THURSDAY WITH THIGPEN: DeMint renomination almost assured

Thursday with Thigpen – 10/15/09

By Joseph Kasko

Media General Columbia Bureau

jkasko@florencenews.com

COLUMBIA – QUESTION: U.S. Sen. Jim DeMint announced this week that he plans to run for a second term. DeMint has been a strong critic of President Barack Obama and has been especially outspoken about the president’s plans for heath care reform. In July DeMint said, “If we’re able to stop Obama on this, it will be his Waterloo. It will break him.” The statement has angered many Democrats. However, DeMint’s stance on illegal immigration and criticism of government spending, coupled with his remarks concerning the president, has helped to make him a leader in the Republican Party. Is it likely that Democrats will make DeMint a target in 2010 and launch a strong effort to unseat him?

ANSWER: I think they’ll make an effort, but how strong an effort and how successful it would be, I would have big questions about that. One thing is that I don’t see any possibility of any Republican opposition to him in the primary. You know the positions he’s taken…on a whole group of issues and his pronouncements against President Obama and the health care thing…they’ll play very popularly here in South Carolina…and nationally I think he’s made some impact…with the media…plus there would be no running room (for) anybody on the Republican side to file against him…even a name candidate, which I don’t think will come forward…so I think his renomination would be almost assured.

QUESTION: Last week, Rock Hill lawyer Chad McGowan filed papers with the Federal Election Commission to enter the race and potentially challenge for DeMint’s Senate seat. However, McGowan, a Democrat, hasn’t made a formal announcement that he’s running. Does McGowan have the potential to be the candidate that Democrats will support to challenge DeMint?

ANSWER: It simply depends on…who else comes forward. I wouldn’t see where this man (McGowan) has a whole lot of chance, particularly if the Democrats can muscle up a name candidate…the two people I’ve heard mentioned (as potential candidates)…First…the entrepreneur…Darla Moore…she’s the biggest name that I’ve heard or rumored, that may be contemplating a run and she is a Democrat…and she’s a heavy hitter financially…(however) there’s always rumors about her (potentially running for office)…the Democrats have (long) sought to recruit her into a big race…the other person that I’ve heard about is…James Smith…he’s a Democratic state House member from Richland County…he’s young…(but) the one thing he would have on his side…is that he’s been called away to duty several times. He’s a South Carolina National Guardsman…he’s done…a tour in the Middle East…and he’s gained some notoriety because of that service…he’s the (state) legislator that I hear the most talk about…so I wouldn’t want to say you can call (DeMint) absolutely safe…in the general election it simply depends on who the Democrats are able to recruit…(however) I think DeMint goes back (into office) comfortably.

QUESTION: Sen.Lindsey Graham has been criticized by some conservatives who have questioned his loyalty to the Republican Party. At a recent town hall meeting, at Furman University, a number of people in attendance were critical of Graham’s willingness to work with Democrats, including his vote in favor of confirming U.S. Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor. Is there any merit to this criticism? Or is it out of line?

ANSWER: Well I don’t know if it’s out of line, or not, but it’s there…(Graham) is far less popular in the ranks of the conservative right…in South Carolina than DeMint. (Graham) is an independent player…he’s not going to be wet by every rain or blown by every storm. He’s just not the kind. And he’s cast a lot of votes or taken up a lot of issues which have inflamed a lot of these real right wing Republicans in the state…my feeling is…in the (last Republican) primary…if there had been a strong candidate…somebody who maybe was a sitting congressmen…or somebody of that stature. They could have caused (Graham) trouble…and then comes this Sotomayor vote. And I’ve heard it talked about at these Republican meetings…people are furious about it…and (Graham’s) just gotten back into a new term and (conservatives) are going to have to wait awhile before they can get somebody against him…my feeling would be…if you had somebody of DeMint’s demeanor and pronouncements on issues…who had some money…he could cause Lindsey (Graham) a real problem in a primary.

Dr. Neal Thigpen is a longtime political analyst and former political science professor at Francis Marion University, where he served as chairman of the department for 25 years. Active in state and local politics, Thigpen has served as a delegate to both the South Carolina and National Republican Conventions numerous times.