'I feel right in doing this': Nikki Haley donors keep giving, despite Trump's lead

• As Nikki Haley falls behind Donald Trump in the Republican presidential primary, her campaign is continuing to raise millions of dollars.
• "Even if she doesn't win, I feel right in doing this," said a donor who made a six-figure contribution to a PAC supporting Haley.
• Another fundraiser likened Haley to the New York Jets. "They never make the playoffs, but you still have a chance."

As Nikki Haley falls behind Donald Trump in the Republican presidential primary, something strange is happening: Many of her donors are sticking with her.

Sure, some big money has given up on the former South Carolina governor, who refuses to drop out despite losing every contest so far and falling 20 points shy of winning her own state last week.

But other Haley donors say that giving to her campaign has become about more than just backing a Republican with the best shot at winning: They see their donations as a way to protest Trump's takeover of their party.

"It's not that I think she has a decent chance of winning, but I think she's the most effective counterforce to Trump's talking points," said one of those donors, who gave a six-figure contribution to SFA Fund, Inc., a pro-Haley political action committee.

"Even if she doesn't win, I feel right in doing this," said the donor, who was granted anonymity to speak freely.

A top Haley fundraiser told CNBC that donors keep supporting Haley because she represents the "Reagan wing" of the GOP — a group that has been all but abandoned by the GOP since Trump first became president in 2016.

That Reagan wing, which stands in contrast to the isolationist foreign policy and protectionist economics that define Trump's brand of populism, "isn't going away," the fundraiser said.

"Her candidacy says, 'We