Midwest
DeSantis campaign accuses Haley of 'insulting' Iowans by saying NH will 'correct' caucus results
With just a week and a half to go until the Iowa caucuses kick off the Republican presidential nominating calendar, the war of words between Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and former ambassador to the United Nations and former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley is reaching fever pitch.
DeSantis and Haley are neck and neck for second in the latest polls in the Hawkeye State, far behind former President Donald Trump, who remains the commanding frontrunner for the GOP nomination as he makes his third straight White House run.
But Haley has soared in recent months, catching up with DeSantis for second place not only in Iowa but also in national surveys, and surpassing the Florida governor and narrowing the gap with Trump in the latest polls in the New Hampshire primary, which will be held just eight days after the caucuses.
Campaigning in Milford, New Hampshire, on Wednesday, Haley told the large crowd listening to her that “we have an opportunity to get this right. And I know we’ll get it right, and I trust you. I trust every single one of you. You know how to do this. You know Iowa starts it. You know that you correct it.”
ONLY ON FOX: HALEY PUSHES BACK BUT DOESN’T CATEGORICALLY RULE OUT BEING TRUMP’S RUNNING MATE
Nikki Haley speaks at a town hall in Rye, New Hampshire, on Jan. 2, 2023. (Fox News – Paul Steinhauser)
Pointing to her home state, which on Feb. 24 will hold the first southern contest in the Republican presidential primary schedule, Haley added “and then my sweet state of South Carolina brings it home.”
The comment appeared to be tailored to Granite Staters, and the crowd cheered Haley’s remarks.
Recent political history backs up Haley’s comment. The past three winners of the Iowa Republican presidential caucuses – former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee in 2008, former Sen. Rick Santorum of Pennsylvania in 2012, and Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas in 2016 – all came up short the next week in New Hampshire. And none of them went on to win the GOP nomination.
FIRST ON FOX: HALEY FUNDRAISING SOARS THE PAST THREE MONTHS
Then-Texas Gov. George W. Bush, the winner of the 2000 Iowa GOP caucuses, also lost the following week in New Hampshire, but went on to capture the nomination and then the White House.
Haley has placed plenty of emphasis on a strong finish in New Hampshire, and her upward momentum in the state has accelerated since she landed the endorsement last month of popular Republican Gov. Chris Sununu, who joins her at each of her campaign stops.
But she’s also spent plenty of time and resources in Iowa, and returns to the state on Thursday. Since launching her campaign last February, Haley’s held roughly 150 town halls, just about equally divided between Iowa and New Hampshire.
Republican Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds, left, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and his wife, Florida first lady Casey DeSantis, at a campaign event in Bettendorf, Iowa, on Dec. 18, 2023. (Fox News – Paul Steinhauser)
But another popular GOP governor, Kim Reynolds of Iowa, didn’t seem to care for Haley’s remark.
Reynolds, who endorsed DeSantis in November, took to social media soon after Haley’s comment grabbed attention to write, “I trust Iowans to make their own decisions. No ‘corrections’ needed!”
And DeSantis campaign communications director Andrew Romeo charged that Haley’s “closing argument is insulting Iowans by saying their votes will need to be corrected.”
“Meanwhile, Ron DeSantis is closing strong in Iowa by outworking and outorganizing the competition day in and day out,” Romeo added.
On Thursday morning, DeSantis argued in a local radio interview in Iowa that Haley was “incredibly disrespectful to Iowans to say somehow their votes need to be corrected. I think she’s trying to provide an excuse for her not doing well.”
Haley and DeSantis clash during the fourth Republican presidential primary debate, which was held on the campus of the University of Alabama in Tuscaloosa, Alabama on Dec. 6, 2023 (Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)
While he’s spent plenty of time in New Hampshire, DeSantis appears to be staking his campaign on a strong finish in Iowa.
GOP NOMINATION RACE: WHAT A DIFFERENCE A YEAR MAKES FOR DONALD TRUMP
“We’re going to win here in Iowa. We have the organization in place,” DeSantis told Fox News Digital in an interview last month.
DeSantis predicted that the caucus results “will be very clarifying in terms of who is the real deal and who is not.”
Haley has been careful not to state what kind of finish she expects in either Iowa or New Hampshire.
“I need to be strong in Iowa, strong in New Hampshire, strong in South Carolina. That’s what I intend to do,” Haley said Tuesday in a Fox News Digital interview.
But the next day, Sununu made some predictions.
“We know Trump is going to win the caucus in Iowa,” Sununu said at a Haley campaign event in Londonderry, New Hampshire. “But again, Nikki coming in second place when nobody thought it could happen, that’s going to happen and give her even more momentum.”
Get the latest updates from the 2024 campaign trail, exclusive interviews and more at our Fox News Digital election hub.
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Wisconsin Lutheran High School basketball star Zavier Zens has officially committed to play for the University of Illinois next season.
Zavier Zens Makes It Official with the Illini
Zens, a tenacious 6-foot-7, 215-pound senior forward, initially committed to play collegiately for Northern Iowa but reopened his recruitment as the result of a head coaching change, ultimately narrowing his final choices to Illinois, Utah State, and Wisconsin.
On April 17, the highly touted three-star recruit signed a Big Ten Conference Athletics Scholarship Agreement to compete for Illinois, ending the greatly anticipated recruitment journey.
