# Liberty Movement > Liberty Campaigns >  Jim DeMint resigns from US Senate, special election to be held 2014

## compromise

Official statement:
http://www.demint.senate.gov/public/...8-ae6c74e63bcc



> WASHINGTON, D.C. -- Today, U.S. Senator Jim DeMint (R-South Carolina) announced that he will leave the Senate at the beginning of January to become the next president of The Heritage Foundation, the largest and most respected conservative think tank in America.
> 
> "It's been an honor to serve the people of South Carolina in United States Senate for the past eight years, but now it's time for me to pass the torch to someone else and take on a new role in the fight for America's future.
> 
> "I'm leaving the Senate now, but I'm not leaving the fight. I've decided to join The Heritage Foundation at a time when the conservative movement needs strong leadership in the battle of ideas. No organization is better equipped to lead this fight and I believe my experience in public office as well as in the private sector as a business owner will help Heritage become even more effective in the years to come.
> 
> “I’m humbled to follow in the footsteps of Ed Feulner, who built the most important conservative institution in the nation. He has been a friend and mentor for years and I am honored to carry on his legacy of fighting for freedom.
> 
> "My constituents know that being a Senator was never going to be my career. I came to Congress as a citizen legislator and I've always been determined to leave it as citizen legislator. South Carolina has a deep bench of conservative leaders and I know Governor Haley will select a great replacement.
> ...


http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/...ng-the-senate/




> Sen. Jim DeMint (R-S.C.) is leaving Congress in January to lead the Heritage Foundation, a conservative think tank, as first  reported by the Wall Street Journal.
> DeMint, a staunch conservative who often clashes with party leadership, was reelected to a second term in 2010. He will depart before the new Congress is sworn in next month.  
> “Senator DeMint has done more to advance the cause of freedom and liberty in Congress than anyone else since his election,” said Chris Chocola, president of the anti-tax Club for Growth, in a statement congratulating the senator. “We wish him nothing but the best in his new role at Heritage.”
> Before entering politics, DeMint worked in market research, and he told the Journal that he’s excited about taking Heritage Foundation research and working to “translate those policy papers into real-life demonstrations of things that work.”
> DeMint will take over from Ed Fuelner, who has been president of the Heritage Foundation since 1977.


http://online.wsj.com/article/SB1000...763222762.html




> South Carolina U.S. Senator Jim DeMint will replace Ed Feulner as president of the Heritage Foundation. Mr. DeMint will leave his post as South Carolina's junior senator in early January to take control of the Washington think tank, which has an annual budget of about $80 million.
> 
> Sen. DeMint's departure means that South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley, a Republican, will name a successor, who will have to run in a special election in 2014. In that year, both Mr. DeMint's replacement and Sen. Lindsey Graham will be running for reelection in South Carolina.
> 
> Mr. DeMint was reelected to a second term in 2010. The 61-year-old senator had announced earlier that he would not seek a third term.
> 
> Mr. Feulner, who is 71 and planned to step down, is to be named chancellor of Heritage, a new position, and will continue in a part-time capacity as chairman of the foundation's Asian Studies Center.
> 
> In an interview preceding the succession announcement, Sen. DeMint said he is taking the Heritage job because he sees it as a vehicle to popularize conservative ideas in a way that connects with a broader public. "This is an urgent time," the senator said, "because we saw in the last election we were not able to communicate conservative ideas that win elections." Mr. DeMint, who was a market researcher before he entered politics, said he plans to take the Heritage Foundation's traditional research plus that of think tanks at the state level and "translate those policy papers into real-life demonstrations of things that work." He said, "We want to figure out what works at the local and state level" and give those models national attention.
> ...


http://www.politico.com/story/2012/1...#ixzz2EHt4y7QX




> Sen. Jim DeMint abruptly announced plans to resign his South Carolina Senate seat to run the conservative Heritage Foundation, a stunning move that could have repercussions in the chamber and in Senate GOP primaries across the country.
> The tea party leader made the announcement that he’d replace Ed Feulner as president of the Heritage Foundation in January.
> 
> “It’s been an honor to serve the people of South Carolina in United States Senate for the past eight years, but now it’s time for me to pass the torch to someone else and take on a new role in the fight for America’s future,” he said in a statement.
> Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell said DeMint informed him of his decision to resign Thursday morning.
> “We’re sorry to see Jim go. He’s had a distinguished career,” McConnell told POLITICO in a brief interview. “My wife [Elaine Chao] is a distinguished fellow at The Heritage Foundation. She’ll be reporting to him.”
> DeMint added in his statement: “I’m leaving the Senate now, but I’m not leaving the fight. I’ve decided to join The Heritage Foundation at a time when the conservative movement needs strong leadership in the battle of ideas. No organization is better equipped to lead this fight and I believe my experience in public office as well as in the private sector as a business owner will help Heritage become even more effective in the years to come.”
> DeMint had already planned to retire after his term ended in January 2017, but he gave no indications that he’d leave with more than four years left in his term. He previously served three terms in the House.
> The senator has become an influential leader in the tea party, aggressively working in Senate primaries to prop up the most conservative candidates, and often becoming a thorn in the side of his party’s leaders.


Sad, but it's good DeMint's leading Heritage though. Hopefully this will make them more pro-liberty.

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## thoughtomator

Why do the better ones resign and the worst of the lot never leave?

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## nobody's_hero

> Why do the better ones resign and the worst of the lot never leave?


Even superman probably wouldn't have wanted to be around when the Titanic struck the iceberg.

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## nobody's_hero

Tom Davis in a recent interview suggested that he doesn't have aspirations for political office in D.C. His focus now is working in Columbia, SC at the state capital "to make South Carolina the freest state in the nation." I'd be disappointed but I could understand why he doesn't want to go to Washington. He's always saying how he has almost no faith in D.C. politicians to do the right thing.

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## supermario21

There aren't any more Lindsey clones in SC are there?

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## Anti-Neocon

http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/...ng-the-senate/

It looks like it's up to Gov. Haley to pick his replacement, so there's no chance of it being Davis?  I'm just posting this cause I thought it was interesting.

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## angelatc

Well, I think the odds that a Democrat will take the seat are pretty slim, aren't they?

This makes me sad.

But won't the election be in 2013?

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## tsai3904

Word is that Nikki Haley gets to appoint someone until a special election is held in 2014, the same election as Lindsey Graham.  This actually helps Lindsey out a lot.

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## compromise

http://www.ronpaulforums.com/showthr...o-be-held-2014
I already posted this, but maybe this is a more appropriate sub-forum if you consider DeMint a liberty candidate. Perhaps someone can merge the two topics?

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## angelatc

> Word is that Nikki Haley gets to appoint someone until a special election is held in 2014, the same election as Lindsey Graham.  This actually helps Lindsey out a lot.


Oh that sucks.  Sucks sucks sucks sucks sucks.

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## Jeremy Tyler

Hopefully we can get Davis to run!

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## supermario21

I'm worried this helps the Democrats almost as much as Lindsey. Is our bench deep enough to field a primary challenger to Lindsey and another solid conservative?

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## itshappening

Huge news but Hayley gets to pick the person to see out his term argggh.   That means no open primary for his seat...

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## itshappening

SPECIAL election:

Sen. DeMint's departure means that South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley, a Republican, will name a successor, who will have to run in a special election in 2014. In that year, both Mr. DeMint's replacement and Sen. Lindsey Graham will be running for reelection in South Carolina.

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## compromise

> Word is that Nikki Haley gets to appoint someone until a special election is held in 2014, the same election as Lindsey Graham.  This actually helps Lindsey out a lot.


That's pretty bad, but I hope Nikki appoints Mulvaney or Davis or another libertarian-leaning conservative. Didn't she already appoint Davis to her Fiscal Task Force?

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## compromise

> I'm worried this helps the Democrats almost as much as Lindsey. Is our bench deep enough to field a primary challenger to Lindsey and another solid conservative?


We have to hope Nikki appoints someone good so we don't have to worry about a second primary challenge.

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## tsai3904

> I'm worried this helps the Democrats almost as much as Lindsey. Is our bench deep enough to field a primary challenger to Lindsey and another solid conservative?


There were three State Senators who endorsed Ron Paul but I don't know if we'll have the funds to compete in two Senate elections.  It's going to be extremely confusing because 2014 will have two primaries on the same day and if people only vote in one (which we saw in Massie's and Bentivolio's two elections on the same day), name recognition is key, which Lindsey or whoever the replacement will be will have.

It's also going to be hard for a challenger to compete because if he wants to do an attack ad, he has to do an ad on only one of the challengers which might help the other election and not him.

Unless we get Tom Davis in now, I think Lindsey Graham is safe to win in 2014.

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## Smart3

There's always the possibility Haley royally f---s us in the arse by appointing a Thurmond.

Here's hoping she picks Davis or Mulvaney! Although, I have complete confidence in Bright as well.

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## compromise

> There's always the possibility Haley royally f---s us in the arse by appointing a Thurmond.


Isn't Haley Indian or something? I don't see her going for a Thurmond.

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## compromise

> There were three State Senators who endorsed Ron Paul


Four, Lee Bright, Kevin Bryant, Danny Verdin and Tom Davis.

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## mz10

http://www.redstate.com/2012/12/06/t...on-presidency/

Good article by Erick Erickson. Definitely sad to see DeMint go but this move could increase his influence, not decrease.

