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RWW 5 26

[Christian Nationalism ## Much-Hyped ‘Rededication’ of U.S. to God Can’t Draw Trump Off the Golf Course

President Trump called for an event "rededicating" America to God, but he couldn't be bothered to show up for it.

https://www.peoplefor.org/rightwingwatch/much-hyped-rededication-us-god-cant-draw-trump-golf-course

05/18/2026

by

Peter Montgomery

*Commentary

Trump administration officials and Christian nationalist leaders hyped Sunday’s event to “rededicate America as one nation under God” as a historic moment and turning point for the nation, but President Donald Trump skipped it to go golfing.

The same was true for the Saturday evening worship gathering organized by musician and MAGA activist Sean Feucht on the grounds of the Washington Monument; while his followers gathered, Trump went golfing.

The snub was particularly noteworthy because Trump owes his election victories to the overwhelming support he got from conservative Christian voters, thanks in part to religious-right figures telling their audiences over and over again that Trump was anointed by God to lead and save America.

Religious-right figures who helped promote the event made a big deal out of the spiritual importance of Trump as president calling for the nation’s rededication to God. Dominionist anti-abortion and anti-LGBTQ activist Lou Engle has organized many prayer events over the years that drew much bigger crowds, but he said that this one was special: “This solemn assembly is different than any other solemn assembly, for the president of the United States has called this day.”

But the president couldn’t even be bothered to make a video greeting for this “historic” moment like Vice President J.D. Vance did. Instead, organizers played a video of Trump reading a scripture passage from a religious-right organized Bible-reading marathon event a few weeks ago. Engle added that when Trump read that passage, “he opened a door for the greatest awakening America has ever seen.” He called it “a hinge of history moment.”

If Trump cared enough to think that a gathering of “prophetic” leaders might call him out the way Old Testament prophets called out unjust political leaders, he needn’t have worried. None of the speakers calling for personal and national repentance suggested that Trump should repent for his cruelty or corruption. As the Religion News Service noted, neither Sen. Tim Scott nor religious-right activist Alevda King, who spoke about the Black church’s central role in the Civil Rights Movement, mentioned the current MAGA assault on the Voting Rights Act.

Even White House Faith Office Director Paula White didn’t attend in person, sending a short video.

:{:{Ben Carson, who was secretary of Housing and Urban Development in the first Trump administration and is now National Advisor for Nutrition, Health, and Housing at the Department of Agriculture, did show up in person. He was one of a few speakers who talked about the need for national unity. There are “forces” that want Americans to think they are one another’s enemies, Carson said. “We are not enemies.” He did not acknowledge Trump’s central role in creating bitter divisions or his ongoing demonization of his political opponents as traitors—or for that matter his religious-right backers’ portrayal of Trump opponents as demonic.}:

And if the organizers of the event were really interested in promoting national unity, or transcending politics as House Speaker Mike Johnson claimed, they would have created an interfaith event that celebrated America’s exceptional religious liberty and religious pluralism. Instead they created an event overwhelmingly dominated by MAGA Christians.}:

MAGA pastor Franklin Graham delivered a video diatribe about the moral state of the country, quoting scriptural warnings about people being lovers of money, arrogant, abusive, heartless, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, reckless, swollen with conceit, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, and more. While Graham said this list could apply to America today, he ignored the obvious fact that all those traits apply to the president he unwaveringly promotes.

Samuel Rodriguez, a MAGA pastor, New Apostolic Reformation figure, and head of the National Hispanic Christian Leadership Conference, gave an opening prayer. He spoke for about four minutes, calling for love and justice but failing to utter a single word about the immigrants and other people in their communities who have been terrorized by the Trump administration’s brutal mass deportation efforts. So much for prophets speaking truth to power.

MAGA pundit Eric Metaxas used his time on the platform at the Sunday rally and the Saturday worship service to promote his new book about the American revolution.

