12/21: McCain to visit SC in January

U.S. Sen. John McCain, who is sidestepping questions about whether he'll run for president again, will be in the state Jan. 16 to address Spartanburg County Republicans during Martin Luther King Day festivities.

• More: WSPA TV.
• More: Spartanburg Herald-Journal.
  

12/12: Sanford not running for president

S.C. Gov. Mark Sanford said in a weekend interview that he is "absolutely" not running for president. According to a story published today in The (Columbia, S.C.) State:

Sanford will seek re-election as governor in 2006.

“Should I get re-elected,” Sanford said, “I absolutely am serving all four years, because we just have some huge issues here in South Carolina that are just an immense challenge.”

Sanford has said in the past that he was not planning to run for the White House, but he always had left the door cracked for a possible bid. His name has been mentioned by political observers handicapping the early, early race for the GOP nomination.

That will not happen, Sanford said, and he plans to be South Carolina’s governor until 2011, should he be sworn in again in January 2007.

12/8: Warner impresses SC Dems

Virginia Gov. Mark Warner virtually wrapped up the S.C. Democratic presidential primary for 2008 with seeming endorsements from major party leaders during a Charleston fund-raiser. According to an article in The (Charleston) Post and Courier:

"But the reception at a state party fundraiser Wednesday night was overwhelmingly supportive of the lame-duck governor, whose political stardom is on the rise after he led his party to victory in Virginia's recent gubernatorial election."

Among the comments:

Former U.S. Sen. Fritz Hollings:

"I believe like the rest of you that we have a real winner here tonight."

Former S.C. Gov. Jim Hodges:

"You are going to be one heck of a president."

Former SC Democratic Party Chairman Dick Harpootlian:

"I think the people in this room heard the next president of the United States. He was inspiring."

11/21: McCain makes two SC stops

U.S. Sen. John McCain attended a Sunday book-signing in Columbia, followed by a fund-raiser in Mount Pleasant for state Attorney General Henry McMaster, according to the Associated Press.

McCain told The Associated Press he has no plans to decide about a possible presidential campaign until after next year's elections.

He said he would make a decision based on "what the mood and the priorities of the country are. I think that's very important. I think I am qualified in certain areas and if those are the same as the priorities of the American people and I would feel most qualified to address them, then that would matter."

The trip was the senator's first to the important presidential primary state since the 2003 inauguration of the GOP's Mark Sanford as governor. Other stories: WIS TV, WCIV TV

11/16: McCain to visit SC Sunday

U.S. Sen. John McCain will visit South Carolina Sunday as the headliner for a fundraiser for the Palmetto Chapter of the Association of the United States Army, The State newspaper reports.

McCain, a U.S. senator from Arizona, is a two-time presidential candidate who may be thinking of a third campaign.

• More from The State newspaper.

SC's Fowler helping Warner

In a story in today's issue of the Washington Post, we learn that former DNC Chairman Don Fowler of South Carolina is making rounds to introduce Virginia Gov. Mark Warner to people around the region as he prepares an apparent run for president.

"He did allude to the fact that he's considering doing something else. That's a kind of code word," Fowler said from South Carolina. "I don't think anyone doubted what he was talking about."

Warner is expected to be in SC later in the month for a fund-raiser for the Democratic Party as it honors past Democratic governors.

11/9: McCain to visit SC

The (Charleston) Post and Courier today included a story that U.S. Sen. John McCain will make a Nov. 20 foray into South Carolina for what may be a third presidential campaign:

On Nov. 20, McCain is scheduled to attend two events in Columbia, a book-signing and a military ceremony, before traveling to Charleston for an evening fundraiser for Attorney General Henry McMaster. Gov. Mark Sanford and U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham, who supported McCain in 2000, are expected to attend.

Like other potential 2008 contenders, McCain comes under seemingly non-political auspices, but the meaning is unmistakable.

10/27: Sanford goes to Arizona

A trip to Arizona by Republican S.C. Gov. Mark Sanford fueled speculation that he might be vying for the White House in 2008, according to The State newspaper:

It is Sanford’s second major event in a key state in as many months. In September, supporters held a fund-raiser for Sanford in Ohio, another key presidential battleground state. The event was sponsored in part by the Cincinnati Reds baseball team....Sanford also visited Iowa in July as part of a National Governors Association conference. Iowa is traditionally the first state to select a party’s presidential nominee.

Sanford’s travels raise questions, said presidential scholar Larry Sabato of the University of Virginia.

“I have to admit, the pattern of travel is suspicious,” Sabato said. “Traditionally, it’s been a dead giveaway” that a candidate is considering a run for president.