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## The Goat

Let me ease the confusion. Haley will appoint another establishment republican. Demint just sailed us down the river. SC will remain an establishment hack job of a state. Hopefully Davis will run for senate against graham, we still need to focus on Graham, we can't be divided, who ever Haley pics can hold the seat till we have the ability to replace them, I believe this is an attempt to keep graham in his seat.

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## itshappening

I'm guessing she will appoint one of the congressmen in the state and it will be impossible to primary them in 2014 so beating Graham would be the only option for Tom Davis

Very sad news because it closes off an option for Davis in 2016.

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## The Goat

> Four, Lee Bright, Kevin Bryant, Danny Verdin and Tom Davis.


you can mark Bryant off, he is vocally against Haley on the SC Dept of Revenue hacking case.

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## wgadget

But isn't this good for Rand's standing as a conservative in the Senate?

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## wgadget

SC is VERY much into defense spending, if ya know what I mean...

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## compromise

> http://www.redstate.com/2012/12/06/t...on-presidency/
> 
> Good article by Erick Erickson. Definitely sad to see DeMint go but this move could increase his influence, not decrease.


He's suggesting Scott. Scott is good fiscally and he did vote for the Kucinich Libya resolution, but he's terrible on civil liberties and military spending. If she does pick Scott, then say goodbye to any FreedomWorks/Club for Growth/Tea Party Express/SCF help when it comes to primarying him in 2014.

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## realtonygoodwin

Just saw this on the news. I am really disappointed he is leaving the Senate.

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## compromise

> you can mark Bryant off, he is vocally against Haley on the SC Dept of Revenue hacking case.


Verdin has a chance, he's the Senate Majority Whip.

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## John F Kennedy III

> Oh that sucks.  Sucks sucks sucks sucks sucks.


If Davis runs for this seat instead of against Lindsey, his odds go way up. At least that's my first thought.

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## compromise

> If Davis runs for this seat instead of against Lindsey, his odds go way up. At least that's my first thought.


It all depends on who Haley appoints. If she appoints an anti-liberty fiscal conservative like Tim Scott, Davis has no chance of getting help from the Tea Party PACs, he probably won't primary challenge in that case. Davis's best shot is against Lindsey because he will have a lot of help and Lindsey is very unpopular with the GOP base right now.

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## John F Kennedy III

> I'm worried this helps the Democrats almost as much as Lindsey. Is our bench deep enough to field a primary challenger to Lindsey and another solid conservative?


With DeMint leaving, we may not gain any ground without winning both seats. We have to try.

So...is our bench deep enough? It seems Tom can take out Lindsey. If so, our candidate for the other seat probably wouldn't have to be as strong as Tom to win.

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## BSU kid

If I had to speculate, I would imagine Scott will be the pick...GOP wants diversity, so what better way then to have the only African American Senator in Congress. Plus, I know Scott aims for higher office and I suspect he will use the senate as a stepping stone for a Presidential Bid in 2016.

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## LibertyEagle

Extremely poor timing.

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## RonPaul25

we are screwed

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## Nathan Hale

Hmm, Demint is apparently joining the Heritage Foundation, but he might be angling for a primary run in the 2016 election.

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## compromise

> If I had to speculate, I would imagine Scott will be the pick...GOP wants diversity, so what better way then to have the only African American Senator in Congress. Plus, I know Scott aims for higher office and I suspect he will use the senate as a stepping stone for a Presidential Bid in 2016.


President in 2016? After only 4 years in the Senate? I don't think he will run so fast.

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## liberalnurse

http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/OTUS/...ry?id=17893497

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## Matt Collins

I wonder if the Heritage Foundation will become less neocon with DeMint at the helm?

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## LibertyEagle

> There's always the possibility Haley royally f---s us in the arse by appointing a Thurmond.
> 
> Here's hoping she picks Davis or Mulvaney! Although, I have complete confidence in Bright as well.


If you are talking about Strom Thurmond, he almost single-handedly blocked some really nasty pieces of legislation and UN treaties.

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## LibertyEagle

> I wonder if the Heritage Foundation will become less neocon with DeMint at the helm?


It's interesting, from reading the article it sounds like the Founder was at the helm all this time.  At one point, it wasn't neocon, but then became that way.  Why did he allow it?

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## AuH20

I think DeMint is leaving prematurely to wage total war on the old bulls in the GOP. And this is only external position in which he can wage it properly.

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## sailingaway

dammit!

I was just going to post this.  (that is not what my 'dammit' was about....)  Going to Heritage which is beholden to those it is beholden to, and we loose an ally who actually had backbone, granted he wasn't exactly us.

GOP Sen. DeMint to resign, run Heritage Foundation

http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/p...igns-/1750869/

That is a problem in the Senate. He was a bridge.

I should move this to general politics, though.

My thought is that 'leadership' is cleaning house of all the 'trouble makers', purging the Freshman House members from committee, offering DeMint an offer he can't refuse.  

Dammit.

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## Lucille

> Even superman probably wouldn't have wanted to be around when the Titanic struck the iceberg.


This.

http://market-ticker.org/akcs-www?post=214629




> If you wanted a bell to ring at the "be prepared" point, it just did.
> [...]
> Do not underestimate the meaning of this or its timing.
> 
> I know people will, and will try to look at this as simply a "move that will popularize conservative values."  You're wrong folks.
> 
> If you've followed Mr. DeMint over the years you know that he "gets it", and that when not on the floor he is rather blunt with his constituents and anyone else who cares to pay attention.
> 
> Sometimes a bell does ring at important inflection points.
> ...

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## Jon311

This is not good news for us. 

As much as I like and respect DeMint, I feel like he is abandoning us.

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## brandon

If Nikki Haley really gets to appoint the replacement...what are the chances it is Davis?

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## brandon

Is the real reason Demint is leaving so that he can remove himself from controversy and begin preparing for a presidential run?

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## 1836

*Hard to blame him honestly.*

Ask any of the liberty movement's elected officials, or the real tea partiers.

If you stand apart from the crowd for your principles you will be *hammered* for it. It takes its toll and I think it did on DeMint.

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## itshappening

> Hmm, Demint is apparently joining the Heritage Foundation, but he might be angling for a primary run in the 2016 election.


I doubt it, he will be contented as head of Heritage and he'll make a lot of money too.  Why would he want to run for president, doesn't make sense.

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## Brian4Liberty

> Word is that Nikki Haley gets to appoint someone until a special election is held in 2014, the same election as Lindsey Graham.  This actually helps Lindsey out a lot.





> That's pretty bad, but I hope Nikki appoints Mulvaney or Davis or another libertarian-leaning conservative. Didn't she already appoint Davis to her Fiscal Task Force?


Who lives in SC? We need to lobby Haley to appoint Davis!

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## Brian4Liberty

Gov. Nikki Haley to fill DeMint’s seat by appointment:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/...y-appointment/

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## supermario21

I have a feeling Tim Scott will get the nod for DeMint, as that is who he reportedly told Haley to appoint. I would be OK with that. I'd rather have Davis primary Lindsey. When you're an underdog, I'd rather take the shot against the establishment candidate who has been censured by several county parties. Since he's banned from speaking at at least one of those county parties, I'm sure he won't get their endorsement either.

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## AuH20

I wouldn't have a problem with either Scott, Mulvaney or Davis replacing DeMint. But by the same token I want Lindsay out.

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## HOLLYWOOD

> *I have a feeling Tim Scott will get the nod for DeMint, as that is who he reportedly told Haley to appoint*. I would be OK with that. I'd rather have Davis primary Lindsey. When you're an underdog, I'd rather take the shot against the establishment candidate who has been censured by several county parties. Since he's banned from speaking at at least one of those county parties, I'm sure he won't get their endorsement either.


Scott is pals with the same old  establishment crowd: Mitt Haley, Bob McDonnell of Virginia, etc.

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## 69360

So heritage is going to back Rand in 2016 now? That's my take on it and if I'm right that is a big deal.

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## tsai3904

Tom Davis' statement:




> There is battle going on right now for the soul of the Republican Party, and the stakes are extremely high. Will the GOP truly be the party of cutting the size and scope of government and expanding individual liberty and economic freedom, or will it be the party of compromise and accommodation, one that is willing to increase taxes “for the good of the country”?
> 
> There has never been any question as to what side of that ideological divide Sen. Jim DeMint stands; he has long been a warrior in the United States Senate for restricting government and empowering people. And thanks to Sen. DeMint’s willingness to challenge the status quo Republican leadership, we now have true conservative champions like Rand Paul, Mike Lee and Ted Cruz serving alongside him in DC.
> 
> Today’s news that Sen. DeMint is leaving the United States Senate, in the middle of the debate on how Congress should respond to the so-called “fiscal cliff,” is akin to an army losing a general in the midst of battle, and it is my hope that Gov. Nikki Haley swiftly appoints someone to serve in his stead who is just as committed to the liberty movement, and who is just as willing to stand for what is right as opposed to what is politically expedient.

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## surf

Mark Sanford....

there would be no one more disgusting than his SC Senate coworker. i'm with goldwater: get lindsay the fo.

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## Brett85

What exactly is the point of electing "liberty candidates" when they get constantly bashed for not being "pure enough?"  Does anyone really think that Tom Davis would be better than Rand?

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## itshappening

> So heritage is going to back Rand in 2016 now? That's my take on it and if I'm right that is a big deal.