At Feucht’s worship on Saturday, Metaxas claimed that every single one of the founding fathers understood that the national narrative of the revolution was, “We are re-establishing the Sinai covenant.” That kind of claim doesn’t bode well for the credibility of his book, but then, there wasn’tmuch hope for that anyway.

On Sunday, Metaxas said God’s hand had guided American leaders beginning with George Washington. After talking about the British burning the White House during the War of 1812, he added jokingly, “It’s hard to believe it that it would take two centuries for the Lord to raise up a great man to bring that ballroom finally to stand where it needs to stand. It’s extraordinary. We only had to wait 200 years.”

The actual “prayer of rededication” was delivered by Speaker Johnson, who invoked God’s support for the MAGA war on wokeness and truth-telling history:

In recent years we’ve seen sinister ideologies sow confusion and discord among our people. We’ve witnessed attacks on our history, on our heroes, and the cherished moral and spiritual identity of this nation. These forces insist to the young and impressionable that our story, the American story, is one of oppression and hypocrisy and failure, and that this story can only be understood through the lens of our sins. Father, we reject that. We rebuke it in your name. … We turn to you once again to save us from these afflictions, to deliver us from the forces of evil, oppression, injustice, and tyranny both within our borders and beyond our shores.

In asking for deliverance from oppression and injustice, Johnson was apparently not thinking of the authoritarian abuses of power that mark the Trump administration, because his only mention of Trump was to pray that God would “continue to bless our president with the wisdom, prudence, and strength to govern our nation in accordance with your will.”

Neither the smaller-than-expected attendance nor Trump’s apparent disinterest in the “rededication” ceremony mean that the rest of us should ignore that the increasingly aggressive Christian nationalism of the administration and the MAGA movement threatens Americans’ religious freedom and the rights of people seen as undeserving by right-wing Christian nationalists.

// RWW

05/18/2026

by

Kyle Mantyla

And the public may never know who their money was spent on.

Nine connected Polymarket accounts have raked in more than $2.4 million betting almost exclusively on U.S. military actions in what digital detectives from the data analytics firm Bubblemaps have identified as a potentially egregious case of insider trading.

Speakers cast America as ‘morally rotten’ and sinful while embracing the ‘Christian nationalist’ label.

President Donald Trump's free eight-hour Rededicate 250 prayer event held at the National Mall in D.C. Sunday drew a notably sparse crowd, with Reuters photos capturing numerous empty seats.

The ancestors of today’s Christian nationalists weren’t the leaders of Christian America — they were the heretics.

The Christian worship performance scheduled for the National Mall is a religious show.

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RWW 18TH?

Mike Johnson Says ‘Rededicate 250’ Event ‘Transcends Politics’; So Why Are All the Speakers MAGA Christians?

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Speaker of the House Mike Johnson addressing the 2026 National Gathering for Prayer and Repentance (Image from CBN News coverage)

News & Analysis

05/15/2026

by

Peter Montgomery

A letter from Speaker of the House Mike Johnson promoting this weekend’s Christian nationalist ceremony to “rededicate” America to God was sent out by Freedom 250 Thursday evening.

In the email from Freedom 250, which President Donald Trump set up to wrest control of the national celebrations from the bipartisan and congressionally authorized America 250to promote himself and MAGA ideology, Johnson called Sunday’s day-long event “a unique moment for believers" and “a call for unity, repentance, and hope, and one that truly transcends politics.”

That is classic Trumpian gaslighting.

First of all, an event seeking to unify the actually country might in some way recognize the religious pluralism that is an essential part of what makes America exceptional, along with our Constitution’s protections of religious freedom and prohibitions on government-established religion or religious tests for public office.

Instead, every speaker listed in the schedule sent out by Freedom 250 is a Christian; most are evangelical and Pentecostal Trump boosters, along with a couple of right-wing Catholics and other denominations represented. Earlier speaker lists included a rabbi, perhaps as “Judeo-Christian” window-dressing, but he was not included in Thursday’s Freedom 250 email.

