Free Republic

COLUMBIA, SC — THE GOOD THING about Brad Hutto is that he doesn’t try to convince us that Lindsey Graham is a liberal. Which is to say that, unlike the six opponents Mr. Graham easily swept aside in the Republican primary, and unlike the reality-show self-promoter who is self-financing a quixotic independent campaign against him, Mr. Hutto is not unhinged from reality. To the contrary, Mr. Hutto has had a respectable career in the state Senate, where, despite being part of an ever-dwindling minority party, he has had a significant amount of influence on public policy — sometimes for good,...

Independent U.S. Senate candidate Thomas Ravenel and Beaufort County Councilman Rick Caporale will talk about their campaigns with Beaufort Tea Party members at 5:30 p.m. Monday at Fuji's Restaurant on 97 Sea Island Parkway on Lady's Island. Ravenel is the former state treasurer and newly minted reality TV star. He joined the race against Sen. Lindsey Graham last month as a petition candidate with the support and signatures of more than 17,000 registered voters across the state. Caporale was set to defend his seat representing part of Hilton Head Island and greater Bluffton against Colleton River Plantation resident Lynn King....

On his first day as an official candidate for the U.S. Senate, Lowcountry businessman and reality television star Thomas Ravenel thanked his supporters for signing and collecting the signatures that put him on the November ballot against incumbent “Republican” Lindsey Graham, Democrat Brad Hutto and Libertarian Victor Kocher. “A lot of people worked very hard on that (signature) effort – and I’m tremendously grateful to each one of them,” Ravenel said. ”This is democracy in action – whether the warmongers and welfare statists in Washington like it or not.”

Thomas Ravenel is the first to admit he’s not a perfect candidate. “If I can just get the drug vote, I can win by a landslide,” he said cheerfully on Tuesday, the day after he filed a petition to run for Senate in South Carolina against incumbent Republican Lindsey Graham as an independent candidate. “I’m not a perfect messenger. But those so-called perfect people with those blemish-free backgrounds are the people that are running the Republic into the ground. My skeletons are out there for everyone to see.” And Ravenel’s skeletons are well displayed — both in news archives and...

CHARLESTON — With less than a month to go before the filing deadline, Charleston businessman and reality TV show star Thomas Ravenel says he is proceeding with plans to run as an independent for the U.S. Senate seat now held by Republican Lindsey Graham. Ravenel, who was state treasurer before resigning due to federal drug charges, said Wednesday that he plans soon to complete a petition drive, collecting the signatures of at least 10,000 S.C. voters. That petition would enable him to appear on the ballot this November with three other candidates, including Graham, in a bid for a six-year...

Ravenel steps down as treasurer Indicted official resigns after first court appearance on drug charges By Rick Brundrett and John Monk · The (Columbia) State Updated 07/25/07 - 12:36 AM COLUMBIA -- Thomas Ravenel's surprise resignation Tuesday as state treasurer and his continuing treatment for an apparent drug problem are signals he won't challenge the evidence against him, say lawyers familiar with the federal system. Both also could be strategies that would get him a lighter sentence if convicted, experts say. "It would be safe to assume his resignation is an indication he does not plan to fight these charges,"...

Associated Press Republican presidential candidate Rudy Giuliani, a strong proponent of gun control during his years as New York mayor, told a Southern audience Friday that he supports the constitutional right to bear arms. During a town-hall style meeting, Giuliani focused on combatting terrorism, cutting taxes and ending illegal immigration. Several in the audience of some 200 raised questions about issues at the forefront for some conservative Southerners: gun rights and embryonic stem-cell research. "It doesn't matter if I believe in it or not - and I do - it is the Second Amendment," Giuliani said. "I'm a strict constructionist....

How many alleged criminals can a law-and-order candidate be associated with before it starts to hurt? That's the question facing former New York City Mayor Rudolph W. Giuliani, following the indictment Tuesday of Thomas Ravenel, his volunteer campaign chairman in South Carolina. Mayor of the World Giuliani entered the presidential campaign early this year with one tarnished pal stuffed into his baggage: his former bodyguard, police commissioner and business partner Bernard Kerik. Kerik's career began to unravel in 2004 after Giuliani urged President Bush to name him Secretary of Homeland Security — a nomination that was quickly withdrawn amid reports...

COLUMBIA, South Carolina (AP) -- South Carolina Treasurer Thomas Ravenel, a former real estate developer who became a rising political star after his election last year, was indicted Tuesday on federal cocaine charges. Ravenel is also the state chairman for former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani's presidential campaign. Ravenel has stepped down from his volunteer responsibilities with the campaign, according to a statement released by Mark Campbell, Giuliani's political director. Campbell said the campaign has no information about the accusations pending against Ravenel. The millionaire is accused of buying less than 500 grams of the drug to share with other...

