The Tatler has learned that South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley is almost certain to appoint former South Carolina Republican Party Chair and former S.C. Attorney General Henry McMaster to fill the unexpired term of retiring Senator Jim DeMint. McMaster was a prominent supporter of Haley in a contentious GOP primary. Haley has reportedly already informed key South Carolina politicians of her decision.
Yesterday I blogged that Haley should appoint Congressman Joe Wilson to this post, or in the alternative, Tea Party favorite Rep. Tim Scott. A Republican in Washington in 2012 must have experience with the organized Left that now dominates the Democrat Party. It isn’t 1995 anymore, and any politician not familiar with the militancy that is driving Democrat policies in Washington in 2012 will have a steep learning curve. Wilson and Scott have experienced it firsthand and would have made excellent U.S. senators. South Carolina is [thankfully] far removed from the sort of militancy that characterizes Democrat politics in Washington.
McMaster is a conservative South Carolina Republican in the Carroll Campbell mold (the South Carolina governor who served from 1987-1995). He has extensive experience working in the Republican Party trenches. Ronald Reagan appointed McMaster to be the United States attorney for South Carolina (upon Strom Thurmond’s recommendation). He led a revolution of sorts in the 1990s, taking over the state party apparatus as chairman and dislodging a number of more moderate party staff. He has won statewide elections and lost statewide elections, including to former U.S. Senator Fritz Hollings. He won the election for South Carolina attorney general in 2002.
Well, pooh. If true, Haley is preferring business-as-usual political backscratching to promoting a truly worthy successor, such as Rep. Scott. Disappointing, this is.
Let the Magic Negro Scott get a bit more experience before he tries out for the next gubermint job!
This is disappointing news, I had hoped Joe Wilson would be the choice as he has a lot more experinece in DC than McMaster has. Scott is a newbie and needs more experience.
Sigh. Stupid party continues to be stupid.
I guessed she wouldn’t touch Scott, or any street tough conservative. The GOP continues on its path of denial and defeat. Their failure even to accept much less contend with the reality of the Left is quite incredible in terms of basic self interest. And it just goes on and on.
What a crappy inside party hack choice. Had a big opportunity to make a historic statement with Rep. Scott but Gov. Haley went Tammany Hall on us.
“McMaster was a prominent supporter of Haley in a contentious GOP primary.”
She has to pay back his support, doesn’t she? Palin “supported” McCain.
Tim Scott is too new. McMaster knows how to fight. Where in the article is it said that he is a “business-as-usual” hack? He has a track record to change the former “business-as-usual” to his “business-as-usual”. “He led a revolution of sorts in the 1990s, taking over the state party apparatus as chairman and dislodging a number of more moderate party staff.”
If DeMint cannot stay as a contentious TeaPartyer, what chances will Tim Scott have?
“He has a track record to change the former “business-as-usual” to his “business-as-usual”.
This is an important point and something to consider in primaries and appointments across the board. It’s exacting the sort of thing we are dealing with in Ohio with Gov. Kasich.
Tim Scott is just a warmed-over Richard Mourdock, who was a messiah of the tea party until he opened his mouth about rape, and got pummelled at the polls.
What is he, “the next black thing” of the tea party?
So, the conservatives are still playing Chralie Brown to the RNC’s Lucy.
Seems to me, that you’ve got to believe two entirely different things at the same time in order to be a conservative or a Republican.
One, you’ve got to believe that Republican and conservative politicians are anything but the statist collectivists they are in real life. Two, you’ve also got to believe that they represent the party of liberty, freedom, small government and fiscal responsiblity…in spite of their public record in opposition to those ideals and principles.
That sounds like a recipe for disaster and disappointment, to me…not to mention the migraines.
Warren, you’re not going to like what I’m going to tell you.
First let me say my conservative bona fides are equal to the best and have been since college Republican days in the Goldwater campaign. I subscribed to National Review before the univesity librarian knew what it was. Now then.
Conservatives in leadership positions — government, party, you name it — are confronted with a conundrum. The conservative base expects them to reject big government, bailouts, new federal programs, the whole enchilada. No pork, no earmarks, no backscratching.
