Thursday, June 01, 2006

South Carolina must remain first!

http://hotlineblog.nationaljournal.com/

December In Iowa
The SC GOP has made it very clear that they don't like all this encroaching on to their '08 turf. This afternoon, the state party announced that if any other southern state attempts to even share the same day as the South Carolina WH GOP primary, they'll move up their primary, even if it costs them delegates to the 2008 RNC convention. As SC GOP exec. dir. Scott Malyerck tells us, the state party's new motto for the '08 primary is "first and solo in the south." The threat SC GOPers fear the most is from FL, which is making noises about moving up its WH primary. AL and AR are two other old Confederacy states who want to share in SC's limelight.

There's a domino effect if South Carolina moves out of the approved February RNC window because New Hampshire's law says there has to be 7 days in between its primary and the next like-minded event. And, of course, Iowa needs to be 8 days before New Hampshire. How long before there are realistic plans for Iowa to hold its caucuses in the middle of December.

SC GOPers don't need to be 7 days ahead of anyone, just one day will do, or more likely four days as the party has held its primary on a Saturday in presidential cycles past. [CHUCK TODD]

Posted at 03:54 PM | Comments (0)