Nikki Haley welcomed her husband back to the United States after he completed his deployment with the South Carolina National Guard.
“That moment when you finally take a breath…It’s been a long year but even longer without each other. Thankful for Michael’s safe return and the end of a year long prayer,” Haley wrote on social media platform X.
Maj. Michael Haley, the husband of the former GOP presidential candidate, served as a staff officer with the 218th Maneuver Enhancement Brigade in the Horn of Africa during his deployment. Haley’s social media post also included photos of her and her children hugging her husband and holding a “Welcome Back Dad” sign.
Haley wished her husband farewell during a ceremony at The Citadel, a military college in Charleston, in June 2023. His deployment came during the height of her GOP presidential run before she dropped out of the race last month.
Michael Haley, her husband of 27 years, had been a familiar face on the campaign trail in Haley’s previous runs for political office. His absence on the campaign trail this year prompted former President Trump to mock Haley for not having her husband by her side — despite him being deployed.
“Where’s her husband?” Trump said at one of his rallies. “‘Oh, he’s away, he’s away.’ What happened to her husband? What happened to her husband? Where is he? He’s gone.”
Trump faced widespread criticism for his remarks about Michael, including from Haley, who said at the time that someone “who continually disrespects the sacrifices of military families has no business being commander in chief.”