Tim Scott! 3 Takeaways From the Announcement of South Carolina's Newest Senator

[xchrom]

http://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2012/12/tim-scott-3-takeaways-from-the-announcement-of-south-carolinas-newest-senator/266363/



***SNIP

1. An Uncomfortable Dance on Race: Tim Scott is making history several times over: He will be the first southern black senator from the GOP since Reconstruction; the first black Republican senator since Edward Brooke of Massachusetts lost in 1978; and the only currently serving black senator. (Your shocking fact for the day: Brooke remains the only black senator to ever be reelected.) Scott's departure from the House of Representatives means that body will have no black Republican members. But Scott has long resisted being defined by his race, even as he's notched milestones, and his party remains implacably opposed to affirmative action. He works hard to speak in terms that would have come just as easily to senators like Strom Thurmond and Fritz Hollings. "I'm just a country boy trying to take care of the country," he told me in 2011.

***SNIP

2. Lots of Love for Lindsey Graham: One of the quirks of the DeMint resignation is it means there will be two separate U.S. Senate elections in South Carolina in 2014, something that's only happened 49 times before in the nation's history. Conventional wisdom says this is good for Lindsey Graham (no relation to the author), who has been criticized for willingness to work across the aisle, because it means he may not face the strongest challenger. At the Columbia press conference, there was lots of love for the state's senior senator. He stood at Haley's right, with Scott on the left. Scott, after praising the man he will replace, had many kind words for Graham, saying he looked forward to serving alongside him and learning about foreign affairs from him. Next up was DeMint, who is well to Graham's right and has clashed with him repeatedly over the years. "Senator Graham has been a good partner to me," DeMint enthused. "We've worked real well together and he's a great senator. He's done a great job on so many different issues. I've been proud to serve with him and I'll be proud to work with him from my perch at the Heritage Foundation."

***SNIP

3. Jim DeMint Wrestles With His Legacy. DeMint leaves the Senate with his legacy up in the air. On the one hand, his legislative achievements are thin at best. On the other, he has helped to cultivate a new crop of conservatives in Washington, and he can boast a major role in getting senators like Marco Rubio, Mike Lee, and now Scott into office. DeMint, with a chuckle, acknowledge that the praise he got at home was a bit different from much of the establishment's reaction: "Governor, when you say there will never be anyone like me in the Senate again, most of Washington says, thank goodness!" But a moment later, he pointed to the strange situation created by his abrupt departure with an unfinished term and, it seems, an unfinished mission. "The reason I'm leaving the Senate is I believe the idea of taking the [conservative] case to the American people is something I can do much more effectively from the Heritage Foundation knowing that my seat is going to be filled by someone who's going to continue to take the stands we need to in the Senate," DeMint said.

[n2doc]

1. His first name should be Tom...

As in Uncle. Gonna be interesting to see if the t-baggers in SC can be convinced to vote for a (you know what). Not going to make a bit of inroad into the minority vote for repubs, though.

[CurtEastPoint]

2. 4. He'll have good dental insurance.