Why do you infer that?  They probably won't back anyone, it's a conservative establishment type foundation.  I think they stay out of electoral politics.

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## tsai3904

Here's a look at previous incidences of when Governors appointed themselves to a Senate seat (only 1 of 9 survived the following election):

http://www.npr.org/blogs/politicalju...t_themsel.html

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## itshappening

Rep. Tim Scott is seen as the leading contender for the appointment among GOP consultants, largely because of the historical significance. A conservative African-American from Charleston, Scott would provide diversity and geographic balance.

“Scott is head and shoulders above any other possible appointee,” said a conservative Republican lobbyist.

Other potential candidates include Reps. Jeff Duncan and Mick Mulvaney and state Sen. Tom Davis, who had been contemplating a challenge to Sen. Lindsey Graham, who also faces reelection in 2014.

Former Attorney General Henry McMaster is seen as a prime pick if Haley wants to go the placeholder route.

Some Republicans believe DeMint’s departure is most beneficial to Graham, since his potential rivals may turn their attention to an open seat rather than challenge an incumbent.

But others note a competitive GOP primary for DeMint’s seat could also juice up the conservative base at a time when Graham sits at the top of the ballot.

Read more: http://www.politico.com/story/2012/1...#ixzz2EIOvzzJe

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## stu2002

I want to congratulate Senator Jim DeMint on becoming president of Heritage. We will miss his strong voice for the Constitution in the Senate, but I believe that his voice will still resonate throughout the country.

He leaves the Senate with more constitutional conservatives than when he came, and those of us he helped are forever grateful. Because of Senator DeMints tireless efforts there now is a significant voice for Liberty in the U.S. Senate.

https://www.facebook.com/SenatorRandPaul

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## Jeremy

Then we really need to convince Tom Davis to run against LG.  No time to waste now...

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## sailingaway

> http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/...ng-the-senate/
> 
> It looks like it's up to Gov. Haley to pick his replacement, so there's no chance of it being Davis?  I'm just posting this cause I thought it was interesting.


actually that is a fantastic idea.  Should we be writing Haley for it?

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## FSP-Rebel

> What exactly is the point of electing "liberty candidates" when they get constantly bashed for not being "pure enough?"  Does anyone really think that Tom Davis would be better than Rand?


LOL

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## LibertyEagle

> So heritage is going to back Rand in 2016 now? That's my take on it and if I'm right that is a big deal.


DeMint also helped Rubio get elected, from what I read.

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## sailingaway

> What exactly is the point of electing "liberty candidates" when they get constantly bashed for not being "pure enough?"  Does anyone really think that Tom Davis would be better than Rand?


I think he _might_ be as good, but he isn't having to stand behind his rhetoric with the kind of votes we need at the moment (although he did put forward legislation to nullify Obamacare and NDAA I believe.)  Time will tell.  I think he has great POTENTIAL however.

But I agree with others that taking Lindsay down is another big point.  and yet I don't want Davis to lose.  Which election should he best run in to win?

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## John F Kennedy III

> Let me ease the confusion. Haley will appoint another establishment republican. Demint just sailed us down the river. SC will remain an establishment hack job of a state. Hopefully Davis will run for senate against graham, we still need to focus on Graham, we can't be divided, who ever Haley pics can hold the seat till we have the ability to replace them, I believe this is an attempt to keep graham in his seat.


DeMint isn't Liberty, he's Liberty friendly. So I don't know if that would classify as a sellout or not. But damn.... I hope that's not why.

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## sailingaway

> Tom Davis' statement:


so she is appointing until 2014 and then there is a special election? Should we be mobilizing to ask Haley to appoint Davis?

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## LibertyEagle

> What exactly is the point of electing "liberty candidates" when they get constantly bashed for not being "pure enough?"  D


No kidding.  I agree.

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## John F Kennedy III

> It all depends on who Haley appoints. If she appoints an anti-liberty fiscal conservative like Tim Scott, Davis has no chance of getting help from the Tea Party PACs, he probably won't primary challenge in that case. Davis's best shot is against Lindsey because he will have a lot of help and Lindsey is very unpopular with the GOP base right now.


Then we run Davis against Graham and run someone good for the DeMint seat whether we can support that candidate or not.

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## FSP-Rebel

Presuming he keeps his SCF alive, his tenure at Heritage could give a big boost to his PAC funding which will further enable more conservatives into the Senate. It'll be interesting to see what kind of pressure he puts on the party leadership via his standing with the conservative base. I think we're witnessing a major revival in the conservative movement and capturing the major think tank in DC will add more liberty influence into some of the conservative media as well as strengthening the base by providing a narrative change. Also, it leaves Rand and Mike as the conservative heavyweights in the Senate while broadening the full frontal assault going on in the party. The rank and file of the party will likely move along with this conservative re-awakening and bolster our coalition building on the front lines in the lower ranks of the party which will allow for major changes in the next 2-4 years. Plus, the deterioration of the economy will be the guest of honor in this scuffle to restore fiscal sanity and smaller government as the official operating memes of the GOP.

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## 69360

> Why do you infer that?  They probably won't back anyone, it's a conservative establishment type foundation.  I think they stay out of electoral politics.


Heritage has a lot more pull in elections than you think.

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## BSU kid

> President in 2016? After only 4 years in the Senate? I don't think he will run so fast.


A certain Senator from Illinois did, and he had no problem becoming president. What's to stop Tim Scott?

Clearly he aspires for higher office, he said:

“The House is training for whatever the good Lord has for me next.”

We need to push Davis ASAP.

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## Brett85

> Which election should he best run in to win?


I guess it depends on who Haley appoints to the Senate.  If she picks a staunch conservative who's popular, then Davis shouldn't run for that seat in 2014.  He would be better off running against Graham in the primary.

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## AJ Antimony

"South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley (R) will appoint DeMint’s successor, who will serve until a 2014 special election. That means two Senate races in the Palmetto State that year. Sen. Lindsey Graham (R) — targeted by many of the conservatives who love DeMint — is up for reelection. DeMint’s surprising move appears to be a break for Graham, who may see potential primary rivals flock to the open seat instead of challenging him."

Bingo!

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## andrew1229649

Senator Demint has stepped down from his position as our United States Senator.

Our Governor, Nikki Haley, will appoint someone to fill this seat until the 2014 election.

To help ensure that this seat is continued to be filled by a conservative principled individual please contact the Governor's office and tell them you want her to appoint either State Senator Tom Davis or United States Congressman Jeff Duncan.

The telephone number to her office is (803)-734-2100

Facebooked that ^

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## tsai3904

> I guess it depends on who Haley appoints to the Senate.  If she picks a staunch conservative who's popular, then Davis shouldn't run for that seat in 2014.  He would be better off running against Graham in the primary.


It will also depend on how many candidates jump into which primary.  If DeMint's seat draws 5 candidates and no one wanting to challenge Lindsey, Davis should take up the challenge.  I wonder how easy it would be for candidates to switch races though.  Say if one race gets too crowded, they decide to switch to the other primary.

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## sailingaway

> I guess it depends on who Haley appoints to the Senate.  If she picks a staunch conservative who's popular, then Davis shouldn't run for that seat in 2014.  He would be better off running against Graham in the primary.


But she's supposedly tea party (yeah, I know, but....it gives us something to start a conversation with...) Should we be approaching her to appoint Davis to begin with? She was Sanford's choice, I believe, wasn't she?  And Davis was his Chief of Staff.  Should we be showing public support for Davis to her?  Can we get our SC people in on this?

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## eleganz

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/12/07/us...tion.html?_r=0

ummm

Davis??




> Gov. Nikki Haley of South Carolina, a Republican, will now be compelled to appoint a successor who would then run to maintain the seat in a special election in 2014, when Republican Senator Lindsey Graham, the senior senator from the state, will also be up for re-election. Aides said that Ms. Haley was surprised by Mr. DeMints sudden announcement.
> 
> South Carolina is a small state, politically speaking and almost every Republican member of the House delegation, many of them close to Mr. DeMint politically and personally, are possible fill-ins.
> 
> Representative Tim Scott is a popular freshman from Charleston who is well known around the state from his year in the South Carolina General Assembly. The first African-American Republican to serve his state since Reconstruction, Mr. Scott could give Republicans a high-profile black member in the Senate, which currently has no African-American member from either party. Mr. Scott is believed to have other ambitions, including a possible run at the governors mansion.
> 
> Ms. Haley could also look to Representative Mick Mulvaney, also a freshman, whose politics align closely with Mr. DeMint but who is viewed by House Republican leadership as less of a obstructionist, even as he often votes against its leaders. Mr. Mulvaney is among the more active members of his delegation and House freshmen. But, unlike Mr. Scott, Mr. Mulvaney has no pre-existing relationship to Ms. Haley in a job and state where relationships matter, making Mr. Scott perhaps a more likely choice
> 
> Mr. DeMint, has served South Carolina and the national conservative movement exceptionally well, said Ms. Haley in a statement. His voice for freedom and limited government has been a true inspiration. On a personal level, I value Jims leadership and friendship. Our states loss is the Heritage Foundations gain. I wish Jim and Heritage all the best in continuing our shared commitment to Americas greatness.
> ...

