Nikki Haley applauds jury that awarded E. Jean Carroll $83 million in Trump defamation case: 'I absolutely trust the jury'

Nikki Haley entered a new stage in her opposition to Donald Trump during her "Meet The Press" interview on Sunday.

Haley sided with the unidentified jurors responsible for granting E. Jean Carroll a whopping $83 million in damages following a prior jury's determination that Trump "abused" Carroll despite compelling evidence that the incident never took place. 

In response to NBC's Kristen Welker asking her if she trusted the jury in the case, Haley actually said yes. This marked a decisive turning point, with Haley stating “I think that they made their decision based on the evidence,” emphasizing her stance unequivocally.

Haley, who is trailing Trump by a whopping 63% nationally, had earlier used the verdict to score political points, tweeting: "Donald Trump wants to be the presumptive Republican nominee and we’re talking about $83 million in damages. We’re not talking about fixing the border. We’re not talking about tackling inflation. America can do better than Donald Trump and Joe Biden."

Haley also said on Sunday, “I do think that he surrounds himself in chaos, and we can’t be a country in disarray, and have a world on fire and be in chaos. I do think that these court cases are distracting not just to the American people but to him himself, which is keeping him from talking about what really matters. That’s exactly why I don’t think he should be president.”

Haley's megadonor Reid Hoffman played a large role in funding the E. Jean Carroll lawsuit.

Initially, the 80-year-old Carroll detailed the narrative of an alleged rape at Bergdorf Goodman in New York City, placing the incident in 1994. However, she later revised the timeline, specifying that it occurred "in the fall of 1995 or the spring of 1996." No definitive date was ever given.

“I think most people think of rape as being sexy… think of the fantasies,” Carroll had previously told CNN's Anderson Cooper.