Latest news with #BluePalmettoDinner
The Hill
a day ago
- Politics
- The Hill
Walz: Democrats need to be a ‘little meaner'
Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz (D) said his fellow party members need to be a bit more harsh in upcoming elections to put an end to political intimidation. After an unsuccessful bid for the vice presidency in November, Walz has shared staunch criticism of Elon Musk and other officials within the Trump administration. 'I'm getting called out on this because I called Donald Trump a wannabe dictator — it's because he is. It's because he is,' Walz said Saturday during his keynote address for the South Carolina Democratic Party Convention. He said people alleged that his comments were 'mean.' 'Well, maybe it's time for us to be a little meaner. Maybe it's time for us to be a little more fierce, because we have to ferociously push back on this,' Walz said, urging critics to rebuke the Trump administration's policies. Walz's words were echoed by Maryland Gov. Wes Moore (D) during his remarks at the annual South Carolina Democrats' Blue Palmetto Dinner Friday night. 'I want to be clear: We can and we must condemn Donald Trump's reckless actions. But we would also be foolish not to learn from his impatience,' Moore, a first-term governor, said during his roughly 30-minute speech to the state party's officials and activists. 'Donald Trump doesn't need a study to dismantle democracy or use the Constitution like a suggestion box. Donald Trump doesn't need a white paper to start arbitrary trade wars that raise the cost of virtually everything in our lives,' he added. Walz and Moore also made an appearance at Rep. Jim Clyburn's (D-S.C.) annual fish fry Friday night, an event known to be dazzled by presidential hopefuls. The Maryland governor said he would not run for the Oval Office next election cycle but party members have floated him as a viable leader for 2028. On Saturday, Walz said that any work geared towards ensuring a Democratic win in the next presidential campaign would need to start soon. 'It starts this Saturday as us starting to organize. Donald Trump ran for president for four years after he got beat in 2020. The Republican Party ran for four years. Their school board members ran for four years. All of those things were happening,' the Minnesota governor said. 'And what I know about our party is we know how to work. We're people with grit and resilience. We know how to get things done,' he added.
Yahoo
a day ago
- Business
- Yahoo
South Carolina Democrats, poised to play a major role in 2028, say they want a coalition builder
South Carolina Democrat Lynn Ramirez has a decent track record of picking her party's eventual presidential nominee. Though she backed former South Bend, Indiana, Mayor Pete Buttigieg over President Joe Biden in the 2020 primary, the 64-year-old Simpsonville resident said she voted for President Barack Obama in 2008 and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton in 2016. The next Democrat to win her vote needs to be capable of reaching everyday Americans — a coalition builder. 'I think South Carolina is looking for a person of the people, that can speak to the people without lowering and debasing themselves, like the current administration seems to be doing,' Ramirez, a retired public health worker, said during an interview at the state party's Blue Palmetto Dinner on Friday. 'Speak to hope and promise and prospects, as opposed to unfounded fears and divisiveness.' The 2028 presidential primary is years away, but the Democratic Party's leadership and messaging struggles are defining it now. As the party continues to grapple with what comes next, the Palmetto State is uniquely positioned to set the tone of the conversation. For years South Carolina Democrats have played an outsize, and often decisive, role in presidential primaries, whittling down the field after the Iowa caucuses and New Hampshire primary. In 2028, depending on how the party organizes its calendar, South Carolina Democrats could be called on to serve a similar role, boosting the candidate they deem best suited to rebuild the party and win back the White House. Until then, the state's Democrats are in the same boat as the rest of the party: looking for strong leaders. The state's weekend of Democratic Party events — including a fundraising dinner, the state party convention and Rep. Jim Clyburn's annual fish fry — come as party leaders in Washington have struggled to craft a message that resonates with voters. Polls show the party's approval at generational lows, and strategists are still brainstorming ways to win back the parts of the base that shifted to President Donald Trump in 2024. Top Democrats have moved to fill that leadership vacuum. Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz's and Maryland Gov. Wes Moore's appearances at events here this weekend follow weeks of early 2028-style jockeying, from Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker's recent New Hampshire trip to Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear and former Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo saying they're open to running. Each potential Democratic presidential candidate comes with their own vision for how to lead the party out of the electoral wilderness and beat Trump's eventual successor. The primary may be shaped by which vision resonates more with Palmetto State voters. Over two days, Moore and Walz pitched South Carolina Democrats on where the party went wrong in 2024 and, more urgently, what the party needs to do to right in 2025 and beyond. At the state party's annual Blue Palmetto Dinner, Moore, the keynote speaker, made the case for urgency. He called on Democrats to stop being the party of panels and yearslong studies and instead become one of action. He pointed to Trump as an example of a politician who enacts his agenda with 'impatience.' 'Donald Trump does not need a white paper to start arbitrary trade wars that will raise the costs on virtually everything in our lives,' Moore said Friday. 'And so we must think about it this way — if he can do so much bad in such a small amount of time, why can't we do such good?' Walz, who addressed the state party convention Saturday morning, shared a similar message: Democrats must show they have the 'guts' to fight for working-class voters. To do that, the party might benefit from following the president's approach. 'What Trump learned from his first term to this one is: If you say you're gonna get things done and actually do it, even if it's not the right thing, people still give you credit for getting something done,' Walz, Democrats' 2024 vice presidential nominee, said Saturday. 'Think how powerful a tool that will be if we move with the same speed that he's moving to give everybody health care.' During the early days of Trump's second term, Moore and Walz have fallen into two leadership camps among those named as possible presidential contenders. Moore, a first-term governor who is running for reelection next year, has focused on boosting Maryland and eschewing the resistance label in a way reminiscent of Govs. Gretchen Whitmer of Michigan and Josh Shapiro of Pennsylvania. Walz, meanwhile, has taken on a fighting stance similar to Pritzker. Asked which style he would prefer in a future presidential candidate, 74-year-old retired Army veteran Paul Brewer said: 'All of the above.' 'It's not just about how much money you can raise,' Brewer said. 'It's being positive and having a platform that everybody can buy into.' While elected officials have argued Democrats need to show concrete examples of how they've improved people's lives, voters here say Democrats need to show they can reach a wide audience. 'The winning message is taking care of the people of the country,' said Doris J. Potter Hickman, a Loris resident in her 70s who voted for the eventual winner of the 2008, 2016 and 2020 Democratic presidential nomination in her state's primary. 'It's time for the average and lower-income people to have an opportunity to participate within their own country and to receive the benefits of their own country.' Ever since Democrats moved South Carolina into the early primary window in 2008, the state has played a key role in winnowing the field. In 2008, after Obama won the Iowa caucuses and Clinton won New Hampshire, the future president's victory here helped propel his campaign against the former first lady. Eight years later, Clinton's win in the state highlighted independent Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders' weakness with Black voters and moderates, which contributed to his eventual loss. But never has South Carolina been as decisive as it was in 2020. After Biden managed to only come in fourth in Iowa and fifth in New Hampshire, his third presidential run seemed to be fading. But Clyburn's endorsement, and Biden's strong first-place finish in the state, quickly led to several candidates dropping out and endorsing the former vice president. 'We gave him the nomination,' said Carmen Quesada-Virella, an 80-year-old retired organizer with the National Education Association. Quesada-Virella, who supported Biden in 2020 and Clinton in 2016, said she wants Democrats to develop a consistent message that responds to what people are going through in the country. She said she didn't think Democrats would be able to work with Trump, and instead wants someone who could reach a broad coalition. 'What I don't think we can have right now — or maybe ever — is someone who goes to the extremes, who can't bring people in,' Quesada-Virella said at the palmetto dinner. Roxanne Cordonier, a 65-year-old retired radio host and longtime Democratic activist from Greenville, said part of what sets South Carolina apart is the strong presence of Black voters, who have power within the party and 'a deep sense of who is resonating.' 'I wasn't a crazy Biden supporter but … when Clyburn said, 'Let's go for Biden,' I was like 'OK, we gotta win this thing,'' she said at the palmetto dinner. 'There's a lot of deep grassroots energy here that you need to pay attention to.' Looking to the future, Cordonier rejected the notion that Democrats need to move to the center, and said instead the party needs an 'issue-based' message with broad appeal. 'We have to form coalitions across party lines and across issue lines to form what we see as the strength of the movement,' she said. 'If we just get the message out and let people listen to us, I think we can win.'
