Today begins the Southern Republican Leadership Conference from Charleston, South Carolina. At some point on Thursday or Friday I will be speaking at SRLC 2012.
As the entire political world descends on South Carolina, one thing has become abundantly clear.
The presidential process works.
The criticisms of electing a president are as wide as they are deep. Yet those criticisms are wrong.
Some people say that the process is too long. Yet the fact that candidates are scrutinized for two years or more is a good thing.
Only in the United States could an ordinary average American go up to a presidential contender and ask tough questions. More importantly, these ordinary Americans demand…and receive…the answers.
The process is not perfect, but fixes in recent decades have made it very good.
Initially things began with the Iowa Caucus, followed by the New Hampshire Primary.
These two states are very different. Iowa voters like “nice”politics. They dislike attack politics. They want respectful discussions and debates. New Hampshire voters tend to prefer the rough and tumble. They don’t mince words or sugarcoat language with the candidates. Iowa thinks New Hampshire is too impolite. New Hampshire thinks Iowa neds to toughen up.
Iowa voters in the Republican Party tend to be social conservatives. Christian activists have a huge influence in this state. New Hmapshire voters tend to be more libertarian leaning. Economic issues dominate.
Yet one criticism of both states still remained. They are both overwhelmingly white.
Some people would consider this irrelevant, since a black man named Barack Obama won white voters in Iowa to springboard his candidacy to a very serious perch. Yet this is not sufficient. One black man being decided on did not alter the fact that whites were still the deciders. One black man being elected does not have as much weight as minorities having a larger say in the political process.
The solution was to add South Carolina and Nevada to the mix of states that would be allowed to decide early. The Iowa Caucus would go first, followed by the New Hampshire Primary, then the South Carolina Primary, and followed by the Nevada Caucus. After that the other 46 states would have their say.
South Carolina gives the South a voice. It also contains a large black population. While many blacks vote Democrat, South Carolina has several prominent black Republicans in high positions. As of the 2012 primary, Congressman Tim Scott is immensely popular. GOP Vice Chairman Ed Cousar is a rising star. National Committeeman Glenn McCall is very well regarded. If ever there was a state where being a black Republican was moving away from being an anomoly and more of a nrmal situation, South Carolina would be it.
South Carolina also has a strong military prescence, with the Citadel being a source of American pride. Some candidates can escape Iowa and New Hampshire by only focusin on moral and fiscal issues, respectively. Foreign policy issues cannot be avoided in South Carolina.
Nevada has a large Latino population. Governor Brian Sandoval is another rising star (along with New Mexico Governor Susanna Martinez).
So between Iowa, New Hampshire, South Carolina, and Nevada, there is real diversity. Racial and ethnic diversity? Check. Geographical diversity? Check? Ideological diversity? Check.
Again, the process is not perfect. Florida threw a monkey wrench into the process in 2008 and is doing so again 2012. They are losing half of their delegates, as they did four years ago. While they did jump in front of Nevada, they are still after the other three early states. Also, Florida does offer plenty of different constituencies, from the Cubans in Miami to the Jews in Palm Beach all the way to the white evangelicals in the Panhandle.
It used to be that Democrats allocated delegates by proportional representations while Republican contests were winner take all. This allowed John McCain to defeat Mike Huckabee 33-30% in South Carolina and vanquish Mitt Romney in Florida despite only winning 34-31%. That problem has now been fixed. Republicans will have proportional allocation of delegates before April 1st to ensure that the nomination is not wrapped up too early. Then after April 1st contests will be winner take all, to prevent a floor fight at the convention.
As of now, five candidates still remain. Whether Mitt Romney, Rick Santorum, Newt Gingrich, Rick Perry, or Ron Paul win the nomination, one thing is clear.
The presidential process is working.
eric