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As the third Republican debate went live in Miami, the candidate for 2024 United States (US) presidential polls, Nikki Haley called fellow contender Vivek Ramaswamy 'scum' as the two sparred against each other on several issues, including foreign policy, economy and much more, ABC News reported.
Haley chastised Ramaswamy for mentioning that her daughter had used TikTok despite Republican criticism of the Chinese-owned app, which caused jeers from the audience.
"Leave my daughter out of your voice," Haley said, adding, "You're just scum," according to ABC News.
The third Republican debate of the 2024 presidential primary got underway in Miami on Wednesday at 8 pm (local time).
Former New Jersey Governor Chris Christie, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, former UN Ambassador Nikki Haley, businessman Vivek Ramaswamy, and South Carolina Senator Tim Scott were the five candidates on stage, ABC News reported.
However, the front-runner, Donald Trump, was absent from the debate once again, despite holding a rally nearby in Hialeah, Florida.
The debate centred on TikTok, with Ramaswamy passing a remark on Haley's daughter after all the Republican candidates argued that the 'controversial' social media app should be banned in the US.
"Donald Trump talked tough about TikTok, I heard him do it many times, but when it came down to it, he did not ban them when he could have and should have. In my first week as president, we would ban TikTok," Christie said, according to ABC News.
"I think that China's the top threat we face. They've been very effective at infiltrating different parts of our society," DeSantis said.
Meanwhile, Ramaswamy, who has been inconsistent when it comes to TikTok usage, took aim at Haley's daughter's use of the app.
"We have to ban any US company actually transferring US data to the Chinese," Ramaswamy said.
The Indian American entrepreneur had shot up sharply in GOP primary polls, standing tied with Florida Governor Ron DeSantis at the second position earlier in US Presidential candidacy for the 2024 polls.