Problem is, American politics doesn’t work that way. When a problem arises, the public demands that the government do something about it. If they fail or refuse on grounds that it is not the federal government’s job, they are pilloried in the press and at the next election. See, Bush, G.W. and Katrina.
And Republican donors and supporters are just as eager – well, pretty eager, to get those government jobs and special deals like the left. Maybe not on the same scale. But they expect to be rewarded when the goodie machine cranks up and if they aren’t they just may not be there next election cycle.
So there’s the reality: conservatives dislike unnecessary government initiatives, but when you are the government, you’d better be ready to make it work when it is expected or you will have a short career.
The Republican “establishment” knows this and has accommodated to it.
What you are describing is what has led us to the swamp we are now in. It’s the abandonment of principle. The alternative was available to the Republicans when they held the majorities in the House and Senate and Heorge Bush was elected President. They could have dismantled the Big Government that ultimately only serves the Democrats. Had they shown the least bit of testicular fortitude, they could have made this a Republican century. The problem isn’t that they must compromise their principles to stay in office(that didn’t work anyhow). The problem is that far too few of them have any principles whatsoever. They do not believe in the principles of liberty and free markets, so they are useless advocates for conservatism.
Ok choice I suppose but Tim Scott woud have made a bold statement and given his newly acquired high profile would have been a boon for the GOP with the AA community. Missed opportunity and what appears to be political payoff.
Question: Who are we? Are we for smaller government, fiscal responsibility, and individual freedom? Are we against abortion, homosexuality, and same sex marriage? How about skills based immigration, basic security for the poor, and opportunity for all? We know the Donkey Party is against all of the above, but I have some concerns about what we, as a group, really consider important.
Since when did the constitution get changed to allow states business and elections to become nationalized?
The state of SC is very tough GOP political terrain and the governor will do what is best for the state under her vision of the current GOP reign. But for a very small number of high density metro/urban areas (essentially 3 or 4) which evolve around the military and some of the defense R&D and mfg complex, the state of SC is a solid dem state.
No doubt most on PJM would rather she commit GOP suicide in SC for your personal perceived benefit living in states far from SC. SAD thinking!! Sad that so many of the “conservative” movement claim to be die heart constitutionalists and in the same breath want to ignore it.
You say, “…the state of SC is a solid dem state.”
I’m trying to figure out your thinking here. Except for a few blue counties, Sc is rock solid Red. In fact we are close to one-party rule. Democrats (with the exception of aforementioned blue counties) cannot put a donkey on their campaign signs if they hope to be elected. So…?
If you were a true SC native you would/should know the political demographics of the state. The first thing you would know is that in SC voters do not register under any party affiliation. The second thing you would know is that SC is peculiar in that it typically votes on kitchen table issues such as jobs, education and benefits.
Now, back to my original comment. IF it were not for the military and the defense complex of R&D and mfg SC would be left as one of the poorest states in the nation with a signficant decrease and population dominance of whites. It would in fact, be a solid democrat state.
Checkout all the data around SC tourism and travel contributions industry by industry. Checkout the poverty data; 14.7% of 4.6M population with a median income of only $41.7K income well below the national average. Everytime their is a decline in defense spending the state slides further into statiscal issues that are better addressed by democrats.
I suspect that there will be an evolution resulting in more conversions to both Yellow and Blue Dog democrats in SC — should the economic future be what I think it will be.
Sorry, disagree. Social issues are way too important to South Carolinians to ever be a dem state. And if, as you say, SC is concerned with jobs and economy, then, again, why would they turn to democrats? I live in Lexington county and that’s the way I see it.
I understand your “social” points but you fail to understand the very long running political/voting history of SC. South Carolina has a very large representation of South Carolinians who are not native to SC. They have migrated there over the years as a part of the national defense and government machine. You remove that component and you are left with native South Carolinians who tend to be very socially conservative by fall within the yellow and blue dog democrat components of the democrat party. Regardless of how “socially conservative” many may be, the poorer economic demographics tend to migrate to the democrat party social and economic issues as it pertains to themselves, their families and communities.
You live in Lexington where for example, its growth and economic successes would have never been except for the extended areas that support government, military operations and other defense oriented contributions. You have to drive no further then Orangeburg to find what I’m talking about — and they have not one university, but two universities.