South Carolina Treasurer Thomas Ravenel has been suspended from office, following his indictment by a federal grand jury for distribution of cocaine. "Given the grave nature of these charges and what is alleged in this indictment, we're left with no choice but to suspend Treasurer Ravenel immediately," Governor Mark Sanford said in a written release. "These are obviously very serious allegations that we're constitutionally bound to act upon, and they'll ultimately be decided by the courts." The governor quoted Article VI, Section 8 of the South Carolina Constitution, giving him the power to suspend statewide, county or city officials indicted...

South Carolina Treasurer Thomas Ravenel has been suspended from office, following his indictment by a federal grand jury for distribution of cocaine.

WASHINGTON -- Lee Rogers, chairman of the Anderson County Republican Party, was at the beach last week when his cell phone rang. It was an urgent call from one of Rogers' Upstate GOP activists. "He asked me what I was going to do to find somebody to run against Lindsey Graham (next year)," Rogers said. "I explained to the gentleman that's not something I can put together as a single county chairman. That's got to happen with the people." It could be happening. Graham, a Seneca Republican nearing the end of his first Senate term, has taken plenty of heat...

04-05-2007Former Congressman and State Senator Arthur Ravenel Named South Carolina Regional Chairman Campaigning in Charleston this afternoon, Mayor Rudy Giuliani announced that former U.S. Representative and former State Senator Arthur Ravenel will serve as the campaign's Lowcountry Regional Chairman. Mayor Giuliani and Ravenel met with supporters and spoke to the press at Magnolia's restaurant. "After representing South Carolinians at the federal, state, and local level, I understand what the voters of the state are looking for in a leader and I know Rudy Giuliani represents exactly those qualities," Ravenel said. Mayor Giuliani spoke to Ravenel's years of civic service...

CHARLESTON, S.C. (AP) - A worker helping to demolish the Silas N. Pearman Bridge in Charleston is dead after part of the structure collapsed and he fell along with it Tuesday. The name of the worker was not immediately available Tuesday night, the state Department of Transportation said. The state agency said the demolition contractor was removing a steel girder and concrete section of the bridge over Drum Island and the worker fell during the collapse of part of the structure. Demolition work will be halted until an investigation determines it is safe to continue, the Transportation Department said. Dismantling...

12 HOURS TIL POLLS OPEN IN SOUTH CAROLINA: BEASLEY 38%, RAVENEL 23%, DEMINT 20%. * On the eve of the GOP Primary for U.S. Senate in South Carolina. David Beasley appears certain to advance to 6/22 runoff, but it's unclear if he will face Thomas Ravenel or Jim Demint. According to SurveyUSA Poll of 500 certain GOP voters conducted 6/3 + 6/4 + 6/5. * 12 hours till polls open, It's Beasley 38% (Down 5 Pts in Past 2 Wks), Ravenel 23% (Up 6 Pts in Past 2 Wks), Demint 20% (Down 1 Pt), Charlie Condon 12% (Down 4 Pts)...

U.S. Senate candidate Thomas Ravenel billed himself as "a Reagan Republican" as he stumped for votes in Rock Hill on Thursday, saying federal spending has to be clamped down. Lower taxes and less government are vital for a strong America, Ravenel told the Kiwanis Club during a speech at the City Club of Rock Hill. A strong national defense to fight terrorism is the No. 1 issue facing the country, Ravenel said, but "to pay for it you need a strong economy." Charleston's Ravenel, 41, a real estate developer, is the second Senate candidate to speak to the Kiwanis Club....

Former Attorney General Charlie Condon won Monday's Charles-ton County Republican Party straw poll of candidates in next year's U.S. Senate race, but the name of potential candidate David Beasley kept cropping up. Many party members said Beas-ley should get in the race, despite the baggage of losing the governor's office in 1998 after one term. "I would think he'd be the real front-runner," Republican Vickie McCoy said at Monday's county convention, where long-time GOP activist Cyndi Mosteller was elected party chairwoman, defeating Charles Steinert. Condon, of Sullivan's Island, collected 152 votes in the straw poll of the four Republicans running...

<p>COLUMBIA — State Superintendent of Education Inez Tenenbaum said Tuesday she is considering seeking the Democratic nomination for the U.S. Senate if Sen. Ernest Hollings decides not to run.</p> <p>Tenenbaum, who is serving her second four-year term, said she has had numerous people urge her to run. She said she's "enthusiastic" about running if Hollings decides to retire.</p>

<p>Greenville Congressman Jim DeMint said Friday he has raised "over $380,000" for his 2004 U.S. Senate race. The third-term Republican U.S. House member from Greenville released the overall figure after filing his first-quarter campaign finance report with the Federal Election Commission. The FEC will make reports, including donor lists, public on April 15.</p>