Latest news with #JimClyburn
Yahoo
3 days ago
- General
- Yahoo
Should SC lead off or bat clean-up in the Dem primary order? What Clyburn thinks
When the Democratic National Committee decides its presidential nominating contest order, U.S. Rep. Jim Clyburn, D-Santee, said all he wants is for South Carolina to be in the early primary window. Clyburn told reporters at his annual fish fry he's not concerned about South Carolina being the lead off contest, after the Democratic Party kicked off its 2024 presidential nominating process with the Palmetto State. 'I never asked for anything more than keep us in the pre-primary window which covers a whole month before the primary starts,' Clyburn said. 'So I think it's important to the party for that to be the case. Whether it be one, two, three or four, I don't care.' Clyburn, South Carolina's lone Democratic elected federal official, likened the primary order to a baseball batting lineup. 'The most important hitter on a baseball team, is clean up hitter. He comes in fourth place,' Clyburn said. 'And South Carolina has always been fourth, and we demonstrated how important being in fourth place was.' The Democratic National Committee is expected to reevaluate its presidential primary order after then-President Joe Biden said it should be looked at every four years. A decision on the 2028 order could come as soon as the end of 2026. Before 2024, South Carolina was the First in the South Presidential Primary for both the Republican and Democratic parties. Since the 1992 presidential race, the winner of the South Carolina Democratic nominating contest has historically gone on to be the nominee. The lone exceptions have been in 2004 when John Edwards won the primary, but ended up being the vice presidential running mate for John Kerry, and in 2024, when Vice President Kamala Harris replaced Biden shortly before the national convention. In 2020, Biden lost the first three nominating contests. But after receiving Clyburn's endorsement ahead the Palmetto State primary, Biden won South Carolina and went on to the nomination and the White House. New Hampshire has a state law that says it has to hold the first presidential primary in the country, but the Democratic Party opted to make South Carolina the first in its primary process at the wishes of Biden. Clyburn made his comments while speaking to the media shortly before appearing at his annual fish fry, an event that has become a must attend for potential presidential candidates. He was flanked by Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, who was the Democratic vice presidential nominee in 2024, and Maryland Gov. Wes Moore. Although the weekend was formally meant to elect party leadership for the next two years, it also served as a pep rally to energize party faithful and activists. 'Back in the 2000 election, when they decided to show us a red and blue map, and they defined and divided the country, and it got into people's heads and now they see a map and they say, oh, 'South Carolina, that's deep red.' Well, I beg to differ, this room doesn't look like it's deep red,' Walz said at the Blue Palmetto Dinner. Moore, seen as a potential 2028 candidate who insisted he wasn't thinking about a presidential campaign in three years, gave passionate remarks Friday night that resembled a presidential campaign stump speech. 'This is the moment for us to say together in one voice, gone are the days when the Democrats are the party of no and slow. We must be the party of yes and now,' Moore said. 'Gone are the days when we are the party of bureaucracy. Gone are the days when we are the party of multiyear studies on things that we already know. Gone are the days when we are the party of panels. Gone are the days when we are the party of college debate club rules. We must be the party of action, and that action must come now.' But he insisted he wasn't thinking about 2028. 'I've been very clear that first that no, I'm not running. But the thing I'm also very clear about is anyone who's talking about 2028 is not taking 2025 very seriously,' Moore said.
