Poor Vic Rawl, the four-term South Carolina Senator and ex Judge can’t catch a break.
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After being called out of retirement by the Democrat Party to run against Jim DeMint, an extremely popular, Republican incumbent, it soon became clear to Vic that his role was to be that of sacrificial lamb.
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Even before the ink was dry on the filing application forms, the Democratic Party bailed on Rawl. By the day of the primary, Rawl had amassed less than $186,000 towards his Senatorial run, while DeMint had raised over $3.5 million.
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Whether Rawl entertained some fantasy in which he could win against DeMint or he simply wanted to make a good showing, he used what little was made available to him to send thousands of emails and robo calls and clocked up over 15,000 miles on the odometer as he crisscrossed the state shaking hands and kissing babies in an effort to garner as many votes as possible.
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So certain was Rawl of being awarded the Democrat nomination in the primaries that he had already organized a fund raiser for later in the week.
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Willing to play a supporting role in the made for TV movie that is the Jim DeMint story, Rawl was certainly not prepared when a completely unknown understudy shoved his way into the spotlight, stealing the show. Enter Alvin Greene, stage left.
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Now the Democrats seem to have a problem.
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How do you get rid of a black candidate who would appear to be the Democrat’s political wholly grail (black, homeless, unemployed, and unknown) in favor of the very type of candidate that they have been rallying against for decades: old, white, establishment?
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Clearly the Alvin Greene story is intriguing.
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In the hypothetical Hallmark channel made for TV movie version, Greene is an “every man” who, perhaps inspired by Obama’s run, began saving his money in order to pay the nearly $11,000.00 filing fee to get his name on the ballot. A “simple” man of few words, Greene served his country for twelve years before seeking to serve his fellow man in the political arena. Can you hear the collective awwwwww?
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Turn the channel however and Greene is a political pawn, a “planted candidate” being manipulated by forces unknown. In this hypothetical HBO version, Greene, who can barely string a handful of words together into a coherent sentence, claims to have saved the filing fee over a two year period…while homeless and unemployed. Of course it is difficult to find a job if you are spending your time hanging out at the local university computer lab trying to show teenage girls internet porn.
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Neither version seems to set well with Democrats. In the first, the Democrat Party is virtually impotent. How could an unknown, unfunded, unsophisticated political no-body possibly win a primary without their help and influence? The second version is worse for the DNC. The South Carolina Republican ticket is so strong; there would be no benefit to planting a hand pick opponent. That only leaves non-Republican opponents to either the SC Democrat power structure or to Vic Rawl himself.
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Rawl, a white, moderate Democrat who had been elected 4 times to the Senate and has served as Judge and prosecutor would seem to be the perfect candidate. Long term marriage, no major scandals, he has spent his career keeping his head down and voting the party line.
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Now the DNC is playing perplexed. Carol Fowler, the SC Democratic Party Chairperson suggested that Greene had been successful in winning the primary because his name appeared first on the ballot. House Majority Whip Clyburn claims that Greene is a Republican plant. Even Rawls is using campaign money to launch and investigation into what he calls “voter irregularities.” The one group that hasn’t waded into the melee is the DNC itself.
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It appears that the Dems have lost the use of their most valuable “Ace in the Hole” play, the Race Card. Or have they?
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Clearly the DNC can’t come out in support of “white bread” Rawl against a black man without alienating the minority votes that they have counted on (successfully) for decades.
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But an interesting thing is taking place. We are talking about it. The news is covering it. The pundits are speculating about it. And now, a race that DeMint had all but sewn up is back in the news.
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In what may turn out to be the greatest Race Card play since Obama received 98% of the black vote, Alvin Greene is becoming a household name and the unofficial poster child of the black, poor, and disenfranchised. While the DNC half heartedly says “gee don’t run, you aren’t ready, we will give you your filing fee back,” major Democratic donors and personalities are lining up to offer Greene assistance. And black voters in South Carolina are paying attention too.
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Where Obama had to overcome a perceived, elitist, intellectual, arrogance in order to appear “common” and appeal to some black voters, Greene has no such mantle to remove. His lack of sophistication has clearly been noted by voters throughout the state, where it seems to be viewed as a plus. Even black politicians in South Carolina aren’t convinced that Greene is fit to serve, Rep Rutherford, who met with Greene for the first time last week said, "I got the impression that maybe he doesn’t know what he’s dealing with."
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South Carolina had been a virtually forgone conclusion as a Republican win. A favorite with Republicans and Tea Party members alike, certainly there were no Democrat candidates in the woodwork that could have come out and challenged DeMint in any effective way. So the DNC looks to the past. How do we get rid of a popular candidate when we have no one to challenge?
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The DNC doesn’t have to look back far. When Democrat voter favorite Hillary Clinton was flexing her political muscle pre-primary, a Clinton win was almost a certainty. The powers that be at the DNC made no bones about their dislike of her and supported her as little as possible, yet the Clinton machine powered on. The only chance that the DNC had to regain control was to find a challenger who would be even more compelling to Democrats than the Clinton name. They had to find someone who would be more historic, gain more press coverage, and get out more voters. And they found him.
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In what is fast becoming the DNC’s favorite play, Greene, is becoming South Carolina’s Obama “lite.” Greene’s background in both the Army and Air Force must have reassured the DNC that he wouldn’t have any of those pesky radical associations and missing years. Clearly being homeless and unemployed shows that he isn’t getting funding from some secretive source. But perhaps most importantly, Greene is getting news coverage across America in a race that was set to be a snooze fest as far as the national media was concerned.
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All the while, poor ol Vic Rawl, mouth gaping like a Wall-eye, wonders just what the hell happened. The press is treating him like a sore loser and the DNC isn’t returning his calls.
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Americans be warned, if the Dems can pull this off again, there won’t be an underpass, homeless shelter, or insane asylum in a contested state, free from DNC recruiters. And you thought Washington was bad now…..
Alexandrea Merrell
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