----------


## Brett85

> But she's supposedly tea party (yeah, I know, but....it gives us something to start a conversation with...) Should we be approaching her to appoint Davis to begin with? She was Sanford's choice, I believe, wasn't she?  And Davis was his Chief of Staff.  Should we be showing public support for Davis to her?  Can we get our SC people in on this?


It certainly wouldn't hurt anything to try to contact her and tell her that Davis would be a good choice.  But, I'm sure it's a long shot, as Davis probably isn't all that well known.

----------


## sailingaway

LOL! The fourth post on this and that was my takeaway too (or one of them) should we be making a push to Haley to appt Davis? He was Sanford's chief of staff and wasn't she Stanford's protoge?  She isn't pure and may have other ideas, but it is worth a shot imho, if we can get our SC people into it...

----------


## LibertyEagle

Maybe you should pull Gilbert into this, Sailing.  Maybe he can help.

----------


## itshappening

Haley won't appoint Tom Davis, it'll be one of the congressmen or a place-holder. 

I suspect the Establishment are trying to protect Lindsey here so I'm guessing she will allow there to be a competitive primary for DeMint's seat so that election gets all the action allowing Lindsey to cruise to victory so that means she will appoint a place-holder.

----------


## mad cow

> What exactly is the point of electing "liberty candidates" when they get constantly bashed for not being "pure enough?"  Does anyone really think that Tom Davis would be better than Rand?


Truth bomb,Thanks.

----------


## Brian4Liberty

> Mark Sanford....
> 
> there would be no one more disgusting than his SC Senate coworker. i'm with goldwater: get lindsay the fo.


That's it! Nothing says place-holder like Sanford! 

(Jenny Sanford?)

----------


## eleganz

Either way, Davis 14.

We have Lee Bright as well.  Why aren't they being considered? (at least not in the article).

----------


## pcosmar

> What exactly is the point of electing "liberty candidates" when they get constantly bashed for not being "pure enough?"


Define "Liberty Candidate".  
Are you talking about solid principles,, or someone that gives Liberty some lip service to garner votes.
I am not throwing anyone under the bus,, I am just not too enthused with some of the folks trotted out.

And most of the "johnny come lately" folks need to be watched closely.

----------


## itshappening

Davis would then have to compete against Scott and other candidates which makes it much tougher.  He could opt to just take on Lindsey but the competitive primary will get all the attention and i'm guessing it would make it harder to get Lindsey out.

Our only hope is for her to appoint one of the congressmen and for him to have the primary sewen up therefore leaving the Graham seat as the one with all the attention where he can be challenged and even then Davis has said he may not run for it.

----------


## sailingaway

> Either way, Davis 14.
> 
> We have Lee Bright as well.  Why aren't they being considered? (at least not in the article).


the article is doubtless framing up the one they want.  

But while I want Graham out and Davis has the best chance of winning against him, I also want Davis IN, and being the appointee is the best chance of getting that for him, if there is a chance she will actually do it.

----------


## sailingaway

> Davis would then have to compete against Scott and other candidates which makes it much tougher.  He could opt to just take on Lindsey but the competitive primary will get all the attention and i'm guessing it would make it harder to get Lindsey out.
> 
> Our only hope is for her to appoint one of the congressmen and for him to have the primary sewen up therefore leaving the Graham seat as the one with all the attention where he can be challenged and even then Davis has said he may not run for it.


is there a reason it is impossible she will appoint Davis who is tea party, and she is marketed as tea party, and was Sanford's protoge, and Davis was Sanford's Chief of Staff? Is there some current there I am not aware of? Why wouldn't Davis be in the running for the appointment?  My instinct is that our SC people should be asking her to appoint Davis.  If nothing else it raises Davis's profile.  Why shouldn't we be doing that?

----------


## Brett85

> Define "Liberty Candidate".  
> Are you talking about solid principles,, or someone that gives Liberty some lip service to garner votes.
> I am not throwing anyone under the bus,, I am just not too enthused with some of the folks trotted out.
> 
> And most of the "johnny come lately" folks need to be watched closely.


I would say that Rand Paul is a "liberty candidate," but many people have been bashing him relentlessly lately and saying that they can't support him.  I acknowledge that he isn't perfect, but I would imagine that Tom Davis isn't any better, which is why I made the statement that it doesn't make any sense to get more people in the Senate like Rand if Rand sucks so much.

----------


## supermario21

Can you blame DeMint for helping Rubio? The other option was Charlie Crist!!

----------


## Feeding the Abscess

> I would say that Rand Paul is a "liberty candidate," but many people have been bashing him relentlessly lately and saying that they can't support him.  I acknowledge that he isn't perfect, but I would imagine that Tom Davis isn't any better, which is why I made the statement that it doesn't make any sense to get more people in the Senate like Rand if Rand sucks so much.


Tom Davis is publicly repping the Mises Institute and is talking about taking courses on Rothbardian analysis of history. So yeah, Davis very well may be better.

----------


## Brett85

> Tom Davis is publicly repping the Mises Institute and is talking about taking courses on Rothbardian analysis of history. So yeah, Davis very well may be better.


But would he vote in favor of things like sanctions on Iran and Defense Authorization Bills?  And if he did, would he get thrown under the bus like Rand did?

----------


## Shane Harris

damn. definitely smells like an establishment plan to protect lindsey. Why couldn't Demint just finish his term.

----------


## Feeding the Abscess

> But would he vote in favor of things like sanctions on Iran and Defense Authorization Bills?  And if he did, would he get thrown under the bus like Rand did?


If he's talking up Rothbard, I'd assume he wouldn't vote for those things, and if he did, he'd get trashed by the same people trashing Rand for his votes.

----------


## sailingaway

> But would he vote in favor of things like sanctions on Iran and Defense Authorization Bills?  And if he did, would he get thrown under the bus like Rand did?


If he did, yeah, he would be, likely, to the same extent.  

To me, Ron set the gold standard, and I'm going to compare others to him - his lifetime standard is his legacy and is the reason I ever got involved in politics - it can be done, it has been done, and I will keep demanding it.  

Movement towards that is good, and a few are a lot closer to that than others, and I support them to that extent, that they are closer to that standard.  I hope we get Davis in, and yeah, I'll compare him to Ron.

----------


## Shane Harris

> If he's talking up Rothbard, I'd assume he wouldn't vote for those things, and if he did, he'd get trashed by the same people trashing Rand for his votes.


Agreed. I don't remember Rand ever mentioning the LvMI or Rothbard. Those are gutsy moves and to me, litmus tests for hardcore liberty.

----------


## Brett85

> If he did, yeah, he would be, likely, to the same extent.  
> 
> To me, Ron set the gold standard, and I'm going to compare others to him - his lifetime standard is his legacy and is the reason I ever got involved in politics - it can be done, it has been done, and I will keep demanding it.  
> 
> Movement towards that is good, and a few are a lot closer to that than others, and I support them to that extent, that they are closer to that standard.  I hope we get Davis in, and yeah, I'll compare him to Ron.


I don't have a problem with comparing these candidates to Ron, but people can't expect these candidates to be *exactly the same as Ron.*  There will never be someone who's "the next Ron Paul."  Such a label would actually be insulting to Ron and his legacy.

----------


## Lucille

So Much for the Paul-DeMint Caucus
http://www.theamericanconservative.c...demint-caucus/




> ...anything that removes potential political obstacles to McConnell and others like him is unlikely to be any good for the causes of fiscal responsibility or limited government.


Waddle must be giddy.

----------


## jct74

> http://www.ronpaulforums.com/showthr...o-be-held-2014
> I already posted this, but maybe this is a more appropriate sub-forum if you consider DeMint a liberty candidate. Perhaps someone can merge the two topics?


I merged all 4 threads together, will leave in General Politics for now and move to 2014 Candidates later.

----------


## tsai3904

> South Carolina GOP strategist Wesley Donehue said Scott is the obvious choice for Haley and noted that the two served together in the state Legislature. Donehue added that GOP state Sen. Tom Davis seems like the other obvious choice.
> 
> “He’s the most ideologically similar to Jim DeMint in the entire state,” Donehue said.


http://www.rollcall.com/news/south_c...-219739-1.html

----------


## SchleckBros

"Do you have an issue you'd like to discuss with Gov. Haley? Then, make an appointment to meet with her on Saturday, December 8, in Bamberg. Gov. Haley is holding constituent meetings at 2:00 PM at Bamberg City Hall. Anyone wishing to schedule an appointment with Gov. Haley should call (803) 734-1999 between 9:00 AM and 9:30 AM on Friday, December 7. Appointments are first-come, first-served. For more information, call (803) 734-2100."

Tell Governor Haley why she should choose Tom Davis. Perfect opportunity.

----------


## Eric21ND

If Scott is appointed he's likely to retain the seat and their won't be a highly contested primary for his seat.  This means the focus will turn back to Lindsey Graham's vulnerability and ratchet up that primary race.

----------


## sailingaway

> "Do you have an issue you'd like to discuss with Gov. Haley? Then, make an appointment to meet with her on Saturday, December 8, in Bamberg. Gov. Haley is holding constituent meetings at 2:00 PM at Bamberg City Hall. Anyone wishing to schedule an appointment with Gov. Haley should call (803) 734-1999 between 9:00 AM and 9:30 AM on Friday, December 7. Appointments are first-come, first-served. For more information, call (803) 734-2100."
> 
> Tell Governor Haley why she should choose Tom Davis. Perfect opportunity.


is anyone commenting on this from SC?  We have very active groups there who stayed involved.  I know this was just merged, but I'm wondering if we shouldn't start a thread in the SC forum to email anyone who subscribed to that forum.