Yahoo
a day ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Wes Moore tells Democrats to act with ‘impatience' amid 2028 chatter
Maryland Gov. Wes Moore (D) advised Democrats to act and learn from President Trump's 'impatience' during his speech at the annual South Carolina Democrats' Blue Palmetto Dinner Friday night in Columbia, S.C. 'I want to be clear: We can and we must condemn Donald Trump's reckless actions. But we would also be foolish not to learn from his impatience,' Moore, a first-term governor, said during his roughly 30-minute speech to the state party's officials and activists. 'Donald Trump doesn't need a study to dismantle democracy or use the Constitution like a suggestion box. Donald Trump doesn't need a white paper to start arbitrary trade wars that raise the cost of virtually everything in our lives.' 'If he can do so much bad in such a small amount of time, why can't we do so much good?' he pondered. Moore, an Army veteran and the nation's only Black governor, said the Democratic Party needs to present itself as the coalition of 'action' that can deliver for working-class Americans. 'Gone are the days when we are the party of bureaucracy, multi-year studies, panels, and college debate club rules,' he said Friday night. 'We must be the party of action. Because right now, the people of this country are calling on us to act.' 'The people want a growing middle class. And they cannot wait,' he continued. 'The people want access to work, wages, and wealth. And they cannot wait.' The Maryland governor, who is seen as a rising star within the party and has been floated as a candidate in 2028, said at the beginning of May he will not run for the Oval Office next election cycle. But Moore is one of the few Democratic governors, along with Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (N.Y.) and ex-Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg, who have been mentioned as the party's potential nominees in 2028. Democrats are still soul searching after a series of election defeats last November, where they lost the majority in the Senate and the White House to Trump. The party is looking for its next leader after former Vice President Harris was defeated in the general election six months ago. Harris's running mate, Gov. Tim Walz (D) delivered the keynote address at the convention on Saturday morning. . South Carolina was paramount in the then-Democratic Party candidate Joe Biden's nomination at the top of the ticket in 2020 and ultimately beating Trump. The Palmetto State has traditionally played a key role in the Democratic presidential primary process. The official 2028 primary calendar is not expected to be released until next year. Walz, who will travel to California's Democratic convention to speak later Saturday, has said he would consider running for president next cycle. Both the Minnesota governor and Moore have made trips around the country, traveling to battleground, red and blue states alike. Given this, some party observers have argued that Moore is not doing much to tamp down 2028 speculation, while others have said that securing reelection as governor would offer a springboard to better position himself as the top Democrat. 'The best way for someone like Gov. Wes Moore to create a path for the presidential race in 2028 is to have a strong reelection campaign. If he can win resoundingly, and he can win key demographics, that will only increase the calls for him to get into the race,' Democratic strategist Fred Hicks told The Hill earlier this month. 'There's one thing for you to want to get in the race. It's another thing for people to recruit you into the race,' Hicks said. 'So for any real, viable candidate, you want to be recruited into the race, and that starts with how you govern and having a strong reelection in your own state.' Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
a day ago
- Business
- Yahoo
South Carolina's first-in-the-nation primary status looks fraught as Dems sour on Biden
COLUMBIA, SOUTH CAROLINA — Democrats here took a vital first step in delivering Joe Biden the presidency five years ago. Now, they're hoping his tarnished legacy won't jeopardize their future as an early primary state. Already, there are hints some Democrats will revert to New Hampshire holding the party's initial primary contest, while progressives want to see labor-heavy Nevada take the lead. And there's even talk of friendlier southern states, like Georgia or North Carolina, leapfrogging South Carolina. 'The unfortunate part is, Democrats are saying that, and they think that [South Carolina leading] is a bad part of Biden's legacy,' said Bre Booker-Maxwell, a national committeewoman, Saturday on the sidelines of the state party's convention. She questioned the rationale of such a decision, before answering herself. 'The fact that the man ran the second time, and he probably shouldn't have run?' she asked skeptically. 'Some people just need to get over themselves and whatever issues they have with Joe Biden.' Attempts to move past Biden and the bad aftertaste of 2024 got underway this weekend as state party insiders hosted a pair of out-of-state governors with obvious, but still publicly undeclared, sights on the 2028 nomination. Govs. Wes Moore of Maryland and Tim Walz of Minnesota took turns gracing the outdoor stage while onlookers feasted on whiting filet on white bread, at the World Famous Fish Fry, an annual tradition hosted by the state's Democratic kingmaker, Rep. Jim Clyburn (D-S.C.). Walz, the first to greet the crowd, spoke of the missteps from the last cycle and Democrats needing to expand their reach beyond a handful of swing states. 