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Potential 2028 presidential hopefuls Moore, Walz steal show at South Carolina Democratic weekend
Maryland Gov. Wes Moore speaks at South Carolina Rep. Jim Clyburn's World Famous Fish Fry, an annual gathering of South Carolina Democrats, on Friday, May 30, 2025. (Photo by Shaun Chornobroff/SC Daily Gazette) COLUMBIA, S.C. — Minutes before 10 p.m. Friday, after Democratic speakers led the audience in jeers to Republicans' efforts to slash jobs and health care, and encouraged people to get involved and vote, line dancing broke out. That mix of politics and fun, mostly the latter, is what makes Rep. Jim Clyburn's (D-S.C.) annual fish fry in the state's capital city so popular, attendees said. 'We all came out, and everybody's enjoying themselves,' said Shantell Zimmerman, 58, of Columbia. 'It brings out the community,' agreed Dionne Brown, 55, of Irmo, who's been attending the event for six years. 'Then we actually get to discuss our views and takeaways.' Hundreds of people attended the event that started in 1992, the year voters first elected Clyburn to the 6th Congressional District, as a thank you to the voters who couldn't afford the Democratic Party's high-dollar fundraisers. Over time, the 'World Famous Annual Fish Fry' — which includes free food and drinks — has become a must-attend event for Democrats seeking local, statewide and national office. This year was no different, even if Maryland Gov. Wes Moore and Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz — Kamala Harris' 2024 running mate — said they're not running for the 2028 nomination. 'I know I'm not running,' Moore told reporters Friday. 'But the thing I'm also very clear about is that anyone who's talking about 2028 is not taking 2025 very seriously.' Moore and Walz, as well as Clyburn and former Democratic National Committee Chairman Jaime Harrison of Columbia, emphasized the importance of focusing on what's happening now in Washington, D.C. Proposed cuts to government safety nets like Medicaid and billionaire Elon Musk's efforts to rapidly slash federal spending were among the topics the governors touched on Friday during speeches at the fish fry, as well as the state Democratic Party's Blue Palmetto Fundraising Dinner the same night. 'I taught school long enough to know it's because they're weak and they're bullies, and when you stand up to them, they fade away,' said Walz, a former high school geography teacher. While both declined suggestions that they're running for president, there's wide speculation otherwise. Their addresses at the events in South Carolina — which last year got promoted from holding the Democratic Party's first-in-the-South to first-in-the-nation presidential primary — sounded a lot like campaign speeches. Walz will also speak Saturday at the state Democratic Party's annual convention. Lucy Owens, an Anderson County delegate to the state convention, discounted the governors' refusals, saying the 2028 presidential campaign has clearly begun. 'They're all going to come through here. They're the first ones,' she said of Moore and Walz. In 2019, the fish fry drew more than 20 potential candidates hoping to appeal to South Carolina Democrats. The following year, Joe Biden won the South Carolina Democratic primary, a victory that ended up vaulting him to the presidency. South Carolina's primary was elevated for 2024 as Biden's thank you to the state. With Biden gone, the Democratic party in flux, and Harrison no longer leading the national party, South Carolina maintaining its first-in-the-nation status is in question. Clyburn's comments Friday suggest he knows it won't. He doesn't care if the state is first, just that it's early, he said. 'The most important hitter on a team is the cleanup hitter. He comes in fourth place,' Clyburn told reporters at his event. 'I'm not concerned about whether or not we're first, second, third. Please, let us be at least four.' That would take South Carolina back to having the first primary in the South. In the aftermath of Trump's landslide victory and the Republican Party gaining control of both chambers of Congress, the Democratic Party is in a reset. Walz and Moore, the first Black governor in Maryland's history, are among the early faces of it. Winning South Carolina, which changed the trajectory of Biden's 2020 presidential run, will be crucial for Democratic hopefuls. Owens, the Anderson County delegate, pointed to the stage where Walz and Moore spoke, saying every Democrat who wants to be president will eventually appear in that exact spot. 'They got to come through here. Not South Carolina. They got to go right there,' she said. Both governors received raucous ovations from South Carolina Democrats, drawing cheers, standing ovations and even a few laughs as they took shots at the GOP. Owens said 'they're both very great candidates,' and she's 'excited' to hear more from them over the coming years. That was the general consensus from attendees who spoke with the SC Daily Gazette. But they were significantly more familiar with Walz because of his time on the campaign trail last year with Vice President Harris. 'I know less about Wes Moore than I do about Tim Walz, but I think he's a good speaker,' said Laura Lowery, a 69-year-old from Fountain Inn. 