It’s a bad joke for Johnson to claim that Sunday’s event “transcends politics,” given that every speaker listed in the Freedom 250 email is a vocal supporter of President Trump, many of them on record declaring him to be anointed by God and some, like White House Faith Office Director Paula White, claiming that Trump’s opponents are enemies of God or demonic agents of Satan.

In reality, this is another opportunity for Trump to posture as a defender of the faith and bask in the adoration of his most loyal supporters at a time when his public support has hit record lows. And it is an opportunity for Christian nationalists to continue to send the false and exclusionary message that the only “real” Americans are the right kind of Christians, at a time when Christian-right and MAGA officials are trying to claim that Muslims and other non-Christians do not deserve the protection of the First Amendment.

The “moment of rededication” will be led by Johnson, along with former Archbishop of New York City Timothy Dolan, MAGA Pastor Lorenzo Sewell, and dominionist New Apostolic Reformation figure Lou Engle. Engle is a longtime anti-abortion and anti-LGBTQ activist who led prayers that God would knock off Supreme Court justices to create vacancies for Trump to fill. In an Engle teaching guide called “The Keys to Dominion,” he preached:

“The church’s vocation is to rule history with God…The same authority that has been given to Christ Jesus for overwhelming conquering and dominion has been given to the saints of the most high….We’re God’s rulers upon the earth…We will govern over kings and judges will have to submit…We’re called to rule! To change history! To be co-regents with God!”

Christians, secularists, and other Americans who reject the MAGA movement’s increasingly aggressiveChristian nationalism are speaking up in opposition to the “rededication.” This week, the Interfaith Alliance projected messages supporting religious freedom for all on the walls of the National Gallery of Art.

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rww

02/06/2026

by

Kyle Mantyla

The president shared a video that included a clip depicting Barack and Michelle Obama as apes. The post has since been removed.

White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt has dismissed criticism of President Donald Trump for having shared an AI-generated video on Truth Social depicting former President Barack Obama and former First Lady Michelle Obama as apes.

Sen. Tim Scott (R-SC) lashed out after President Donald Trump posted a racist video that depicted Barack and Michelle Obama as apes.

Funding for the Gateway Project has been held up since October.

This is the kind of history the Trump administration wants taught in schools.

Those who thought Trump might approach the event with any maturity or solemnity were kidding themselves: He has anti-gravitas.

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prop pub 8 25 an

...In a statement after the CFPB funding cut passed, the chair of the Senate Banking Committee, Tim Scott, R-S.C., applauded the measure for saving taxpayer money but insisted it would not affect the agency’s mandatory functions, which include handling complaints.

Consumer experts as well as current and former CFPB employees, however, said the cuts will likely hinder the agency’s effectiveness.

“I think the whole process is at risk,” said Ruth Susswein, director of consumer protection at the nonprofit advocacy group Consumer Action. “If you starve the system, it cannot provide the benefits that it now offers.”

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still saying 300 yr get SS but now fixed!

raw 625

Late-night Trump brag shattered by 'damning' report issued just hours later

// an 6 25

An analysis by Washington Post fact checker Glenn Kessler shows the Trump administration is still wheeling out lies months after they’ve been outed.

“This is an example of how, even after falsehoods are exposed, the spin machine keeps working,” wrote Kessler, referring to a March 4 post by President Donald Trump that “government databases list … 3.47 million people from ages 120 to 129, 3.9 million people from ages 130 to 139. 3.5 million people from ages 140 to 149. And money is being paid to many of them.”

In February, the Washington Post published an article documenting the truth of the matter, that Social Security databases rely on an almost 70-year-old computer programming language called COBOL, which doesn’t have a standardized way to store dates.

READ MORE: 'Stop the foolishness': Susan Collins in the hot seat as she navigates Trump's second term

This means ancient programmers assigned a default date, such as 1875, to people lacking birth information, many of them seniors born before a reliable federal birth recording program was in place. But when Musk’s DOGE team scanned Social Security systems, “they were shocked to find people listed in the system with absurd ages because of the limitations of an old programming language,” writes Kessler.