----------


## Eric21ND

> "Do you have an issue you'd like to discuss with Gov. Haley? Then, make an appointment to meet with her on Saturday, December 8, in Bamberg. Gov. Haley is holding constituent meetings at 2:00 PM at Bamberg City Hall. Anyone wishing to schedule an appointment with Gov. Haley should call (803) 734-1999 between 9:00 AM and 9:30 AM on Friday, December 7. Appointments are first-come, first-served. For more information, call (803) 734-2100."
> 
> Tell Governor Haley why she should choose Tom Davis. Perfect opportunity.


I don't really see any negatives by pushing Tom Davis' name to the forefront and a public showing of populous support..  At the vary least it will increase his name recognition for a 2014 run against Graham.

----------


## jkob

If there is a shot to get Tom Davis appointed then by all means otherwise to keep the focus on 2014.

----------


## Eric21ND

> If there is a shot to get Tom Davis appointed then by all means otherwise to keep the focus on 2014.


If we pushed Davis into the appointment, we could run another liberty candidate against Graham in 2014.  That's best case scenario.

----------


## compromise

Davis will likely not go up in a primary against Scott. He seems pretty friendly with Scott.

----------


## jkob

How does Scott compare to DeMint?

----------


## compromise

> How does Scott compare to DeMint?


I'm not a fan of FreedomWorks' scorecard system, but here's his scorecard:
http://congress.freedomworks.org/legislators/tim-scott

DeMint's is higher:
http://congress.freedomworks.org/leg...jim-w-demint-0

Scott has a 90% rating by the John Birch Society, same as DeMint.

With the Club for Growth, Scott has 92%, DeMint has 100%.
The ACU gave Scott 96%, DeMint 100%.
The NTU gave Scott 84%, DeMint 93%.

Scott supported FISA, the Patriot Act, the infinite detention provision in the NDAA, the Ryan plan and keeping troops in Iraq and Afghanistan.
Scott opposed raising the debt ceiling and intervening in Libya.

He's worse than DeMint on civil liberties and war withdrawal, but otherwise quite similar.

----------


## Tinnuhana

Didn't get to read pages 2-10 because I have to leave for work in 5 minutes. But does anyone think this could be a set-up for a DeMint/Paulrun in 2016? Republican or maybe, by that time, new party? Not holing my breath; but wondering.

----------


## supermario21

I think the best option would be for Haley to appoint Scott and have Davis primary Lindsey. I'd be confident that Davis could unseat Lindsey. Davis would also likely be the most effective fundraiser against Graham, which would be a needed asset.

----------


## compromise

> But does anyone think this could be a set-up for a DeMint/Paulrun in 2016?


Probably not. Two middle-aged white Tea Party Presbyterian red state Southerners wouldn't work out too well in a presidential run. I see Rand picking a liberty-leaning latino like Labrador or Chaffetz.

----------


## itshappening

> Probably not. Two middle-aged white Tea Party Presbyterian red state Southerners wouldn't work out too well in a presidential run. I see Rand picking a liberty-leaning latino like Labrador or Chaffetz.


Or someone like Scott Walker.

----------


## Brian4Liberty

> He's [Scott] worse than DeMint on civil liberties and war withdrawal, but otherwise quite similar.


That doesn't sound good.

----------


## compromise

> Or someone like Scott Walker.


Yeah, Walker is a good candidate too, he's liberty leaning, has executive experience and is from a potential swing state. He could work well too.

----------


## eleganz

Whenever somebody suddenly resigns in D.C. you don't know if they actually wanted to do it or if they were pointed in that direction by an external force.

Regardless, I hope his move to the Heritage Foundation will be good for us in 2016 when Rand runs.

----------


## itshappening

> is there a reason it is impossible she will appoint Davis who is tea party, and she is marketed as tea party, and was Sanford's protoge, and Davis was Sanford's Chief of Staff? Is there some current there I am not aware of? Why wouldn't Davis be in the running for the appointment?  My instinct is that our SC people should be asking her to appoint Davis.  If nothing else it raises Davis's profile.  Why shouldn't we be doing that?


I think they will choose a place-holder and make it a competitive primary.  

The establishment want to keep Lindsey in and make sure that both seats are in establishment hands.  If they choose a place-holder establishment candidate and had a competitive primary for the seat and talked up someone like SCOTT enough who is well connected for a freshman in the House and is therefore establishment, he could be the front runner in a competitive primary.  A competitive primary keeps the heat off Lindsey and draw's in the suckers who they will be confident of beating with the well funded and talked up congressman.  That's my analysis.  

The competitive primary makes it harder to remove Graham and the congressman wins as he is well funded front runner with endorsements, both are smoothly in the hands of establishment picks and in the mean time the seat is kept warm by another establishmentarian.  Davis or anyone else wouldn't get a look in.

----------


## parocks

Lindsey Graham is awful, terrible, the worst.  He has to be primaried out by someone, whether it's Davis or someone else.

Whoever Haley picks does not have the terrible track record of Graham.

There's a good chance that conservatives will not be enthusiastic about primarying out whoever DeMint's replacement is.

Focus on getting Graham out.

----------


## LatinsforPaul

> He's worse than DeMint on civil liberties and war withdrawal, but otherwise quite similar.


Well, if Scott is the new senator chosen by Governor Haley then hopefully he can be influenced by Paul, Lee and Cruz to vote for liberty rather than with the establishment.

----------


## compromise

> That doesn't sound good.


He isn't too good. He's the most likely candidate as he'd be the first black Republican Senator since 1979 and the GOP would love that to shut down allegations of racism.
He is a fiscal conservative (he understands economic liberty), but far from libertarian. His positions are probably closer to Toomey or Johnson (WI) than DeMint.

----------


## itshappening

> Lindsey Graham is awful, terrible, the worst.  He has to be primaried out by someone, whether it's Davis or someone else.
> 
> Whoever Haley picks does not have the terrible track record of Graham.
> 
> There's a good chance that conservatives will not be enthusiastic about primarying out whoever DeMint's replacement is.
> 
> Focus on getting Graham out.


My bet is this: They want a competitive primary for the DeMint seat to draw in the suckers.  One of the well funded congressmen like Scott will win in a competitive primary. 

Graham is protected because the competitive primary will be for DeMint's seat and anyone running against Graham will get little attention and he will sail to nomination in the "other" primary probably held on the same day.  The whole media will cover the DeMint seat "battle" and ignore anyone challenging Graham. 

So that means Haley will be picking someone like an old guy in the state who wont run for the seat in 2014.

----------


## compromise

> Well, if Scott is the new senator chosen by Governor Haley then hopefully he can be influenced by Paul, Lee and Cruz to vote for liberty rather than with the establishment.


You make a good point, Scott is a member of Bachmann's Tea Party Caucus in the House so it is very likely he'll join Rand Paul's Tea Party Caucus in the Senate, which will most likely consist of Lee, Moran, Cruz and possibly Flake in 2013.

----------


## compromise

> So that means Haley will be picking someone like an old guy in the state who wont run for the seat in 2014.


That's assuming that Haley is part of some vast conspiracy to keep Graham around. Most Republicans, while they don't like the idea of Graham losing, aren't really going to hatch a complex plot to keep him around, especially after his comments on increasing taxes.

----------


## SpreadOfLiberty

Davis isn't going to run, and I'm not sure Bryant and Bright are formidable enough. Verdin could be a possibility. Those are the four state senators who endorsed Paul.

It would be good to see Mark Sanford get appointed. The question is how do we make that happen.

----------


## itshappening

> That's assuming that Haley is part of some vast conspiracy to keep Graham around. Most Republicans, while they don't like the idea of Graham losing, aren't really going to hatch a complex plot to keep him around, especially after his comments on increasing taxes.


we'll see.  I really want her to pick someone so the competitive primary is Graham's rather than DeMint's.  

My analysis is complicated but if they want to protect Graham and ensure both seats are in Establishment hands then that is the way to do it because at the end you'd have Graham and one of the congressmen safely installed.

----------


## itshappening

Btw, Graham wanting to increase taxes is just GOP Establishment standard fare, it's not likely it will damage him with the politicians who run SC and the likes of Haley who will listen to the leadership like McConnell and do what she is told.  She's not likely to try and sell the seat like Blago is she, or appoint herself.  So she will do what she is told ultimately.

----------


## compromise

> Btw, Graham wanting to increase taxes is just GOP Establishment standard fare, it's not likely it will damage him with the politicians who run SC and the likes of Haley who will listen to the leadership like McConnell and do what she is told.  She's not likely to try and sell the seat like Blago is she, or appoint herself.  So she will do what she is told ultimately.


Haley is quite supportive of Davis, having appointed him to her fiscal task force, and Davis did endorse her gubernatorial candidacy early on. I don't think she'd actually rather have Graham than Davis.

----------


## parocks

> My bet is this: They want a competitive primary for the DeMint seat to draw in the suckers.  One of the well funded congressmen like Scott will win in a competitive primary. 
> 
> Graham is protected because the competitive primary will be for DeMint's seat and anyone running against Graham will get little attention and he will sail to nomination in the "other" primary probably held on the same day.  The whole media will cover the DeMint seat "battle" and ignore anyone challenging Graham. 
> 
> So that means Haley will be picking someone like an old guy in the state who wont run for the seat in 2014.


