “stand the idea of having competency tests for older politicians to make sure they can do the job.”
“BTW it’s always the liberals who are the most sexist,” she added, including a clip of Lemon making the claims.
Lemon is expected to return to work on Wednesday after a few days off, but will undergo “formal training” as a result of his remarks, according to CNN boss Chris Licht.
Fox News’ Joseph A. Wulfsohn and David Rutz contributed to this report.