'I think he's done a good job in his state as well.' Moore has recently come under fire for vetoing a bill that would establish a commission to examine state and federal policies from 1877 to 1965 and come up with recommendations for reparations. South Carolina Rep. John King, D-Rock Hill, had asked the state party to remove Moore as the keynote speaker at Friday's Blue Palmetto Dinner because of the veto. Party leaders never responded to questions about that request. But for at least some attendees, the veto perturbed them too. 'I didn't understand why he would do that,' said Tonya Winbush of Anderson. But once Winbush, a 50-year-old Army veteran, heard Moore speak about his time in the Army, as well as his pardoning of 175,000 people with convictions for cannabis possession, her opinion changed. 'I think when you don't know the whole story and you just listen to sound bites, which is what we do a lot, we'll make brash judgments about people, when we are really fighting the same fight,' she said. – This story first appeared in the South Carolina Daily Gazette, which is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. SC Daily Gazette maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Seanna Adcox for questions: info@ SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX
Yahoo
3 days ago
- General
- Yahoo
Should SC lead off or bat clean-up in the Dem primary order. What Clyburn thinks
When the Democratic National Committee decides its presidential nominating contest order, U.S. Rep. Jim Clyburn, D-Santee, said all he wants is for South Carolina to be in the early primary window. Clyburn told reporters at his annual fish fry he's not concerned about South Carolina being the lead off contest, after the Democratic Party kicked off its 2024 presidential nominating process with the Palmetto State. 'I never asked for anything more than keep us in the pre-primary window which covers a whole month before the primary starts,' Clyburn said. 'So I think it's important to the party for that to be the case. Whether it be one, two, three or four, I don't care.' Clyburn, South Carolina's lone Democratic elected federal official, likened the primary order to a baseball batting lineup. 'The most important hitter on a baseball team, is clean up hitter. He comes in fourth place,' Clyburn said. 'And South Carolina has always been fourth, and we demonstrated how important being in fourth place was.' The Democratic National Committee is expected to reevaluate its presidential primary order after then-President Joe Biden said it should be looked at every four years. A decision on the 2028 order could come as soon as the end of 2026. Before 2024, South Carolina was the First in the South Presidential Primary for both the Republican and Democratic parties. Since the 1992 presidential race, the winner of the South Carolina Democratic nominating contest has historically gone on to be the nominee. The lone exceptions have been in 2004 when John Edwards won the primary, but ended up being the vice presidential running mate for John Kerry, and in 2024, when Vice President Kamala Harris replaced Biden shortly before the national convention. In 2020, Biden lost the first three nominating contests. But after receiving Clyburn's endorsement ahead the Palmetto State primary, Biden won South Carolina and went on to the nomination and the White House. New Hampshire has a state law that says it has to hold the first presidential primary in the country, but the Democratic Party opted to make South Carolina the first in its primary process at the wishes of Biden. Clyburn made his comments while speaking to the media shortly before appearing at his annual fish fry, an event that has become a must attend for potential presidential candidates. He was flanked by Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, who was the Democratic vice presidential nominee in 2024, and Maryland Gov. Wes Moore. Although the weekend was formally meant to elect party leadership for the next two years, it also served as a pep rally to energize party faithful and activists. 'Back in the 2000 election, when they decided to show us a red and blue map, and they defined and divided the country, and it got into people's heads and now they see a map and they say, oh, 'South Carolina, that's deep red.' Well, I beg to differ, this room doesn't look like it's deep red,' Walz said at the Blue Palmetto Dinner. Moore, seen as a potential 2028 candidate who insisted he wasn't thinking about a presidential campaign in three years, gave passionate remarks Friday night that resembled a presidential campaign stump speech. 'This is the moment for us to say together in one voice, gone are the days when the Democrats are the party of no and slow. We must be the party of yes and now,' Moore said. 'Gone are the days when we are the party of bureaucracy. Gone are the days when we are the party of multiyear studies on things that we already know. Gone are the days when we are the party of panels. Gone are the days when we are the party of college debate club rules. We must be the party of action, and that action must come now.' But he insisted he wasn't thinking about 2028. 'I've been very clear that first that no, I'm not running. But the thing I'm also very clear about is anyone who's talking about 2028 is not taking 2025 very seriously,' Moore said.