As a native South Carolinian, I think McMaster is a good choice to replace DeMint because there is another US Senator from SC (Graham)that desperately needs to be replaced and Tim Scott is the one who can do that!
From the the view I have way over here in Montana
this is the best comment yet.
Please send help to us up here to rid the country
of POS Max Baucus.
Bingo.
McMaster is solid…even if he is no Jim Demint.
YESSS. Cork gets it. Why can’t others see it? Taking Scott out of Rino Graham’s race would be a gift to all RINO’s
I think Rep Scott would be a good replacement for Graham, and here in the upstate we prefer Trey Gowdy to Mcmaster. So, that would give us 2 strong conservatives.
Agreed, Chief – but I do think Gowdy is doing well where he is at the moment, particularly with his position on the Benghazi ordeal. He would be a good one to run against Graham though!
Excellent point – save Scott to run against Lindsey.
McMaster is solid, even if he is no Jim Demint.
I remind everyone here that the current Republican Party, including Governor Haley is NOT Conservative. These people are the enemy of the Teat Party.
This guy is John Boehner with a southern drawl.
And this appointment sucks. Thanks for nothing, Gov. Haley. Now we know what you look like with the mask off.
Tea Party.
The Democrats and the Republicans are the Teat Party.
How much training did you get before you regurgitated that drivel? Sheesh. Talk about an unsupportable thesis.
Big, big mistake by the Governor! Congressman Scott is the patriot of choice and everyone knows it. What is here problem here?
Joe Wilson would have rocked!
Joe Wilson DESERVES it if for no other reason than his guts to call out “Liar” back in the day when some of us were still in denial about the new Liar in Chief.
I’d rather she nominate Mick Mulvaney.
So what dirt did he have on Gov. Haley that she couldn’t tolerate airing?
This is the kind of expected bullsh!t that makes even Republicans hate the Republicans.
Cork, I see your logic: If she appoints Scott now, that would give RINO Graham an easy pass straight to the Senate without Scott to challenge him.
Haley was an early supporter of Romney, so everyone should have known she would appoint someone who is less than stellar.
Once she supported Romney, I knew she had turned. She gave the Tea Party who elected her to office the finger.
Boooo….Senator Tim Scott would be a rockstar!
According to the Charlotte Observer, Tim Scott is still the frontrunner for the appointment. The only way McMaster will get the nod is if Haley decides to appoint a placeholder until 2014; not DeMint’s successor, which would certainly seem to be Scott
McMaster is a good solid second choice behind Scott, not nearly as exciting or dynamic but with loads of experience. Mark Sanford wouldn’t be willing to return to DC, or he would be the best choice, hot Latin girlfriend and all.
I favor Scott, but the above comments slamming McMaster and Haley are just ignorant ranting.
McMaster??? No.
How old is Tim Scott?
Young enough to burnish his reputation on his own, without needing this Interim Appointment?
Maybe this is not such a bad thing to not happen for him and for younger, hungrier, and, let’s face it, inexperienced Conservative congress members.
Lord knows Obama got moved up too far too fast.
Angry mobsters….settle down.
This sounds like a pretty decent pick.
Rep. Scott is VERY young and VERY new to this game. Let him
get his feet wet in the House for a while. Let him accomplish
something in the House and build a record that he can use to move
up if that is his goal.
This “I’m out if I don’t get my way” bullsh*t is one of the things that makes it hard for conservatives to stay united. NEWSFLASH! You aren’t always going to get your way and neither am I.
Remember what Reagan said(paraphrase): He’d rather have a Republican elected with whom he agreed of 70 or 80% of issues than a Democrat with whom he disagreed with on 70-80% of issues. Try to remember that before you throw another tantrum when you don’t get exactly who you want every time.
Christian Adams,
I think, your a progressive republican you write so well. Apparently, you have some excellent apriori knowledge of SC Politics. You are correct Christian about Mr. McMaster, he is to be the next US Senator from South Carolina. My name isn’t really Stanley but I am a database man of a SC political nature; you are spot on about Henry, Sir.
Stanley