The Other McCain

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Greetings from Charleston! Debate Between Bostic and Sanford 7 p.m. ET UPDATE: BOSTIC WINS DEBATE

Posted on | March 28, 2013 | 26 Comments

UPDATE 8:30 p.m. ET — Well, Mark Sanford had some good moments — in his closing, he quoted Barry Goldwater from memory — but Curtis Bostic was the winner. He pointed out the risk of having Sanford as the nominee: “Democrats are excited about the possibility of taking this seat back,” he said, pointing to polls that show that if Sanford wins Tuesday, Republicans “will lose this seat and lose it needlessly.”

As I said earlier, merely by sharing the stage with the better-known Sanford and holding his own, Bostic scored an important win. In his closing argument, Bostic described himself as a “fresh, new face” and said, “I know I’m the new guy. I’m ‘Mr. Smith Goes to Washington.’ I’m asking for your vote.”

UPDATE 7:40 p.m. ET — OK, I’m prejudiced, but Curtis Bostic is winning this debate. He is well-spoken, articulate and humorous. One of his best lines so far was when he mentioned his service as a Marine: “My boots have been on the ground in places where the enemy was real and . . . that enemy was radical Islam.” He also keeps mentioning the Constitution, which is mighty popular with Tea Party folks. For Bostic to share the stage with Sanford and hold his own . . . #Winning.

* * * PREVIOUSLY (5:53 p.m. ET) * * *

CHARLESTON, S.C.
Just picked up my media credential at Porter Gaud-School, site of tonight’s debate between Curtis Bostic and Mark Sanford in the Republican primary for the 1st District congressional seat.  We then went to get some Zaxby’s Chicken. Just so you know — transparency! — the special South Carolina tip-jar has raised $365 for the trip so far. Here’s a report by Alexis Levinson of the Daily Caller:

In the past two days, Bostic has been endorsed by one-time presidential candidate and former Sen. Rick Santorum, as well as conservative commentator Ann  Coulter and the 60-Plus Association, by way of spokesman Pat Boone.
Santorum called Bostic’s second place finish “a win for the strength of his grassroots supporters and his robust conservative values,” and spent Wednesday  in South Carolina campaigning for Bostic. During that time, he made a backhanded  jab at Sanford and his “values.” The former governor left office surrounded by a cloud of scandal after he disappeared from the state, and upon his return, was forced to reveal that he was having an affair with an Argentine woman who is now  his fiancé.
“I know I’m going to get the question about Curtis’ rival,” Santorum said, according to the Charlotte Observer. “I believe in redemption. I believe in second chances. I have lost races for president and the Senate and I believe people can come back and serve. But the choice here for the people of  the Lowcountry is, ‘Who is the best person who can represent you and your values  in Washington, D.C.?’”

The Charleston Post and Courier:

Santorum, a former Pennsylvania senator whose son attends The Citadel and who might run for president again in 2016, said Bostic was strong on all three areas most valued by conservatives: a strong military, limited government and social and moral issues.
“He’s talked about the values of the Lowcountry,” Santorum said. “This is a ‘Mr. Smith goes to Washington.’?”

You can watch the debate via live stream on www.counton2.com beginning at 7 p.m. ET. Popular conservative David Webb will also be livestreaming his own debate coverage.

You should follow the hashtag #SC01 on Twitter.

UPDATE: The requisite photo:

National Affairs Desk, Porter-Gaud School, March 28, 2013

 


Comments

26 Responses to “Greetings from Charleston! Debate Between Bostic and Sanford 7 p.m. ET UPDATE: BOSTIC WINS DEBATE”

  1. K-Bob
    March 28th, 2013 @ 7:59 pm

    I was toggling the tweeter thingy and saw that Bruce Carroll is deciding not to run after all. Details at his blog.

  2. westcoastpatriette
    March 28th, 2013 @ 8:45 pm

    I don’t like either of these candidates. If I could vote there — I would most likely vote for the Democrat.

  3. Zilla of the Resistance
    March 28th, 2013 @ 10:26 pm

    THIS: “My boots have been on the ground in places where the enemy was real and . . . that enemy was radical Islam.”
    THANK YOU! Why do so many Republicans fail to understand this truth?