CTV News
3 days ago
- Business
- CTV News
Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, in South Carolina remarks, calls on Democrats ‘to be a little meaner'
COLUMBIA, S.C. — Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz sought to energize activists at a Democratic state convention in South Carolina, as the party's 2024 vice presidential nominee works to keep up the high national profile he gained when Kamala Harris selected him as her running mate. Walz, a former schoolteacher who went on to serve in Congress and then became his state's governor, keynoted the South Carolina gathering in Columbia, traditionally a showcase for national-level Democrats and White House hopefuls. Speaking to convention delegates for more than half an hour, Walz used colorful language and spoke plainly as he lobbed criticism at President Donald Trump and called on his fellow Democrats to have the courage to stand up to the 'bully' in the White House. 'Maybe it's time for us to be a little meaner,' Walz said, to applause from the crowd. 'When it's a bully like Donald Trump, you bully the s—- out of him. ... This is a ... cruel man.' It was Walz's third set of large-scale remarks in less than 24 hours for Walz, who, along with Maryland Gov. Wes Moore, spoke Friday night at the party's fundraising dinner, as well as an after-party fish fry hosted by Rep. Jim Clyburn. The events offered an opportunity for both Walz and Moore to test out their messages in front of hundreds of Democrats in the state that has long held the first-in-the-South Democratic presidential primary and, last year, led off the party's nominating calendar entirely. State party chair Christale Spain has said that she will renew the argument to keep the state's No. 1 position in the next cycle, but national party organizations haven't settled their 2028 calendars yet, and party officials in Iowa, New Hampshire and Nevada are also vying to go first. 'Donald Trump is the existential threat that we knew was coming,' Walz told the crowd Saturday morning, acknowledging that, for Democrats, 'it is going to be a challenging few years here.' As he did on Friday night, Walz praised his fellow Democrats for having the 'courage' to keep fighting in a largely Republican state, where Democrats haven't won a statewide election in about two decades and only hold one congressional seat — Clyburn's. 'Damnit, we should be able to have some fun and be joyful,' Walz said. 'We've got the guts and we need to have it to push back on the bullies and the greed.' Walz, on a long list of potential 2028 candidates who have been traveling to early-voting states, was expected to sound similar themes as a featured speaker as California Democrats gather in Anaheim on Saturday. 'We're fired up to welcome Minnesota Governor Tim Walz to the Convention stage in Anaheim,' state chair Rusty Hicks said in a statement. 'He's a former teacher, a veteran, and a trailblazer who's spent his career fighting for working families and standing up for the values we all share — fairness, dignity, and opportunity for all.' Democrats have been debating since Harris lost to Trump in November over which direction the party should take. That self-examination reflects deep frustrations among Democratic voters that their leaders are failing to put up enough resistance against Trump, who has taken a much more aggressive approach to his second term in the White House. Walz hasn't officially said if he'll seek a third term in 2026, but acknowledges he's thinking about it. He said in a recent interview with KSTP-TV that he would probably wait to decide until July, after he calls a special session of the closely divided Minnesota Legislature to finish work on the state's next budget. Those negotiations have gone slowly despite his frequent meetings with legislative leaders. He's given mixed signals on a 2028 presidential run while keeping up his attacks on Trump. He told The New Yorker Radio Hour for an interview that aired in March that he would 'certainly consider that' if circumstances were right. He told CNN's 'State of the Union' last month that he was 'not thinking about running in 2028.' But he hasn't ruled it out, either, and has signaled possible interest in other ways. Following the Democratic ticket's defeat in November, Walz returned to the road in March when he went to Iowa to launch a series of town halls in competitive congressional districts represented by Republicans, after House Speaker Mike Johnson advised GOP representatives to avoid holding town halls because of protests at them. Walz's gubernatorial campaign organization, which has been actively raising money, has used his travels in 'Support Tim on the Road' fundraising pitches. 'For the past few weeks, I've been showing up where Republicans won't,' he wrote in one recent message, a theme he echoed on Saturday in South Carolina. 'I've hosted town halls in Iowa, Nebraska, Wisconsin, Minnesota, and Texas to hear from people the GOP is neglecting.' Karnowski reported from Minneapolis. Meg Kinnard And Steve Karnowski, The Associated Press
