RNC displays diversity with Scott, Haley, with Gov. McMaster, Graham off prime time
Two of President Donald Trump’s most prominent South Carolina backers — Gov. Henry McMaster and U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham — are not slated to have prime-time speaking roles this go-around at the mostly virtual Republican National Convention.
The omission, political observers say, likely stems from the GOP’s desire to showcase more diverse members of the party — including prominent politicians from South Carolina: Former S.C. governor and U.S. ambassador Nikki Haley and U.S. Sen. Tim Scott.
“Even though it’s a smaller state, South Carolina is once again playing an outsized convention role — from Tim Scott to (Republican National Committeeman) Glenn McCall — and that’s something everyone can be proud of,” said Rob Godfrey, former spokesman and chief of staff for then-Gov. Nikki Haley. Both Scott and McCall are Black.
Still McMaster, the first statewide elected official in the nation to back Trump ahead of South Carolina’s GOP presidential primary in 2016, and Graham, who went from Trump critic to one of his fiercest defenders, have roles to play in this unconventional convention year.
McMaster led South Carolina’s six-person delegation — made up of McMaster, McCall, state GOP chairman Drew McKissick, RNC committeewoman Cindy Costa, Mark Harley of Charleston, and Shery Smith of Sumter — this year to Charlotte, casting all 50 votes for the state in the nationwide roll call vote to formally nominate President Donald Trump to a second term in office.
Had Trump been around when the state was settled in 1670, McMaster said, “we would have voted for him then.”
And Graham, who spent Monday morning in Rock Hill, showed no ill will about not being given a speaking slot.
“Well I’m running for office, so the difference between me and Nikki is I’m up for reelection,” Graham told reporters referring to Haley and Scott who had speaking roles scheduled at the RNC Monday.
“I’m very proud of the fact Nikki Haley and Tim Scott are going to speak on President Trump’s behalf,” Graham said earlier Monday before the two spoke. “They’re great friends and tremendous leaders in the Republican Party, and I think their presence on stage will be helpful to President Trump, and we should all be proud of South Carolinians.”
Graham also is in a tight race with Democrat Jaime Harrison.
Recent polling put the race at tied, and some say that Graham not appearing in front a big pro-Trump audience may also help.
“Graham is trying to win over moderate independent voters in South Carolina. Appearing right now, that could potentially backfire on him a little bit,” said Gibbs Knotts, a political science professor at the College of Charleston. “In a general (election), there is some benefit. He’s got to depend on winning over some people who are outside that group of die-hard Trump supporters to be able to win.”
Other political observers also weren’t surprised.
“I don’t know of anyone who is unfamiliar with just how much time Sen. Graham has put into supporting the president over the last four years, so I’m not surprised to see him sit out this convention when he has a race of his own to focus on,” Godfrey said.
Having Haley — who served as Trump’s ambassador to the United Nations and is rumored to be considering a run for president in 2024 — and Scott on stage works to showcase the GOP’s diversity, which the Democrats touted in broad display last week, Knotts said.
Haley, an Indian American, was South Carolina’s first minority governor and first woman to hold the office. Scott is the GOP’s only Black U.S. senator.
And, for Haley in particular, that prime-time speaking spot gives her an added profile push.
“Everybody has her on their 2024 short list,” Knotts said. “I think in some ways she’s one of those rare people who have stayed in the good graces of the president. She has support from the president, support from his base, but also ... more independent voters and mainstream Republicans also; she remains fairly popular with them as well.”
Dave Woodard, a retired political science professor at Clemson University, who in the 1990s worked on Graham’s early campaigns, said the selection of Haley and Scott is about the party trying to be more attractive to more voters.
“We have an African American senator who is very popular in this state, and we helped start the Civil War. It means we’ve come a long way,” Woodard said. “I think he has been an ally of the president. I think it’s important what he has to say about business and the future.”
Haley has similar appeal, said Woodard, noting that she signed a bill that removed the Confederate flag from the State House grounds after nine Black churchgoers, including a state senator, were killed by a white supremacist at a church in 2015.
“It’s really about trying to show a wider tent for the Republicans, that’s what I think it is,” Woodard said.
Graham and South Carolina’s delegation have been invited Thursday to the White House, where Trump will formally accept his nomination. Graham told reporters Monday that he spoke to Trump a few days ago and the president invited him to Washington.
“So, I’ll spend some time with the president when he delivers his acceptance speech, and between now and then, I’ll be campaigning and trying to get myself reelected,” Graham said.
“I get to speak a lot,” Graham continued. “I don’t think anybody will say Lindsey Graham has been denied a chance to have his say.”
Check back with thestate.com for updates on the Republican National Convention.