Most people commenting on this thread seem to on the right track.  I guess we'll know what their plan is - if there is a plan - if Haley picks a placeholder. 

Choices that Haley could make that we'd like - 1) Davis, our guy 2) Scott, someone that won't be primaried 3) any Conservative who won't be primaried.

Choices that Haley could make that we wouldn't like - 1) a placeholder which would lead to a contested primary 2) a RINO as bad as Graham.

We'll see what happens.  Might not be a bad idea to push Scott at this point.

----------


## itshappening

> Haley is quite supportive of Davis, having appointed him to her fiscal task force, and Davis did endorse her gubernatorial candidacy early on. I don't think she'd actually rather have Graham than Davis.


The GOP might tell her they want a competitive primary in 2014 for DeMint seat and therefore to appoint a place-holder.  Graham has influence in the SCGOP as he is the senior senator.  This would be a way of protecting him from any challenge on the same day as all the attention will be elsewhere.

----------


## Brian4Liberty

Too bad that Davis doesn't want it.

Mark Sanford is actually looking like a good option, as he isn't holding office right now, and is the former Governor. A good placeholder till the next election.

----------


## supermario21

I'd love Sanford, but how toxic politically is he still?

----------


## sailingaway

> I'd love Sanford, but how toxic politically is he still?


South Carolina voted for the Grinch for president.  His multiple affairs didn't seem to slow him down.  And Sanford married the girl, didn't he?

----------


## BSU kid

I'm sorry, when did Davis say he didn't want it? It probably got buried in this thread but I am very curious, because I thought he had big aspirations. I would prefer Davis above anyone else in South Carolina. Scott is at least a civil and respectable African American leader in the GOP unlike Allen West, but I can see him voting how McConnell wants 99% of the time which is a disturbing thought. A placeholder would be awful for our movement, a contested primary though winnable, won't be easy.

----------


## compromise

> I'm sorry, when did Davis say he didn't want it?


He wanted to focus on his work in the South Carolina Senate.




> I've put so much work into the 2013 legislative session, I couldn't in good conscience walk away from that.

----------


## parocks

> Too bad that Davis doesn't want it.
> 
> Mark Sanford is actually looking like a good option, as he isn't holding office right now, and is the former Governor. A good placeholder till the next election.


We don't want a placeholder.  We want an adequate replacement right now, so we can focus on defeating Graham.

----------


## FrancisMarion

I do not see Demint bowing from pressure from anyone to step down.  Under the premise that it was entirely his decision to make, I would suspect that he has a great trust for Haley's judgement at the very least....

Haley has a 40% approval rating in SC right now.  There is no other new Senator about to be appointed is there?  Is the media ready for a new story?  I don't consider it to be absurd to speculate that Demint could have come to Haley with a hypothetical scenario to see where she would go with it, and after his approval, decided to go public.  Think about it, I believe her aspirations to be higher than a state governorship.  The press from appointing a U.S Senator increases her national exposure, it will show the direction SC wants the GOP to go, and it gets the heat off of her a little bit in her home state from the DOR hacking.

Demint held great leverage with this decision.  Did he help Haley with her future decision?

---------------

SC State law interestingly does not give any time constraints for Gov Haley's appointment.

_SECTION 7-19-20. Filling vacancies in office of United States Senator.

In case of a vacancy in the office of United States Senator from death, resignation or otherwise, the Governor may fill the place by appointment which shall be for the period of time intervening between the date of such appointment and January third following the next succeeding general election. But in the event any such vacancy shall occur less than one hundred days prior to any general election, the appointment shall be for the period of time intervening between the date of such appointment and January third following the second general election next succeeding. The Governor shall within five days after any such appointment order an election to be held in connection with and at the time of the general election immediately preceding the expiration date of such appointment if at the expiration of such appointment an unexpired term shall remain.

HISTORY: 1962 Code Section 23-552; 1952 Code Section 23-552; 1942 Code Section 2331; 1932 Code Section 2331; Civ. C. '22 Section 264; 1914 (29) 592; 1942 (42) 1520._ 

I've been thinking about this all day and the political scenarios for the future involving other Senate Seats.  I have come to the decision that the scenarios are endless, and due to that I concluded for myself that the best thing I could do as a SC citizen was send the Governor a message as to who I would like to see take that seat.  After all it is the only one currently open.  I can respect other points of view, but I had to let her know my support for Tom Davis. It was written in full "diplomat" mode.




> Dear Governor,
> 
> I was sorry to hear that Senator Demint has decided to resign from his seat today.  He was a good man for our state and a principled voice for our nation. It seems that Conservatives in D.C have become wayward even more so of late, and it will be a great loss to not have our Senator Demint. He stood strong, supported by his principles and those of our Founders even when it was not popular to do so, or even more importantly, when it did not score him political credit within his own party. 
> 
> He was a good statesman, and we have too few these days.
> 
> I know you recognize the fact that you have big shoes to fill with this decision. Needless to say, you have a great opportunity to appoint a Senator that will not only resemble Demint, but will take the message of "life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness" to the chamber of the US Senate. I do not use an excerpt from the Declaration of Independence as coincidence.  It is time to send a message to our wayward GOP of the track forward.  Appoint a Senator that is true defender of the U.S. Constitution and does not just pay lip service.  Appoint a Senator that will fight for our individual liberty and who really understands what that means.  Appoint a Senator that does not crave power, but instead does whats best for the people.  Appoint a Senator that understands the economic system and those that unjustly profit from it. Appoint a Senator that will be open to reducing the size and scope of the Federal government, especially when it consequently reduces his/her role and political "power".  
> 
> I would not send this message as a constituent and not give you my choice if it were up to me.  Please consider our State Senator from Beaufort, Mr. Tom Davis.  I do not know if Mr. Davis is willing considering the work he is currently doing for our state.  I can hope that he is though, our country and our party need his voice now more than ever.  This is a huge decision and I trust you to make the right one. 
> ...


Sanford is interesting.  He would never win election, but could surely make some noise as an appointee.

----------


## supermario21

Judge Nap was a panelist on Bret Baier's show Special Report. He is thrilled with DeMint's move to Heritage, saying it puts a Republican who can unite grassroots conservatives and libertarians in the most powerful Republican spot in Washington. When responding to a question about the Tea Party's weaknesses, Nap laughed and brought up Boehner's purging of true conservatives because he's feeling the heat.

----------


## CaptLouAlbano

Has there been any talk that this move could be positioning himself to run for the nomination in 16?  He will have a lot of time to do media appearances over the next few years from this position, and by leaving the Senate now he can disassociate himself with anything that takes place over the next few years.  I may be speculating here, but this seems like a smart move to me if he is planning on running in 16 - leave the Senate assured that Scott takes the seat, take the reigns of one of the biggest conservative think tanks, be all over the place for the next few years and able to be critical of the GOP leadership from the outside, run in 16.

----------


## itshappening

He isn't going to run for president, he's going to run Heritage and be paid over a million a year. 

why would he want to run for president.  DeMint isn't about that..

----------


## CaptLouAlbano

> He isn't going to run for president, he's going to run Heritage and be paid over a million a year. 
> 
> why would he want to run for president.  DeMint isn't about that..


Are you saying that he is doing it for the money?  I don't believe that to be the case.

----------


## itshappening

> Are you saying that he is doing it for the money?  I don't believe that to be the case.


He's going to be busy with his job that he's getting paid a lot of money for, not running round the country running for president.

----------


## Eric21ND

Maybe we should rally around another liberty candidate for the appointment.  Any suggestions?

----------


## tsai3904

> Maybe we should rally around another liberty candidate for the appointment.  Any suggestions?


Lee Bright seems to be a good choice.  He endorsed Ron and has been posting lots of good stuff on his Facebook page.  He posted Rand's video on indefinite detention and his speech on pre-emptive war with Syria.  He also posts quotes of Mises and Bastiat.

Edit:  Looking further at his Facebook page, it seems like he's against the TSA, the drone attacks, against Leahy's bill that would have allowed warrantless searches through email

http://www.facebook.com/senatorleebright

----------


## CaptLouAlbano

> Maybe we should rally around another liberty candidate for the appointment.  Any suggestions?


I tend to think that DeMint has already spoken with Haley on this.  My guess is Scott.  I doubt a few hundred emails from people not living in SC is going to influence any decision.

----------


## sailingaway

> Lee Bright seems to be a good choice.  He endorsed Ron and has been posting lots of good stuff on his Facebook page.  He posted Rand's video on indefinite detention and his speech on pre-emptive war with Syria.  He also posts quotes of Mises and Bastiat.


from what I know he's second best.  I don't know if he'd have the support. Would he have to miss any filings for his state Senate job?

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## tsai3904

> Would he have to miss any filings for his state Senate job?


What do you mean?  He was just re-elected in November so he's clear for the next 4 years if that's were you're referring to.

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## sailingaway

> What do you mean?  He was just re-elected in November so he's clear for the next 4 years if that's were you're referring to.


yeah, I blinked.  then I think he's a great choice.

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## Adrock

The judge was on Fox and loving the DeMint move. Says that Jim is a Goldwater/Reagan Republican that will be able to bring libertarians back into the GOP. They were saying he could be setting himself up for a presidential run next cycle. Anyone have info on Tim Scott? They said that DeMint asked Haley to appoint him for the rest of his term.