Yahoo
4 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Wes Moore, Tim Walz urge for a fiercer Democratic party at famed Jim Clyburn Fish Fry
Democratic governors Tim Walz and Wes Moore are fired up - but not solely to eat South Carolina Rep. Jim Clyburn's so-called "world famous" breaded fish. They're fired up to refocus their party, and on Friday evening, both pitched their theory of how to build up coalitions and win back the Americans they've lost: emphasize the political gravity of the moment forcefully and frequently, and don't wait until the midterms to talk to as many constituencies as possible. "Each and every one of us, we're not going to have someone come save us. But who wants that? We can save ourselves. We can get out there. We can make a difference," said Minnesota Gov. Walz during brief remarks on stage to a few hundred Democrats in Columbia, South Carolina. "We need to change the attitude, compete in every district, compete for every school board seat, and come out to this damn fish fry with the attitude: 'we're going to fill up on some fish, and then we are going to beat the hell out of these dictators.'" Moore, the first Black governor of Maryland, in his remarks stressed that the "baton is in our hands." "We are not going to drop it. We are going to run through the tape, and we are going to win because we understand what's at stake," said Moore He continued the refrain, as a rallying cry of sorts: "Send a message the entire country is going to hear. This is our time. This is our moment. We will not shirk, we will not flinch, we will not blink. We will win, just as those who came before us did." Yet, neither of them said that they should be the leader of the party in 2028. Both governors have denied any plans of seeking the presidential nomination, which the pair reiterated during a gaggle with reporters before their on-stage remarks Friday. During that gaggle, Clyburn said he saw both Walz and Moore as "great leaders" but said they have to decide their own plans. Walz has said he has no plans for a White House run and is still mulling whether he will run for gubernatorial reelection. When pressed at an appearance at Harvard's Institute of Politics, Walz said he wasn't sure if the party's eventual candidate is clear just yet. "I think it's a super talented bench," Walz said. "Do I think the person's out there? No, I'm not sure they're out there yet." MORE: Dems call GOP's 'big, beautiful' bill 'ugly' for hurting low-income, helping rich Moore has rejected the notion more fiercely, telling ABC's "The View" plainly, "I am not running." He doubled down in the reporter gaggle Friday, "Anyone who is talking about 2028 is not taking 2025 very seriously," Moore told reporters. "The fight is 2025. Right now." Moore also gave a keynote address at the state's key fundraiser, the Blue Palmetto Dinner, just before his Fish Fry appearance, where, according to a circulated copy ahead of his remarks, he said the party must be delivering "an alternative" to Trump at this moment. "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. Now is the time for us to be impatient too. Let's not just talk about an alternative. Let's not just study an alternative. Let's deliver an alternative," Moore's prepared remarks said. Even still, it's no secret that Clyburn's fish fry has often been fertile waters for would-be Democratic rising stars and Pennsylvania Ave. hopefuls to mix and mingle among powerful party operatives, donors, and key South Carolina early state voters in one night. And while not as much of a crazed scene as the 2019 event, where a menagerie of Dem candidates vied for stage-time as the partiers shimmied shoulder to shoulder, Friday night's event was still high-energy. MORE: Who's running for president in 2028 and who's not? Walz will be speaking to Palmetto State Democrats once again Saturday morning. But that doesn't end the Minnesota governor's campaign travel. After his address on Saturday, he's quickly off to California to speak at its Democratic Party's event. The famous fish fete tees off a weekend of fundraising and party business as the South Carolina Democratic Party convenes for their state convention. Friday night's event also comes as South Carolina's future placement within the party's early voting calendar is in flux. Last cycle, due to changes made by the Democratic National Committee, South Carolina replaced historically first Iowa as the initial contest. However, Democrats must set a new calendar for 2028. Which order the state comes in is less important to Clyburn, he said. "I never ask for anything more than to keep us in the pre-primary window," said Clyburn. "Whether that be one, two, three, or four, I don't care." Wes Moore, Tim Walz urge for a fiercer Democratic party at famed Jim Clyburn Fish Fry originally appeared on