'I went to the same seven damn states over and over and over,' Walz said. 'People are pissed off in South Carolina, they're pissed off in Texas, they're pissed off in Indiana. … We need to change the attitude, compete in every district, compete for every school board seat.' Moore, who earlier Friday delivered the keynote address at the state party's Blue Palmetto Dinner, drew cheers from the mostly Black attendees of the fish fry when he said 'we come from a resilient culture' and encouraged them not to run in the face of challenge. He then pivoted to Trump and the havoc his so-called big beautiful bill would create if passed, which Moore suggested would push tens of thousands of kids into poverty while enriching the president's billionaire buddies. Once speeches wrapped, several in the crowd broke into line dance while South Carolina crooner 803 Fresh's campaign anthem 'Boots on the Ground' blared over loudspeakers. It was not the rip-roaring affair of 2019 when a cavalcade of 21 presidential candidates — including Biden — wooed attendees with stump speeches. Friday night's gathering at the EdVenture Children's Museum was held as many Democrats are still grappling with the pain of widespread electoral defeats. Biden's return to the national spotlight — through negative coverage detailing how those in his inner circle shielded the president's deteriorating condition from the outside world — has only resurfaced some long-held misgivings about his legacy. 'All this talk about President Biden and what should have and what could have, what might have, is a bunch of bullshit,' said Trav Robertson, a longtime Democratic operative and former chair of the state party. 'We can peck that to death if you want to, but that is in the past. South Carolina represents going into the future.' South Carolina, a state where Black Democrats make up a substantial portion of primary voters, played a pivotal role resurrecting Biden's moribund campaign. When Clyburn threw his support behind Biden ahead of the South Carolina primary in 2020, it vaulted him to the nomination and later, the presidency. In return, Biden pressured the Democratic Party to upend its traditional nomination calendar by moving the state to the lead-off position. But that electoral situation was tenuous. By running for reelection, Biden sapped energy out of the 2024 primary. Now, party officials are bracing for its status as the kickoff state to be ripped away. 'I think it would be a mistake to act like South Carolina's place [at the top] is just because of Biden, when this has been a conversation we've been having for 20 years,' said Nick Sottile, an attorney and executive director of the South Carolina House Democrats. Like nearly every Democrat in the state, he points out the benefits of South Carolina are vast. In addition to paying homage to a vital Democratic voting bloc, the small state with relatively cheap media markets won't bankrupt campaigns, which can hit upstate, midlands and the coast — a mix of urban, suburban and rural areas — all on a single tank of gas. Then there's the robust defense of South Carolina primary voters' history of picking presidents — Bill Clinton in 1992, Barack Obama in 2008 and Biden in 2020 — particularly in contrast to New Hampshire and Iowa. 'We get it right, and it's a proven track record,' Sottile added. 'It's not one election and one candidate that we're talking about.' That feeling is not shared by many outside the state. A longtime member of the DNC's committee that helps determine the presidential primary order granted anonymity to discuss informal discussions suggested South Carolina's current spot atop the calendar will undoubtedly come under scrutiny in the coming months. 'Clearly South Carolina members will want to continue to be first in the calendar for obvious reasons,' the person said. 'I think that no one else is going to feel any kind of obligation to keep South Carolina at the top of the calendar — because Biden is gone.' Biden may have unintentionally shattered South Carolina's standing next cycle, which only adds to a sense of betrayal over his role in ushering in another Trump presidency. 'There are people who are just mad as hell about everything that happened in 2024,' said Sam Skardon of Charleston. He admits he was one of the few in the state party who believed Biden's promise to be a 'bridge' candidate to the next generation. He took the job as chair of the Charleston County Democrats in March 2023 hoping to preside over a robust primary. A month later, Biden announced his reelection bid. 'There's a special connection here that's a deeper attachment, I think, than most states' Democratic Parties have to President Biden, probably up there with Delaware for thinking of him as our own,' Skardon added. 'But yeah, then there is additional anger, I think, at Biden for … not not letting us put our best foot forward.' Some believe Biden is simply too convenient a scapegoat for the party's broader problems. Backpedaling on giving Black voters more of a say in picking the party's nominee could erode trust in a bloc that's already drifting away from the party. 'It is a slap in the face … to Black Americans, where people are questioning Joe Biden at this point,' said Antjuan Seawright, a Democratic strategist who resumed his role as emcee of the fish fry. 'It was Joe Biden who had the steel spine, the guts and the courage to declare that Black Americans' voices should be heard first in the presidential preference process.' But Seawright also shared concerns that too many voters here view Democrats as out of touch. 