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## erowe1

Interesting.

Having Demint head up the Heritage Foundation could be good for us.

Will he still head up the Senate Conservatives Fund?

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## Adrock

Here is a link to the video.

VIDEO

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## Feeding the Abscess

> The judge was on Fox and loving the DeMint move. Says that Jim is a Goldwater/Reagan Republican that will be able to bring libertarians back into the GOP. They were saying he could be setting himself up for a presidential run next cycle. Anyone have info on Tim Scott? They said that DeMint asked Haley to appoint him for the rest of his term.


Judge is way too inclusive. He should have stopped at the Reagan comparison, since both DeMint and Reagan supported massive increases in the size and scope of the government.

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## Adrock

> Judge is way too inclusive. He should have stopped at the Reagan comparison, since both DeMint and Reagan supported massive increases in the size and scope of the government.


In the past he has not parsed words when it comes to others, especially neoconservatives. I think his excitement is genuine and for a good reason.

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## Confederate



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## Brian4Liberty

> I'm not a fan of FreedomWorks' scorecard system, but here's his scorecard:
> http://congress.freedomworks.org/legislators/tim-scott
> 
> DeMint's is higher:
> http://congress.freedomworks.org/leg...jim-w-demint-0
> 
> Scott has a 90% rating by the John Birch Society, same as DeMint.
> 
> With the Club for Growth, Scott has 92%, DeMint has 100%.
> ...


Comments? Anyone know about Scott?

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## Brian4Liberty

> Maybe we should rally around another liberty candidate for the appointment.  Any suggestions?


Mark Sanford.

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## presence

> So Much for the Paul-DeMint Caucus


Maybe it creates more room for a Paul/Demint2016 Ticket?

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## Adrock

> Maybe it creates more room for a Paul/Demint2016 Ticket?


Kind of like Ron, I am anxious to see how he is once he is out of office. I am curious to see how much Rand and Ron may have rubbed off on him. I am really happy to have some in charge of the largest conservative think tank who's frame of mind is that "the argument in the Republican party should be between conservatives and libertarians". Probably wishful thinking, but I hope that we may have a closet libertarian with some serious conservative credentials here. That is the only reason why I could think that the Judge is almost giddy about this development.

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## compromise

> Judge is way too inclusive. He should have stopped at the Reagan comparison, since both DeMint and Reagan supported massive increases in the size and scope of the government.


No one is arguing they were perfect. But they were a huge improvement over all the Bush/Romney/McCain types and were clearly influenced by and accepting of libertarians.

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## Smitty

DeMint would occasionally whisper a bit of support for Ron Paul,..but he'd stand up and yell support for Israel and war against Iran.

Now,..he's taken the helm of a neocon think tank.

He's not real.

$#@! him.

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## Anti-Neocon

Well, the Heritage Foundation is somewhat influential, and if you've got a guy that isn't terrible on some issues it must be an improvement over the hardcore neo-cons that run the thing now.  Only a slight improvement though.

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## Eric21ND

> Mark Sanford.


Scandal-ridden.  No dice.

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## Eric21ND

> Judge is way too inclusive. He should have stopped at the Reagan comparison, since both DeMint and Reagan supported massive increases in the size and scope of the government.


Would you rather our movement be so exclusive that we're politically irrelevant?  We should be fighting to grow the movement, not fighting to give litmus tests for purity.

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## Natural Citizen

Liberals are having fun with him. 11 Reasons You’re Glad Jim DeMint Is Leaving The Senate...just do a search, I unlinked it.

Don't ask me how I come across these paradigm pieces. I just do sometimes. Weird, really.

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## Aratus

is it possible to have mr. davis and jack hunter run for both seats?

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## Jeremy

> is it possible to have mr. davis and jack hunter run for both seats?


Jack Hunter?  Lets be serious...

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## Jeremy

> DeMint would occasionally whisper a bit of support for Ron Paul,..but he'd stand up and yell support for Israel and war against Iran.
> 
> Now,..he's taken the helm of a neocon think tank.
> 
> He's not real.
> 
> $#@! him.


Wow no wonder people don't like Ron Paul supporters.

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## nasaal

> Wow no wonder people don't like Ron Paul supporters.


He's actually right.  It is a neocon think thank and they wouldn't put him in charge of it if they didn't have assurances that he'd do what they want.  No reason to get upset, just really shows that DeMint is what what we hoped he was.

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## Okie RP fan

We need to keep a bug in DeMint's ear from here on out. He's a valuable voice and we need to make sure he stays genuine.

Edit: Well, I don't know enough about Heritage and I didn't read some of the comments before posting that ^^. Oh, well.

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## compromise

> He's actually right.  It is a neocon think thank and they wouldn't put him in charge of it if they didn't have assurances that he'd do what they want.  No reason to get upset, just really shows that DeMint is what what we hoped he was.


It is a conservative think-tank, but I wouldn't say it's neoconservative. It did have some neoconservative leanings back in the Bush era but since then it's drifted away from the neocon ideology. Interventionist conservatism (what Eisenhower, Goldwater, DeMint, Palin and Reagan followed) is somewhat different from neoconservatism (what Kristol, McCain, Graham, Lieberman and Scoop followed), in that neoconservatives support intervention in almost all cases as a means of 'spreading democracy', while other interventionist conservatives only support intervention when they perceive it to be in the interest of national security to do (of course, they are often wrong). They tend to follow a Jacksonian as opposed to a Wilsonian foreign policy. The differences become apparent when you look at how Republicans voted on foreign aid and the Libya intervention. The Jacksonian interventionist conservatives tended to vote against foreign aid and intervention in Libya (and so for the Kucinich resolution), while the neoconservatives strongly support both foreign aid and the Libya intervention.

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## Smart3

> It is a conservative think-tank, but I wouldn't say it's neoconservative. It did have some neoconservative leanings back in the Bush era but since then it's drifted away from the neocon ideology. Interventionist conservatism (what Eisenhower, Goldwater, DeMint, Palin and Reagan followed) is somewhat different from neoconservatism (what Kristol, McCain, Graham, Lieberman and Scoop followed), in that neoconservatives support intervention in almost all cases as a means of 'spreading democracy', while other interventionist conservatives only support intervention when they perceive it to be in the interest of national security to do (of course, they are often wrong). They tend to follow a Jacksonian as opposed to a Wilsonian foreign policy. The differences become apparent when you look at how Republicans voted on foreign aid and the Libya intervention. The Jacksonian interventionist conservatives tended to vote against foreign aid and intervention in Libya (and so for the Kucinich resolution), while the neoconservatives strongly support both foreign aid and the Libya intervention.


I would move Reagan to the Neocon wing. He praised Scoop Jackson afterall:




> Scoop Jackson was convinced that there's no place for partisanship in foreign and defense policy. He used to say, 'In matters of national security, the best politics is no politics.' His sense of bipartisanship was not only natural and complete; it was courageous. He wanted to be President, but I think he must have known that his outspoken ideas on the security of the Nation would deprive him of the chance to be his party's nominee in 1972 and '76. Still, he would not cut his convictions to fit the prevailing style. I'm deeply proud, as he would have been, to have Jackson Democrats serve in my administration. I'm proud that some of them have found a home here.

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## erowe1

> I would move Reagan to the Neocon wing. He praised Scoop Jackson afterall:


That's not necessarily neoconservatism. I definitely think neoconservatives influenced Reagan, but not without some resistance. I think he was pretty reluctant in going along with them in democratizing the Philippines.

I agree with compromise. Heritage may be neocon-friendly. But it's not neocon.

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## compromise

> That's not necessarily neoconservatism. I definitely think neoconservatives influenced Reagan, but not without some resistance. I think he was pretty reluctant in going along with them in democratizing the Philippines.


Not only that, but Reagan also stayed out of the Falklands despite British pressure and refused the neocon suggestion to bomb Cuba. The only land war he took part in was the tiny Grenada invasion. Pat Buchanan and Jack Hunter have both written about how Reagan was one of the least interventionist presidents in recent decades.

http://www.theamericanconservative.c...-isolationist/

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## truthspeaker

Was DeMint part of GOOOH?  If so, that would explain him resigning. They only believe in "citizen representatives" for limited terms serving. They even sign a contract for it.

Anyone know why officially? Or is this another Patreous thing?

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## compromise

> Was DeMint part of GOOOH?  If so, that would explain him resigning. They only believe in "citizen representatives" for limited terms serving. They even sign a contract for it.
> 
> Anyone know why officially? Or is this another Patreous thing?


A 7 figure salary at Heritage is the reason.

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## Smitty

This is the Heritage Foundation.

Anyone who doesn't realize that it's a neocon organization is a lost ball in tall weeds.

http://www.heritage.org/places/middle-east/iran

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## Smitty

,...and anyone who wants to dog my reputation points for calling both it and DeMint for what it and he is,..knock yourself out.

All of that "reputation" stuff is more childish than a Sponge Bob marathon any damn way.

It's time for the liberty movement to grow up.

The configuration of this forum isn't helping matters.

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## compromise

> This is the Heritage Foundation.
> 
> Anyone who doesn't realize that it's a neocon organization is a lost ball in tall weeds.
> 
> http://www.heritage.org/places/middle-east/iran


http://www.heritage.org/issues/forei...nd-development
And the same Heritage Foundation is critical of foreign aid, a position contrary to that taken by well-known neoconservatives like John McCain.

