Haley adjusts to life in New York, the UN and working for Trump

Despite their differences during the presidential campaign, Nikki Haley says she has no trouble working with President Donald Trump at the United Nations.

The former S.C. governor told Matt Lauer of NBC’s Today Show that she and Trump were “friends before (the campaign). He was a supporter of mine before.”

While Haley was critical of Trump during the 2016 GOP primary campaign, she said she had no hesitation in working in Trump’s Administration once the New York mogul unexpectedly won the presidential election.

“The opportunity to serve my country, I don’t think there is a bigger honor,” Haley said in the interview, aired Friday.

The Haley family also has adjusted to life in New York City, including former First Dog Bentley. “My son’s decided he’s a city boy, and Bentley’s got used to the fact that there’s no grass,” she said.

Lauer joked Haley could take a zip-line to work at the U.N. from her apartment overlooking the organization’s New York building.

More seriously, Haley took a tough line in the interview against North Korea, which has tested missiles several times since Trump took office.

“We’re all aware that military action could end up being an option,” Haley said. Of China and Russia, she asked rhetorically, “What else is it going to take for North Korea to do for you to say, ‘We’re not going to put up with this?’ ”

Of President Trump, Haley said: “He has everyone guessing what the U.S. will do. That’s an advantage.” But, she added, “Our allies know we’re with them.”

Lauer asked if she was concerned that, unlike her predecessors under President Barack Obama, she was not a regular member of Trump’s National Security Council.

“I’ve been there every time” so far, she replied.

Haley also waved off suggestions she took the U.N. job as a potential stepping stone to her own future presidential run.

“I can’t imagine it,” she said. “I’m trying to survive at the United Nations right now.”

This story was originally published March 17, 2017 at 8:51 AM.