'I think trust was a part of the formula for Trump's success in the last election cycle,' Seawright added. 'You had some people who, in my opinion, did not necessarily vote for Donald Trump, they voted against the Democratic brand.' At the Palmetto Dinner, Jaime Harrison, the chair emeritus of the Democratic National Committee and Orangeburg, South Carolina, native revved up the crowd by putting a positive spin on the party's standing in state since Biden left the stage. 'We are more organized, we are more energized, and we are more focused than ever before,' he said, heaping praise on the state's party chair Christale Spain who was elected to a second term on Saturday. 'I am going to be on record right now to the South Carolina Republican Party, 2026 is going to be a reckoning.' Amanda Loveday, a Democratic strategist based in Columbia who worked on Biden's 2020 presidential campaign, is another South Carolina defender. But she is less optimistic given South Carolina's Democrats, who have long been locked out of power in the state, suffered setbacks last cycle. 'We lost [state] Senators and House members that we have absolutely no business losing,' Loveday said, which included two prominent Black lawmakers including state Sen. Gerald Malloy and state Rep. Joseph Jefferson. Republicans flipped four state Senate seats last cycle, leaving just 12 Democrats in the chamber. And in the presidential election, Trump's victory was never in doubt, but he increased his margin by 6 percentage points over 2020. All this is fueling speculation that South Carolina's neighbors — North Carolina and Georgia — which have notched statewide wins for Democrats in recent cycles, have better arguments to hurdle South Carolina in the primary calendar.
The Hill
a day ago
- Politics
- The Hill
Wes Moore tells Democrats to act with ‘impatience' amid 2028 chatter
Maryland Gov. Wes Moore (D) advised Democrats to act and learn from President Trump's 'impatience' during his speech at the annual South Carolina Democrats' Blue Palmetto Dinner Friday night in Columbia, S.C. 'I want to be clear: We can and we must condemn Donald Trump's reckless actions. But we would also be foolish not to learn from his impatience,' Moore, a first-term governor, said during his roughly 30-minute speech to the state party's officials and activists. 'Donald Trump doesn't need a study to dismantle democracy or use the Constitution like a suggestion box. Donald Trump doesn't need a white paper to start arbitrary trade wars that raise the cost of virtually everything in our lives.' 'If he can do so much bad in such a small amount of time, why can't we do so much good?' he pondered. Moore, an Army veteran and the nation's only Black governor, said the Democratic Party needs to present itself as the coalition of 'action' that can deliver for working-class Americans. 'Gone are the days when we are the party of bureaucracy, multi-year studies, panels, and college debate club rules,' he said Friday night. 'We must be the party of action. Because right now, the people of this country are calling on us to act.' 'The people want a growing middle class. And they cannot wait,' he continued. 'The people want access to work, wages, and wealth. And they cannot wait.' The Maryland governor, who is seen as a rising star within the party and has been floated as a candidate in 2028, said at the beginning of May he will not run for the Oval Office next election cycle. But Moore is one of the few Democratic governors, along with Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (N.Y.) and ex-Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg, who have been mentioned as the party's potential nominees in 2028. Democrats are still soul searching after a series of election defeats last November, where they lost the majority in the Senate and the White House to Trump. The party is looking for its next leader after former Vice President Harris was defeated in the general election six months ago. Harris's running mate, Gov. Tim Walz (D) delivered the keynote address at the convention on Saturday morning. . South Carolina was paramount in the then-Democratic Party candidate Joe Biden's nomination at the top of the ticket in 2020 and ultimately beating Trump. The Palmetto State has traditionally played a key role in the Democratic presidential primary process. The official 2028 primary calendar is not expected to be released until next year. Walz, who will travel to California's Democratic convention to speak later Saturday, has said he would consider running for president next cycle. Both the Minnesota governor and Moore have made trips around the country, traveling to battleground, red and blue states alike. Given this, some party observers have argued that Moore is not doing much to tamp down 2028 speculation, while others have said that securing reelection as governor would offer a springboard to better position himself as the top Democrat. 'The best way for someone like Gov. Wes Moore to create a path for the presidential race in 2028 is to have a strong reelection campaign. If he can win resoundingly, and he can win key demographics, that will only increase the calls for him to get into the race,' Democratic strategist Fred Hicks told The Hill earlier this month. 'There's one thing for you to want to get in the race. It's another thing for people to recruit you into the race,' Hicks said. 'So for any real, viable candidate, you want to be recruited into the race, and that starts with how you govern and having a strong reelection in your own state.'
