Vilsack makes it to SC

Potential presidential candidate and Iowa Gov. Tom Vilsack made his first foray into the Palmetto State over the weekend as the keynote speaker at the state Democratic Party's annual Jefferson-Jackson fund-raising dinner. According to The Post and Courier:

Speaking at the annual state Democratic Party fundraiser, Vilsack criticized Republican Gov. Mark Sanford's lack of leadership and the "incompetent" Bush administration. He said South Carolina needs an "education governor" and a "jobs governor." To get that, "you need a new governor in this state," the Democrat said.

Biden says he's in the hunt

U.S. Sen. Joseph Biden, D-Delaware, says he's in the hunt for the presidency during a trip through South Carolina this week.

On Wednesday, he toured the Port of Charleston and pushed for better port security, according to the Associated Press:

"The thing we have ignored for five years, port security, has to stop," the Democrat from Delaware said after touring Charleston Harbor and meeting with officials to discuss Operation Seahawk.

Seahawk is a pilot port security project bringing together almost 50 local, state and federal agencies to assess threats that could enter the country through Charleston.

Other stories:

• Biden says Charleston port security operation is national model, WCIV TV
• Biden pushes for enhanced port security, The (Charleston) Post and Courier

On Wednesday, Biden criticized the Bush Administration over Afghanistan at a speech in Columbia, S.C., at the University of South Carolina, according to the Associated Press:

The Bush administration is mistaken if it thinks Iraq is now a legitimate democracy, U.S. Sen. Joe Biden told a crowd at the University of South Carolina on Tuesday.

"Just having elections doesn't make a democracy," Biden said. "It's the second, third, fourth elections."

• Biden said Administration has forgotten about Afghanistan, WIS TV

On Monday in Spartanburg, Biden said he'd run for president, according to the Spartanburg Herald Journal:

In case his speech -- in which he called the Bush administration "dangerously incompetent" -- at the Spartanburg County Democratic Party Convention Monday night didn't tip his hand, he left no doubt afterward.

"My intention is to run," said Biden, 63. "There's a long way to go between here and there, but there's a whole lot at stake."

Frist in SC but doesn't sound like candidate

The State's Lee Bandy Sunday wrote that U.S. Sen. Bill Frist, R-Tenn., was in South Carolina over the weekend, but didn't much sound like a presidential candidate at a meeting of the GOP state executive committee.

The Tennessee Republican came and went almost unnoticed — which apparently was the way he wanted it. There was little advance publicity and virtually no media.

Frist said the 2006 midterm elections would be tough for Republicans, but would be successful because they formed the "party of ideas."

“Yes, this is going to be a tough election,” he said. “But it’s not impossible. We’re going to do it because we’re ready. We’re going to do it because we know how. We’re going to do it because the same values that you have in South Carolina are the same values that I see in Tennessee.”

Then came the kicker.

“So, I’m here to join arms with you. That’s the only reason I’m here on this trip.”

Huckabee speaks in Charleston, York counties

Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee spoke Thursday to Republican conventions in Charleston and York counties in another visit to the Palmetto State. According to the Associated Press:

He told Republicans in York County that he is anti-tax and anti-abortion, The (Rock Hill) Herald reported.

"The Republican Party represents what people want," Huckabee said. "If you believe that life doesn't matter, vote for the Democrat."

The Charlotte Observer wondered whether South Carolina's 2008 primary would be "make or break" for Huckabee.

And in Charleston, two local candidates - - former Congressman Arthur Ravenel, who said he'd run for school board, and Paul Thurmond, son of the late Strom Thurmond -- stole the show from everyone, including Huckabee, according to The Post and Courier.

Romney tours S.C.; makes "Yankee" comment

Mass. Gov. Mitt Romney made presidential political stops Thursday in Charleston and Columbia.

At The Citadel in Charleston, he made a tongue-in-cheek comment that may come back to haunt him. According to the Associated Press:

"After fielding serious questions from cadets, one asked about the former Red Sox centerfielder Johnny Damon signing with the Yankees.

"Romney said that proved he had "something in common with you people here in the South. We both hate Yankees," he said."

Also see: The Post and Courier

In another story in The State newspaper of Columbia, Romney courted evangelicals. In the past, he said he supported the substance of a woman's right to choose, but his stance changed after studying stem-cell research, he told reporter Lee Bandy:

"Romney, a Mormon, said what changed him was the focus on stem cell research.

“'I studied it long and hard. And when I came out of the process, I said I would not support embryo farming or embryo cloning for research or anything.'

“'I’m pro-life,' he declared. 'So, the issue is settled.'”

Sanford says he's uncommitted

S.C. Gov. Mark Sanford, touted earlier as a possible presidential candidate for the GOP, said in an interview today with The Washington Post that he wasn't committed to any candidate.