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People familiar with Social Security’s systems were already aware of the issue, of course. The Social Security Administration has automatically terminated the benefits of people once they reach age 115 since 2015. Kessler reports the U.S. Office of Inspector General had recommended a cleanup of the system in 2023, but Social Security deferred the project because it would “divert resources” from other important work and “would have limited or no benefit to the administration.” A 2023 IG report found the vast majority of beneficiaries who lacked a birth date had already died and been purged from the system anyhow. Plus, any major overhaul could introduce new errors to the system.

Still, the notion of wrongdoers scamming Social Security was “an irresistible talking point,” says Kessler, so much so that DOGE bragged of fixing the “problem” late last month on social media: “After 11 weeks, Social Security has finished this major cleanup initiative: ~12.3M individuals aged 120+ have now been marked as deceased.”

“The post was carefully worded,” said Kessler. “It did not claim that 12 million people had received improper payments. Instead, it said that these people had been marked as deceased. In other words, DOGE appears to have implemented the plan suggested by the IG two years ago.”

READ MORE:Swing state voters beg their Republican senator to protect them from the Trump grift-ocracy

Despite that, Kessler said Trump supporters eagerly greeted the news and used it to justify the president's “original false claim.”

Sen. Tim Scott (R-S.C.) was one of many cheerleaders jumping aboard a non-moving train, claiming: "No more 300-year-olds getting Social Security checks because of Elon Musk. Thank God President Trump had the wisdom to put Elon in place."

The train included other personalities such as right-wing entertainer Sean Hannity, and Speaker Mike Johnson.

“… [W]ithin the echo chamber of the pro-Trump universe, a problem that never existed now has been fixed,” Kessler said.

READ MORE: MAGA rhetoric backfires as far-right activist suggests violence against trump admin officials

Read the original Washington Post report at this link.

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AN 2 25

OMG

While President Donald Trump and Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk are making significant changes to federal agencies, Republicans in both the House and Senate are aiming to let banks ramp up overdraft fees.

That's according to a Tuesday article in Rolling Stone, which reported that Rep. French Hill (R-Ark.) and Sen. Tim Scott (R-S.C.) — who chair the House and Senate Banking Committees, respectively — are introducing a bill to repeal a rule capping overdraft fees implemented by former President Joe Biden's administration. That rule capped overdraft fees at $5, whereas they were previously as high as $35. It also allowed for banks to find ways to control overdrafts without needling customers with excessive daily fees. The legislation Hill and Scott rolled out would deem the rule to "have no force or effect" if passed and signed into law.

Acting Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) director Russell Vought (also the director of Trump's Office of Management and Budget) said he was "grateful" to Hill and Scott for introducing the bill. He added: "Passing this important legislation will immediately further President Trump’s deregulatory agenda."

READ MORE:**'Nickel and diming Americans': GOP slammed for helping banks 'squeeze customers' with 'junk fees'**

According to the Associated Press, overdraft fees are a significant source of revenue for banks, allowing them to bring in roughly $8 billion annually. CFPB data shows that roughly 70% of overdraft fees were charged to accounts that had between $237 and $439, meaning that those fees disproportionately impact the poorest Americans.

The rule — which Trump and the GOP majorities in the House and Senate are likely to undo — is slated to go into effect in October of this year, and is projected to save bank customers about $5 billion per year, or $225 per household. Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) told Rolling Stone that Trump would be breaking his key campaign promise of lowering costs for working-class Americans if he allowed the rule to be eliminated.

“He is now sidelining the agency that over the last dozen years, has returned $21 billion directly to people who got cheated by giant financial institutions," Warren said. "In other words, his plan is to do nothing on reducing costs, but sure enough, put in place a plan to raise costs for people who are working hardest in our economy.”

Campaign finance data from OpenSecrets shows that both Hill and Scott are favorites of donors in the banking industry. The top two industry contributors to Hill's campaign are securities & investment and commercial banks, respectively. The securities and investment sector is also the #2 industry for Scott's donors.