10/13: SC Dems try to keep early primary

The South Carolina Democratic Party is trying to keep something that helped it a lot in 2004 - - an early Democratic presidential primary. According to Knight-Ridder's Lee Bandy:

South Carolina is a leading candidate to join Iowa and New Hampshire as early birds among the 2008 Democratic presidential primaries.

Working in the state's favor: We're cheap, we're small and we're racially diverse.

S.C. Democrats care because early primaries get more than their fair share of attention from the candidates and national media. Translation: More exposure for the state and more dollars spent here. Some estimates reach into the millions.

10/9/05, Bandy: Watch out for Huckabee

The State newspaper's Lee Bandy writes that Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee bears watching in the 2008 GOP presidential contest:

Huckabee, 49, is an intriguing person, just the kind of candidate who could catch fire here.

Having spent a significant part of his adult life as a pastor and denominational leader, he is a darling of Christian conservatives who make up a lion’s share of the S.C. GOP primary vote. He led the Arkansas Baptist State Convention, the largest denomination in the state.

He says those experiences gave him a deep sense of the problems faced by individuals and families.

10/7/05: SC, ARK governors tour Charleston health fair

S.C. Gov. Mark Sanford and Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee, both mentioned as presidential candidates and who both push healthier living, were in Charleston Thursday at a health fair, according to The (Charleston) Post and Courier:

The health fair was the first in a series of visits Huckabee is making to various states to learn about efforts that could be copied across the country. Huckabee said he visited South Carolina first because the Healthy South Carolina initiative fits that profile.

Huckabee is widely believed to be a potential 2008 presidential candidate, and South Carolina's early presidential primary is considered key for any Republican hopeful.Health care is a vital issue for many governors, including Huckabee and Sanford, who are struggling with the skyrocketing growth of Medicaid, the state-federal health program for the poor. States are looking at increasingly drastic measures for stopping that growth.

10/2/05: Huckabee visits Charleston

Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee visited South Carolina over the weekend in what may become a routine occurrence if he throws his hat into the presidential ring. From the Charleston Post and Courier:

Speaking at a state party meeting and then later at a fundraiser at the governor's mansion, Huckabee thanked the GOP faithful for their hard work. Currently the second longest serving governor in the nation, Huckabee credited party activists in his home state with each of his victories.

"It wasn't because I was a great candidate. It was because we had some wonderful people" helping with the campaign, he said at a meeting of the South Carolina Republican Party executive committee. ...

Huckabee is the 10th White House hopeful, and the sixth Republican, to visit the state this year. The lame duck governor, whose term expires in 2007, also has made several trips to Iowa and New Hampshire, two other states with early presidential contests.

Other stories:

• Huckabee takes an early morning run, WLTX TV
• Arkansas gov attends SC fundraiser, Augusta Chronicle/AP

9/26/05: Romney jokes during key trips

Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney, exploring a possible presidential run in 2008, has been cracking jokes about his state during trips to key states like South Carolina.

-- Washington Post

9/26/05: Sanford for president rumors abound

Talk of a possible Sanford presidential bid has dominated the state’s political rumor mill for months, and the governor's name has recently appeared on a website's list of potential '08 GOP White House candidates.

-- The State

Related:

• 9/26: Sanford given chance in presidential race, Orangeburg Times & Democrat

9/1/05: Bayh stumps in SC

Senator Evan Bayh, D-Indiana, was testing South Carolina's political waters for a possible bid for the Democratic nomination for president in 2008.
-- The State

August 2005 stories

8/12/2005: Graham says he has no interest in VP job
Greenwood Index-Journal

The Palmetto State's senior senator claims to have no interest in being anyone’s vice presidential running mate, saying he’s got his eyes on another 50 years in the Senate.

July 2005 stories

7/15/2005: Brownback bringing presidential hopes to SC, Kansas City Star

This weekend will be Brownback’s first trip to South Carolina since he visited to help Republican Jim DeMint in his successful 2004 campaign for the U.S. Senate.

7/11/2005: Bandy: Polls show McCain and Clinton early presidential picks, The State

"U.S. Sens. John McCain and Hillary Clinton are the early front-runners for the 2008 presidential election, polls show."

June 2005 stories

None.

May 2005 stories

None.

April 2005 stories

4/25/2005: Sanford fanning flames for presidential bid, Spartanburg Herald Journal

4/18/2005: Warthen: Sanford has long way to go to be presidential material, The State

What we do

S.C. Presidential Roundup, a service of SCClips.com, is a periodic roundup of stories that involve presidential candidates who campaign in South Carolina.