According to The Fix, the Post's politics blog,

"That news may come as something of a surprise to supporters of Sen. John McCain (Ariz.), whom Sanford backed in South Carolina's 2000 primary. But the Palmetto State governor insists his decision (or, more accurately, indecision) is not meant as a "slap" at McCain but rather part of a concerted effort on his part to find the candidate in the field truly dedicated to fiscal conservatism.

"'I am not committed at this point,' said Sanford, who acknowledged that "a long list of characters" considering the 2008 race have reached out to him. 'I am really going to look very hard at somebody who will espouse that notion of fiscal discipline and financial stewardship. That would be at the top of my list.'"

Biden to speak in Spartanburg

U.S. Sen. Joe Biden, a potential contender for the Democratic nomination for president in 2008, is scheduled to speak at the Spartanburg County Democratic Convention on March 20th.

According to the Spartanburg Herald Journal:

"What Joe Biden is going to talk about is not Joe Biden for president. He's going to talk about Democrats winning locally," Spartanburg County Democratic Chairwoman Liz Patterson said.

Biden is the first Democrat with possible presidential aspirations to visit the Upstate this year, though others, including former vice presidential candidate John Edwards, have made trips to South Carolina.

More: The Greenville News

Huckabee visits Spartanburg

Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee was the latest GOP presidential candidate to visit the Upstate Monday during a speech to the Spartanburg GOP.

According to The State:

In his address, Huckabee hit on several domestic hot-button issues, including an amendment to ban gay marriage that South Carolina voters will consider this November.

Encouraging voters to support the amendment, Huckabee said ballot questions like this are a major reason elections are still important in America, despite their cost and time.

More stories:

• Greenville News
• Spartanburg Herald Journal

Romney speaks in Greenville

Mass. Gov. Mitt Romney spoke Saturday to Greenville Republicans and urged fiscal restraint, according to the Greenville News:

Stepping up his soundings as a potential 2008 presidential candidate, Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney told Greenville Republicans on Saturday that the federal government, without naming President Bush, is spending too much money and has "underappreciated" the terror threat's scope.

2/8: SC is the place for hopefuls to visit

Two years before the opening primaries of the 2008 presidential campaigns, candidates are lining up support in places like South Carolina, according to a story in today's USA Today:

Last month, Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist of Tennessee hired Republican communication expert Jim Dyke, based in South Carolina, site of an early primary. Another Republican, New York Gov. George Pataki, has consultants on the payroll in Iowa and New Hampshire — the lead-off states in the nomination process.

Also in the story:

This time, South Carolina Republican Party Chairman Katon Dawson laughs when asked who's been to visit. "It's not who's been here," he says. "The only one who hasn't is Gov. Pataki."

Nine GOP prospects came to Dawson's state 16 times between the last election and Jan. 31 of this year, according to records kept by The Hotline, an online political newsletter. Five Democrats made six visits there over the same period. Iowa and New Hampshire saw even more traffic. Each state has hosted more than three dozen visits by possible candidates.

2/3, editorial: Palmetto State primaries crucial

From the Washington Examiner:

"Two years from now, Democratic and Republican presidential aspirants will be scrambling across South Carolina attempting to win their party's 2008 presidential nomination. Virginians could have a special interest in the Palmetto State's early primary, which may be the proving ground - or graveyard - for two of the state's former governors, Republican George Allen and Democrat Mark Warner. "

1/23, editorial: McCain could be establishment candidate

From the Greenville News:

"Where Bush in 2000 could count on top state party leaders to rally behind him, McCain may have a similar benefit if he runs next time. Graham appears to be in with both feet. Although Sanford didn't mention McCain by name or reference in his remarks at the dinner, Weaver left little doubt he expects Sanford to be on board once re-election and legislative issues are behind him."

1/17: McCain visits South Carolina for King Day, GOP event

U.S. Sen. John McCain spoke at Spartanburg's King Day celebration and the county GOP's convention Monday in an event-packed day. Elsewhere across the state, hundreds marched in Columbia and remembered King's legacy.

McCain, a two-time presidential candidate from Arizona, told reporters he hadn't decided whether to run again for president, but would make the decision in about a year.

According to the Spartanburg Herald Journal: "During his stop at the auditorium, McCain told the crowd that King had not only saved black people, but that he had saved white people as well.

"'I love this country, but it was not until I lost this country for a while that I realized how much I love it,'" McCain said. "'But I can't say that I loved it as much or served it as well as Dr. King.'"

• More: WSPA TV, Associated Press, Spartanburg Herald-Journal, Greenville News
  
  
• Council member leaves event to protest McCain's visit, WSPA TV

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.