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## Smitty

I didn't see anything there that was critical of foreign aid,....only suggestions on how it should be implemented.

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## CaptLouAlbano

In all honesty, I really do not understand the thought process of some people here.  We have DeMint, a guy who aligns closely with Rand, taking a prominent position.  He'll probably get a lot more exposure from this position, and can likely do good for many of the issues that folks like us support.  We should be happy with this.  But no, we need to hyper-analyze the organization, positions, etc and burn more bridges.

I think some of you folks aren't happy unless you are in room filled with 5 people who all agree with you, and it is you against the world.

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## Brian4Liberty

Interesting, it seems that Mulvaney has taken the place of one of the purged Congressmen...




> They also point to the elevation of iconoclastic conservative Mick Mulvaney to the Financial Services panel as evidence that ideology wasn’t the key determinant in the decision-making process.
> 
> Read more: http://www.politico.com/story/2012/1...#ixzz2ExCQ91JC

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## DylanWaco

> In all honesty, I really do not understand the thought process of some people here.  We have DeMint, a guy who aligns closely with Rand, taking a prominent position.  He'll probably get a lot more exposure from this position, and can likely do good for many of the issues that folks like us support.  We should be happy with this.  But no, we need to hyper-analyze the organization, positions, etc and burn more bridges.
> 
> I think some of you folks aren't happy unless you are in room filled with 5 people who all agree with you, and it is you against the world.


I think there are perfectly good reasons to be critical of DeMint's decision, though I don't blame him for it.  I do find amusing that the "education over electoral action" wing of the movement is regularly being roundly denounced by many on this forum and then the Senator who is supposedly our "biggest ally" opts for education over electoral action and we are supposed to somehow pretend that's different.

I'm most annoyed by this because it makes DeMint's refusal to endorse Ron before South Carolina totally inexcusable in my eyes.  While DeMint is a true believer in the warfare state, he was certainly sympathetic to Ron.  An endorsement of him wouldn't have hurt him politically because he wasn't running again and it damn sure wouldn't have hurt him now.  We can say "well he didn't know he was going to leave then," but he's hinted in public that talks had been going on for a while, and I have other reasons to believe he was planning to leave the Senate before his term was up.  I also know for a fact that he had private discussions with those in Ron's inner circle about anendorsement and declined for vague reasons.

I have my suspicions about other things that I won't get into here.  I assume Heritage will be less $#@!ty with him at the helm, but on the issue I care most about (foreign policy) I strongly doubt he'll have any positive impact.

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## Brett85

> I think there are perfectly good reasons to be critical of DeMint's decision, though I don't blame him for it.  I do find amusing that the "education over electoral action" wing of the movement is regularly being roundly denounced by many on this forum and then the Senator who is supposedly our "biggest ally" opts for education over electoral action and we are supposed to somehow pretend that's different.
> 
> I'm most annoyed by this because it makes DeMint's refusal to endorse Ron before South Carolina totally inexcusable in my eyes.  While DeMint is a true believer in the warfare state, he was certainly sympathetic to Ron.  An endorsement of him wouldn't have hurt him politically because he wasn't running again and it damn sure wouldn't have hurt him now.  We can say "well he didn't know he was going to leave then," but he's hinted in public that talks had been going on for a while, and I have other reasons to believe he was planning to leave the Senate before his term was up.  I also know for a fact that he had private discussions with those in Ron's inner circle about anendorsement and declined for vague reasons.
> 
> I have my suspicions about other things that I won't get into here.  I assume Heritage will be less $#@!ty with him at the helm, but on the issue I care most about (foreign policy) I strongly doubt he'll have any positive impact.


In all honesty, the main reason why Demint and others like him didn't endorse Ron is because he never had any real chance to win.  Ron was just running for President in order to spread his message.  I think that Demint would endorse someone who has views similar to Ron who is younger, a better speaker, and more electable.  In other words, he'll endorse Rand in 2016.

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## compromise

DeMint had good relationships with pretty much every 2012 Republican candidate. He didn't endorse Mitt until after it became clear that he would be the presidential nominee.

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## Anti-Neocon

I don't know what DeMint is, but the Heritage Foundation is neocon through and through.  Thinking otherwise is deluding yourselves.

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## CaptLouAlbano

> I don't know what DeMint is, but the Heritage Foundation is neocon through and through.  Thinking otherwise is deluding yourselves.


Define neo-conservative.

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## Anti-Neocon

> Define neo-conservative.


Knock yourself out.

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## FSP-Rebel

> Knock yourself out.


Yeah, I've never really been much of a Heritage guy as I used to hear Hannity and Bimbaugh use that outlet's rationale a lot in their diatribes for US global hegemony. Hopefully, DeMint is able to either tone them down a bit or just use his status as their prez to continue the assault on the Republican Establishment.

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## DylanWaco

He's not going to tone them down on foreign policy because he basically believes in the foreign policy of the GOP, albeit with the caveat that he is better than most on foreign aid.

On other subjects he may make a dent, but Heritage is not AEI.  It's bad, but a different kind of bad.

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## CaptLouAlbano

> He's not going to tone them down on foreign policy because he basically believes in the foreign policy of the GOP, albeit with the caveat that he is better than most on foreign aid.
> 
> On other subjects he may make a dent, but Heritage is not AEI.  It's bad, but a different kind of bad.


But here is what most of you don't get - there isn't two FP positions (interventionism and non-interventionism), there are four:  Wilsonian interventionism, Jacksonian interventionism, non-interventionism and isolationism (non-interventionism with protectionism).

The majority view within the GOP is not a neo-con Wilsonian view, but instead is the Jacksonian view which is where DeMint falls, though he is leans toward a more non-interventionist view with regards to foreign aid as you mentioned.

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## DylanWaco

I actually do get it and was writing about it and talking about it in public forums long, long ago.  I've criticized overuse of the term neo-con many times, and when Jacksonian's were regularly having that term affixed to them by a well known member of the liberty movement, I convinced him to stop (in at least a few instances anyhow).  

On other other hand I don't think the Jacksonian's are somehow allies or great friends of ours.  Some may be easier to persuade on certain things, but they share the "national greatness" obsession of the neo-cons (albeit for different reasons) and there brand of militarism is arguably WORSE than that touted by the neo-cons.

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## Anti-Neocon

> But here is what most of you don't get - there isn't two FP positions (interventionism and non-interventionism), there are four:  Wilsonian interventionism, Jacksonian interventionism, non-interventionism and isolationism (non-interventionism with protectionism).
> 
> The majority view within the GOP is not a neo-con Wilsonian view, but instead is the Jacksonian view which is where DeMint falls, though he is leans toward a more non-interventionist view with regards to foreign aid as you mentioned.


DeMint may take a slightly different stance, but the majority of the GOP is still standard "Wilsonian" neocon to the core.  Just look at the top GOP Senators and what they believe in.  McCain, Graham, Ayotte, and Rubio. for example, are unabashed neocons and most of the rest are as well.

And when it comes to practical issues, there isn't a whole lot of difference between the DeMints of the world and the McCains of the world.  Both believed in the war in Iraq and both probably wouldn't mind bombing the hell out of Iran.

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## CaptLouAlbano

> DeMint may take a slightly different stance, but the majority of the GOP is still standard "Wilsonian" neocon to the core.  Just look at the top GOP Senators and what they believe in.  McCain, Graham, Ayotte, and Rubio. for example, are unabashed neocons and most of the rest are as well.
> 
> And when it comes to practical issues, there isn't a whole lot of difference between the DeMints of the world and the McCains of the world.  Both believed in the war in Iraq and both probably wouldn't mind bombing the hell out of Iran.


McCain, Graham, Ayotte and Rubio are neo-cons, but they are not the "top GOP Senators".  None of them are in leadership.  Those would be McConnell, Kyl, Thune, Barrasso and Blunt all of which embrace a Jacksonian position on FP.  

While there may be similar votes cast between the two factions, it is the underlying intention of FP and the circumstances under which intervention is deemed necessary where the two sides differ.  That is not to say that I agree with either the Wilsonians or Jacksonians, but to lump them all together as "neo-cons" is intellectually dishonest - not to mention it doesn't even begin to examine their views on domestic spending, which is also a issue where neo-cons differ from other political factions.

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## July

> But here is what most of you don't get - there isn't two FP positions (interventionism and non-interventionism), there are four:  Wilsonian interventionism, Jacksonian interventionism, non-interventionism and isolationism (non-interventionism with protectionism).
> 
> The majority view within the GOP is not a neo-con Wilsonian view, but instead is the Jacksonian view which is where DeMint falls, though he is leans toward a more non-interventionist view with regards to foreign aid as you mentioned.


According to Walter Russell Mead there are four major FP views that dominate US political thought: Jacksonian, Hamiltonian, Jeffersonian, and Wilsonian. I don't know if I agree with all of the examples he gives and presidents he places in each category, and he doesn't seem to make any distinction between non interventionism and isolationism....but this did help me to understand some of the other non neo-conservative approaches to foreign policy and internationalsim. The Jacksonian school is still probably as close to the Jeffersonian school we are going to get at this point, compared to the other two...though as he points out in this essay, the two schools are sometimes diametrically opposed, such as during the cold war, so I don't know. 

The Jacksonian Tradition by Walter Russell Mead

----------