READ MORE:**Bank overdraft charges may be capped at $3 as new Biden rule ends 'junk fee harvesting'**

Click here to read Rolling Stone's report in its entirety (subscription required).

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2x? april

an

United States Senator Tim Scott (R-South Carolina), during a Friday night town hall in Iowa, rejected the claim that the 2020 election was rigged against former President Donald Trump, NBC reports.

Per NBC, the 2024 Republican hopeful "has previously cast doubt on Trump's claims but without going as far as he did Friday."

Earlier this year, according to The Hill, "When asked for his thoughts on Trump's behavior after the 2020 election that led to the attack on the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, Scott responded he wants to focus on his vision for the future instead of having a conversation about Trump, noting that he was at the Capitol during the riot."

READ MORE:Tim Scott transforms from 'gentler' Republican to parroting claims the left is the 'enemy' of the people

However, during the recent Iowa event, Scott took his stance a step further, saying, "I do not believe the election was stolen. There was cheating, but was the election stolen? There's a difference. I think [in] every election there's cheating."

Nearly one year after the 2020 election, an Associated Press report found "fewer than 475 potential instances" of voter fraud "out of more than 25 million votes cast," according to PBS, which the report determined is "a number that would have made no difference in the 2020 presidential election."

Scott's comments come nearly two months after his GOP rival and former South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley condemned the Jan. 6 attack, saying, "I don't know enough about each individual [rioter] but that's my rule: If you break the law, you pay the price. And so I think that's the way we need to look at it."

READ MORE:'You pay the price': Nikki Haley denounces Jan. 6 during Iowa visit

*NBC's full report is available at this link. The Hill's report is here. PBS' report is here. Associated Press' report is here.

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NICE RIPOSTE HONKY GOOD SPOX FRONT MAN DEM HELLHOLES CITIES

ABC News host Jonathan Karl fact-checked Sen. Tim Scott (R-SC) after he claimed that violent crime was up under Joe Biden's presidency.

During an interview on Sunday, Karl asked Scott if he agreed with the Supreme Court's decision to strike down a ban on bump stocks, which allow some guns to fire more rapidly.

"We trust and believe and respect the decision of the Supreme Court," Scott opined. "What we need to focus on, Jon, is the violence that we're seeing across this nation. Under Joe Biden, we've seen the greatest increase in violent crime in my lifetime."

Karl pointed out that Scott was in error.

"Actually, Senator, as you probably know, the latest stats on violent crime and on the murder rate, they're actually down this past year," the host said.

"Under Joe Biden, neighborhoods like the ones I grew up in have never been ravaged [more]," Scott insisted.

Watch the video below from ABC.

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5 24 deer in headlights wd not answer if accept if trump lose 2024

//

War Room" host Steve Bannon has floated a conspiracy theory in which establishment Republicans, hoping to undermine the MAGA/America First agenda, will push for presumptive 2024 GOP presidential nominee Donald Trump to choose former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley as his running mate. But given how scathing Trump has been in his criticism of Haley, that scenario seems unlikely.

Moreover, Trump has plenty of running mate options who, unlike Haley, have been vocal supporters of the MAGA movement.

In a biting listicle published by the conservative website The Bulwark on May 7, journalist Will Saletan cites six Republicans who are obviously hoping to be Trump's running mate — and describes the ways in which he believes they are debasing themselves in the hope of being chosen.

READ MORE:'Terrifying' document details Trump’s 'blueprint for a soft coup'

"Lots of ambitious (Republicans) are angling for the job, sucking up at Mar-a-Lago and on national TV," Saletan writes. "Normally, contenders for the vice presidency would showcase their accomplishments, their communication skills, or their ability to carry a key state. But in Trump's case, the rules are different. He's an authoritarian crook, and the contestants are competing to show how far they'd go to defend his crimes and his abuse of power."