  4. SC's First Congressional Debate Forces Sanford Missteps - Lowering the Boom
    March 29th, 2013 @ 1:08 am

    […] I’d be remiss if I didn’t link on the ground reporter R. Stacy McCain’s live-blog of the debate. Remember to read for the bottom […]

  5. Becca Lower
    March 29th, 2013 @ 1:12 am

    I’ve never watched a S.C. congressional debate before tonight. Are the candidates always so damn genial towards each other, or is it just these two men?

  6. Becca Lower
    March 29th, 2013 @ 1:16 am

    Good points, Stacy. Not only did Bostic stand on the stage with the former Governor, but he punctured Sanford’s flimsy defense that he should be allowed to use the electoral process as part of his personal rehabilitation. Truly pathetic.

  7. Peter Ingemi
    March 29th, 2013 @ 5:51 am

    Stacy Proves again, there is no substitute for actually being there

  8. Zilla of the Resistance
    March 29th, 2013 @ 6:44 am

    Maybe it’s a “Southern Gentlemen” thing?

  9. Bob Belvedere
    March 29th, 2013 @ 8:28 am

    THIS.

  10. Becca Lower
    March 29th, 2013 @ 10:03 am

    That’s my guess, Zilla.

  11. South Carolina Debate Aftermath : The Other McCain
    March 29th, 2013 @ 10:54 am

    […] myself immediately called the debate a win for Bostic, I checked around at other outlets and, while they’re less emphatically judgmental about it, […]

  12. Rosalie
    March 29th, 2013 @ 10:56 am

    As long as they don’t say, “bless your heart”.

  13. K-Bob
    March 29th, 2013 @ 4:41 pm

    I can’t believe no jokes were made of that phrase. You guys are asleep at the ahh, toggle.

  14. Wombat_socho
    March 29th, 2013 @ 10:42 pm

    Fear…not of the jihadis so much as what certain “people” will say about them.

  15. Wombat_socho
    March 29th, 2013 @ 10:43 pm

    Yeah, that would certainly be helpful. [/sarc]

  16. Zilla of the Resistance
    March 29th, 2013 @ 10:52 pm

    The problem is that people keep saying that islam is peaceful (it’s NOT) and that we should respect their beliefs that are completely incompatible with a free and civilized society, beliefs which include killing, forcibly converting, or enslaving non-muslims to claim the entire worked for that miserable, oppressive, perverted, death cult founded by an illiterate psychopathic murdering pedophile. And don’t get me started on the “conservatives” who pimp for that demonic cult, like the treasonous tool Grover Norquist or his islamic supremacist pal, Pigfaced Suhail Khan.

  17. Bob Belvedere
    March 29th, 2013 @ 11:48 pm

    Bang-on, Mare.

  18. Bob Belvedere
    March 29th, 2013 @ 11:51 pm

    I know. The electoral process is NOT the proper place for such things.

    Someone – sadly, I can’t remember who [perhaps, Andrew Ferguson] – made the point a decade or so ago that only odd, off people run for office these days – the normal people not being willing to have their lives so baldly exposed. Methinks he was quite right.

  19. Bob Belvedere
    March 29th, 2013 @ 11:52 pm

    It’s a Friday after a loooong week, KB.

  20. K-Bob
    March 30th, 2013 @ 1:39 am

    Amen!

  21. #SC01 UPDATE: Sanford Cites His Vote for DOMA in Local TV Roundtable : The Other McCain
    March 30th, 2013 @ 1:18 pm

    […] March 28: Greetings from Charleston! Debate Between Bostic and Sanford 7 p.m. ET UPDATE: BOSTIC WINS DEBATE […]

  22. Zilla of the Resistance
    March 30th, 2013 @ 8:54 pm

    Thanky, Bob!

  23. Becca Lower
    March 30th, 2013 @ 11:35 pm

    So true!

  24. Bostic Campaign ‘Surging’ Before Runoff? : The Other McCain
    April 1st, 2013 @ 8:23 am

    […] March 28: Greetings from Charleston! Debate Between Bostic and Sanford 7 p.m. ET UPDATE: BOSTIC WINS DEBATE […]

  25. Becca Lower
    April 1st, 2013 @ 5:36 pm

    Maybe people like Sanford think that the act of showing contrition in public gives them license to run with no baggage. We’ll see if that flies.

  26. Da Tech Guy's Blog » Blog Archive » Lyndon Johnson, Sarah Palin, Curtis Bostic & SC-1
    April 2nd, 2013 @ 3:53 pm

    […] cov­er­age has been first rate as usual, you should read it all but the tone of this post is […]