Nikki Haley learned on Monday why it's always a risk to engage children on the campaign trail. In a hilarious exchange that is now going viral, a little girl managed to own the former UN ambassador and South Carolina governor, inadvertently or not. 

Things started with Haley telling the girl "I love your hat," presumably because she was wearing some Nikki Haley campaign merch. This was the response.

.@NikkiHaley to nine-year-old girl in a “Nikki Haley” hat: “I love your hat.”

Nine-year-old girl: “Thanks, one of your guys gave it to me for free.” pic.twitter.com/06q87wube5

— Sarah Dean (@sarahmdean95) November 20, 2023

Someone get that girl a free shirt and a ticket to the next candidate event because if there's one thing this presidential primary needs more of, it's that. I'm not even writing this article as a slam on Haley. Sure, I've got my issues with a lot of what she's proposed, and she's nowhere near my first choice, but I don't have a visceral dislike of her as a person. Still, anyone watching that video who doesn't laugh should check and see if they have a pulse. 

It's also a reminder that much of what we see during these campaigns is fake and manufactured. That goes for all the candidates. Stump speeches, rallies, and fundraising events are all a means to an end, highly overrated in their significance. In the end, tens of millions of votes are cast in the primaries and well over a hundred million in the general election. I wish getting a thousand people in a room meant something, but the last several cycles have shown it doesn't. You are talking about a tiny fraction of a fraction of voter turnout. 

As to Haley, one of the biggest knocks on her campaign is that it's heavily donor-led. I'm not saying that's certainly true. I'm just saying that's the perception. This little girl certainly didn't help matters by calling her out. It's all in good fun, though.