The six contenders that Saletan lists are: (1) Sen. J.D. Vance of Ohio, (2) Rep. Elise Stefanik of Upstate New York, (3) Sen. Tim Scott of South Carolina, (4) North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum, (5) South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem, and (6) Sen. Marco Rubio of Florida.

"Rubio gets points for…. servility," Saletan observes, "but he's not entirely reliable…. Burgum is cagey in his defense of Trump. Instead of saying none of Trump's criminal cases matter, he focuses on technical objections to the hush-money charges."

Saletan notes that Scott, during an interview with NBC News' Kristen Welker, wouldn't commit to accepting the election results if Trump loses in November — as he didn't want to "antagonize Trump."

READ MORE:Elise Stefanik files ethics complaint against Jack Smith — claiming 'election interference'

Noem, Saletan points out, told NBC News' Dana Bash, on April 21, that she will continue to support Trump even if he is found guilty in his hush money/falsifying business records trial. But Saletan believes that Stefanik and Vance are more likely to be chosen.

"Stefanik earns a top-two spot for three reasons," Saletan explains. "First, she voted on January 6th to overturn the 2020 election, and she has signaled that as vice president, she would have used the power of that office to block implementation of the results…. Second, Stefanik has indicated that her threshold for declaring an election stolen and invalid is extremely low…. Third, Stefanik proudly embraces Trump's allegation that people convicted of crimes on January 6th are 'hostages,' not lawful prisoners, of the U.S. government."

Saletan continues, "When Welker asked about 'the people who stormed the Capitol,' Stefanik replied: 'I have concerns about the treatment of January 6th hostages'…. What sets Vance above Stefanik, for now, is his stated willingness to defy the Supreme Court."

READ MORE:'Humiliating to watch': Al Sharpton slams Tim Scott's 'embarrassing' pro-Trump antics

*Read Will Saletan's full article for The Bulwark at this link

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AN AH 1 24

Never Trump conservative and former GOP strategist Rick Wilson's prediction that establishment Republicans would ultimately "bend the knee" to Donald Trump in the 2024 presidential election is proving to be spot on. Despite the fact that Trump is facing four criminal indictments, he has been endorsed by Sen. Tim Scott (R-South Carolina), Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas), Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Florida) and many other prominent Republicans who aren't known for being ultra-MAGA.

With only two Republicans left in the GOP presidential primary — Trump and former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley — much of the Republican Party is consolidating around Trump just as Wilson predicted.

In an article published by the conservative website The Bulwark on January 25, Never Trumper Tim Miller — another former GOP strategist — warns that establishment Republicans are being used to make Trump appear less threatening and "authoritarian" and normalize "raw fascistic Trumpism."

"There will once again be a group of patsies willing to be the Trump Administration's frontmen and frontwomen, offering themselves as tributes to the wannabe strongman," Miller explains. "They will be put forth as evidence that Trump will be constrained, that dictatorship is not imminent, that there will still be a few 'adults in the room.' Moreover, there will be mainstream, establishment figures who encourage 'good people' to serve because they still hold on to their belief that Trump can be reined in and the office must be protected."

The Never Trump conservative, a frequent guest on MSNBC, continues, "So brace yourself: In the weeks ahead, you are going to be introduced to 'Committee To Save America 2.0: We Protect. We Serve. We Care.' The new committee will be weaker and more pliant than its predecessor. But like the previous version, it will serve the purpose of comforting the Republican elites and Wall Street Journal-reading voters who want to go to bed at night without worrying that they might be accidentally ending the American experiment."

Miller cites Scott and Rubio as examples of establishment Republicans who have been "obsequious" in their support of Trump as he moves closer to winning the nomination.

"In the end," Miller warns, "a new Trump Administration would be far more radical and dangerous than the last one. And on balance, it would have a much higher percentage of MAGA true believers, from the cabinet all the way down to the interns buying pens and making coffee. Hell, even Vivek (Ramaswamy) could probably get a job. But Trump and his team are not oblivious to perception."

