NBC reporters ridiculed after suggesting DeSantis quoting famous Reagan line was sexist dig at Haley

NBC News reporters were mocked by conservatives on social media for suggesting Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis had made a sexist dig at former UN Ambassador Nikki Haley when he quoted Ronald Reagan during Wednesday night's GOP presidential primary debate.

"We need to fly a flag of bold colors. Carrying the banner putting the American people first — not the pale pastels of the warmed-over corporatism of people like Nikki Haley," DeSantis said about his rival, according to the AP.

DeSantis was referencing a famous phrase often uttered by former President Reagan. He used it during his 1976 speech at the GOP convention to describe his vision that the Republican Party platform would stand with "bold, unmistakable colors" in contrast to the Democratic Party platform. However, the meaning behind the phrase seemed to go over several NBC reporters' heads during their coverage of the debate.

"A color scheme, ‘pale pastel’ or otherwise, is not the way you attack a presidential candidate," NBC News reporter Ali Vitali wrote on X. She questioned if DeSantis was making a sexist remark about Haley's wardrobe choices.

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"None of the men who’ve been on these debate stages have had their clothes used to criticize their policies," she added.

Vitali and another reporter doubled down on this rhetoric on NBC's live blog.

"At a certain point, the ‘pale pastels’ commentary could start to ring a little sexist. None of the male candidates are being taken to task for their bright red ties' somehow being akin to their policy stances," she wrote.

NBC reporter Alec Hernández responded to Vitali's comment on the blog by conceding that DeSantis often says this. However, he