Washington: Nikki Haley, the former US Ambassador to the UN who is an Indian-American, and Florida Republican Senator Ted Cruz hailed ‘HowdyModi’, saying the Houston event where Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Donald Trump shared the stage contributed to strengthening of ties between New Delhi and Washington.
Haley, who was the second Indian-American to serve as a Governor in the US, said in a tweet on Sunday: “The US and India have a great partnership and it has only strengthened with the friendship of @realDonaldTrump and @narendramodi.”
She retweeted Trump’s tweet that said: “The USA Loves India!” in response to the Indian Prime Minister’s Office ‘Howdy Modi’ video link.
Senator Cruz was present at the event on Sunday and also addressed the 50,000-strong audience of Indian-Americans.
In his speech he said that “India is the largest democracy on face of earth and America is proud to be your friend”.
He also posted images on Twitter where the Senator was seen with his wife and the Indian Prime Minister.
“Heidi and I were honoured to welcome @PMOIndia to Houston today & to celebrate our shared values and goals. Excited for the opportunities that lie ahead for our two countries,” he captioned the images.
Cruz took to Twitter ahead of the event where he said that ‘HowdyModi’ was “an important opportunity to reflect on the enormous value of the relationship between the US and India and the progress we’ve made together”.
Meanwhile, other prominent Indian-Americans also praised the event.
Ravi Batra, a New York-based Indian-American attorney, tweeted: “HowdyModi! triumphant moment for Indo-US ties: “precedents were broken and protocol-embedded wisdom discarded in Houston when Modi introduced Trump at the event.
“Such warmth, usually between brothers or best friends, can displace protocol for something better.”
Stand-up comedian Hasan Minhaj, whose family originated from Aligarh, Uttar Pradesh, was also in Houston to attend the event.
He posted an image on Twitter outside the NRG Stadium and captioned it: “Here to celebrate two great nations coming together. India first. But America first too.”