Former U.N. ambassador Nikki Haley, speaking from the Republican presidential debate stage Wednesday night, managed to land a blow on fellow hopeful GOP hopeful Vivek Ramaswamy, saying: “Honestly, every time I hear you, I feel a little bit dumber.”
But the former South Carolina governor apparently felt differently when she wrote a glowing review of the entrepreneur’s 2021 book “Woke, Inc.” for a blurb on his newest book “Capitalist Punishment,” which came out in April. “His combination of honesty, intellect, and foresight are exactly what we need to overcome our challenges in the years ahead,” Haley wrote.
A picture of the blurb made the rounds on social media shortly after she delivered her debate-stage quip.
The Ramaswamy campaign did not immediately respond to requests for comment on Thursday morning. The book’s publisher, Broadside Books — a HarperCollins imprint described on its website as specializing in conservative nonfiction — also did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
“It was an insightful book, and it was written by Vivek from about seven software updates ago. Where’d that guy go?” Haley spokesman Ken Farnaso wrote The Post by email Thursday afternoon.
The world of blurbs is an informally odd you-scratch-my-back system that results in unpaid endorsements printed on covers that can help interested readers decide if a book is worth their time. Because neither campaign was immediately available, it’s unclear how the blurb came to be. But it is usually a result of the author asking a respected author for the favor of their praise.
Ramaswamy responded to Haley’s barb at the debate. “I think we would be better served as a Republican Party if we’re not here hurling personal insults and actually have a legitimate debate about policy,” he said.
But that wasn’t possible with the overlapping yelling and hand gestures and forced smiles that have become the actual hallmark of modern political debates.