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South Carolina conservative sets himself up as kingmaker
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Candidate
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| Contributor | ArmyDem |
| Last Edited | ArmyDem Nov 28, 2009 05:09pm |
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| Category | News |
| News Date | Saturday, November 28, 2009 11:00:00 PM UTC0:0 |
| Description | By James Rosen | McClatchy Newspapers
WASHINGTON — South Carolina Sen. Jim DeMint is using his rising national profile among conservative activists to support and bankroll Republican Senate candidates around the country, some of them underdogs challenging GOP establishment favorites.
DeMint's endorsements of former Florida House Speaker Marco Rubio over Gov. Charlie Crist and California state Rep. Chuck DeVore over former Hewlett-Packard chief executive Carly Fiorina put him at odds with other prominent Republicans, including Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, Sen. John McCain of Arizona and fellow South Carolina Sen. Lindsey Graham.
In Pennsylvania, DeMint's endorsement of former Rep. Pat Toomey helped prompt incumbent Sen. Arlen Specter to bolt the Republican Party and run for re-election as a Democrat.
DeMint, who has met with or plans to interview 20 GOP candidates in eight states, has started doling out money from his Senate Conservatives Fund, a political action committee that's raised $1.45 million — most of it from supporters in other states.
"We've got a chance in this next election to prove a lot of establishment Republicans wrong and show that anywhere in the country principled conservatives can win," DeMint told thousands of activists in a Nov. 3 conference call.
DeMint, a first-term senator seeking re-election next year, has attracted conservative followers nationwide for blocking appropriations earmarks, helping to defeat immigration reforms and leading GOP opposition to expanded federal medical benefits. |
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