A Chance to Maximize His Development Was the Key
“What I was looking for was the best chance to develop and become the best player I can become,” said Zens, in an interview with Zac Bellman of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. “Illinois, they arguably have the best team in the country coming in next year, and the chance to get to go up against them every day, along with the good development program and their record of developing guys, was really big to me. Obviously, the fit and culture was right as well.”
Illinois tied for second in the Big Ten Conference under the guidance of head coach Brad Underwood, advanced to the NCAA Tournament’s Final Four for the first time in 21 years (2005), and finished with a 28-9 overall record.
“Zavier first and foremost is a winner,” said Underwood, in an official release posted on fightingillini.com. “He is an extremely high IQ player who has been well coached and brings a championship pedigree to the table, winning three straight state titles. He fits our recruiting mold as a 6-foot-7 versatile wing who can score at all three levels and process the game.”
Zens Helped Wisconsin Lutheran to a WIAA Three-Peat
Zens averaged 23.4 points per game (including a 61.8% field-goal percentage) with 5.4 rebounds, and 4.4 assists this season in leading the Vikings to a third consecutive WIAA state championship and statement-making 30-0 overall record.
Wisconsin’s Mr. Basketball contributed 20 points with four 3-point baskets, six rebounds, three assists, two blocked shots, and one steal as top-seeded Wisconsin Lutheran defeated third-seeded Madison Memorial 57-37 in the WIAA Division 1 state championship game at the University of Wisconsin’s Kohl Center on March 21.
The 2026 Wisconsin Gatorade Player of the Year finished his memorable four-year high school career with a 109-7 overall record (including an 88-2 mark during the three-year championship run) and as the third-leading scorer in program history (1,611 points).
Zens Continues the Trend of Mr. Wisconsin Playing Out-of-State
In an interesting twist, Zens (a cousin of NBA rookie sensation Kon Knueppel who competes for the Charlotte Hornets) joins an elite group of seven recent Wisconsin Mr. Basketball recipients who opted to play out of state.
Wisconsin, under current head coach Greg Gard, has advanced to the NCAA Tournament eight times, with the fifth-seeded Badgers most recently falling to No. 12-seeded High Point 83-82 in this year’s opening round on March 19.
The impressive list of Wisconsin Basketball Coaches Association honorees includes:
2025: Xzavion Mitchell, Oshkosh North (Iowa State)
2023: (co-winner) Milan Momcilovic, Pewaukee (Iowa State)
2023: (co-winner) John Kinzinger, De Pere (Illinois State)
2022: Seth Trimble, Menomonee Falls (North Carolina)
2021: Brandin Podziemski, St. John’s (Illinois, Santa Clara)
— Jeff Hagenau | jeffreyhagenau@gmail.com
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In the lead-up to the 2026 NFL Draft, NBC Sports’ Chris Simms gave his one and only prediction of who he believes will be selected in the first round on April 23, including where the Detroit Lions go after at the No. 17 overall pick.
Along with several draft boards and experts, the general consensus is that the Lions will prioritize an offensive tackle with their lone first-round pick, given the dire need to replace now-released Taylor Decker at the left tackle position next season.
In his April 20 prediction posted on X, Simms has the Lions addressing that need by selecting 6-foot-7, 352-pound Alabama offensive tackle Kadyn Proctor at their No. 17 overall draft position.
While there are some mock drafts that predict the Lions trading up to grab their desired draft target, the franchise certainly would not be opposed to Proctor, who is ranked as the No. 2 overall offensive tackle by NFL.com, perfectly falling to them at the No. 17 position.
If Detroit can land Proctor, it would likely be viewed as another successful first-round selection by general manager Brad Holmes and an excellent way to kick off the NFL Draft weekend in the Steel City.
For more Lions coverage, follow us on X, @TheLionsWire, and give our Facebook page a like. Follow Scout on X: @SpringgateNews
Brice Turang drove in four runs and David Hamilton had four hits as the Milwaukee Brewers routed the Detroit Tigers 12-4 on Tuesday night.
Despite missing their top three hitters, the Brewers put 19 runners on base and scored in double digits for the second time this season. They have won five of six.
All nine Milwaukee starters reached base at least once, and Detroit catcher/knuckleballer Jake Rogers limited the damage by pitching a scoreless ninth inning.
Detroit lost its second straight after winning eight of nine.
Milwaukee used speed and small ball to take a 3-0 lead in the second inning. Garrett Mitchell led off with an infield single, took second on a walk and scored on Sal Frelick’s base hit. Hamilton beat out a bunt to load the bases.
After Blake Perkins struck out, Turang lined a two-run single to right. Turang, though, got caught in a rundown between first and second and the Tigers threw Hamilton out at the plate when he tried to score.
Detroit loaded the bases with no one out in the fourth, but Grant Anderson relieved Harrison and got Javier Báez to ground into a double play. That made it 3-1, but Anderson struck out pinch-hitter Kerry Carpenter to end the inning.
The Brewers made it 5-1 in the seventh on RBI singles by Turang and William Contreras.
Milwaukee added seven runs in an 11-batter eighth, an inning that included the fourth triple of Gary Sanchez’s 12-year MLB career.
Detroit scored three times in the ninth inning to cut the final margin to eight runs.
The teams continue the series on Wednesday night with the second of three games. Detroit RHP Casey Mize (1-1, 2.78) is scheduled to face RHP Chad Patrick (1-0, 0.95).
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