{READ MORE:Rob Reiner: Trump embodies the 'fascism' Norman Lear devoted his life to defeating}:

Miller adds, "The new Committee To Save America rollout is coming soon. Don't let the voters who might be persuaded by their act be fooled."

READ MORE:Trump is promising an 'authoritarian' Christian nationalist 'task force' within DOJ: analyst

*Tim Miller's full article for The Bulwark is available at this link.

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https://www.alternet.org/2020/06/what-republicans-really-mean-when-they-talk-about-law-and-order/

boy's state benefactor? entre; i made it, thus no racism; orig appt?

lcv old certif

2021 Score. Lifetime Score. 15%.6% life

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https://www.alternet.org/tim-scott-republican/

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kinder --> dems enemy of ppl

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he knows his place/job:

An embarrassment': Critics slam Tim Scott for defending Trump's white supremacy debate blunder

AlterNet Staff

September 30, 2020

Sen. Tim Scott (R-S.C.) is caught in the middle of a massive Twitter storm after his attempt to defend President Donald Trump's failure to denounce white supremacy during his first presidential rally ahead of th...

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https://www.ecowatch.com/koch-brothers-paris-agreement-2430226599.html

Paris Exit Was 'Victory Paid and Carried Out' by Republican Party for the Koch Brothers

nolink

The 22 Republican senators who sent a letter to President Donald Trump last week urging the United States' withdrawal from the Paris climate agreement received more than $10 million dollars in campaign funds from fossil fuel interests.

The two-page letter was signed by a number of Republican heavyweights from coal/gas/oil-rich states, including Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, Jim Inhofe of Oklahoma and Ted Cruz of Texas.

The Guardian calculated that the 22 senators received a total of $10,694,284 from oil, gas and coal money in just five years. (See the breakdown below.

However, that sum does not even come close to the amount of undisclosed funds coming from the deep pockets of Charles and David Koch's coal, oil and gas conglomerate, Koch Industries, and other outside groups.

As the Guardian explains:

"Visible donations to Republicans from those industries exceeded donations to Democrats in the 2016 election cycle by a ratio of 15-to-1, according to the Center for Responsive Politics. And that does not include so-called dark money passed from oil interests such as Koch industries to general slush funds to re-elect Republicans such as the Senate leadership fund.

"At least $90m in untraceable money has been funneled to Republican candidates from oil, gas and coal interests in the past three election cycles, according to Federal Election Commission disclosures analyzed by the Center for Responsive Politics."

Jeffrey Sachs, professor of economics and director of the Earth Institute at Columbia University, shared recently his views on Trump's climate walkout.In an interview with Bloomberg Surveillance, Sachs referenced the senators' letter and specifically cast blame on the billionaire oil barons for pulling the strings of Republican party leaders such as McConnell and House Speaker Paul Ryan, who both supported exiting the Paris accord.

"This is the victory paid and carried out for 20 years by two people, David and Charles Koch," Sachs said. "They have bought and purchased the top of the Republican party. Trump is a tool in this."

Notably, most of the Republican signatories of the letter do not support the belief that human activity contributes to climate change.

During an appearance on MSNBC, Democratic Sen. Edward J. Markey of Massachusetts explained why he thinks his Republican colleagues do not believe in the science of climate change.

"This Conservative party in the United States is funded by the Koch brothers [and] it's funded by the coal industry," Markey said. "[They] insist that Scott Pruitt—the Attorney General of Oklahoma that actually sued the EPA 19 times on clean air, clean water, soot, mercury issues—becomes the head of the EPA in our country."

The 22 Republican signatories' funding from Big Oil, Gas and Coal in the past three election cycles (2012, 2014 and 2016):

James Inhofe, Oklahoma

Oil & gas: $465,950 + Coal: $63,600 = $529,550

John Barrasso, Wyoming

Oil & gas: $458,466 + Coal: $127,356 = $585,822

Mitch McConnell, Kentucky

Oil & gas: $1,180,384 + Coal: $361,700 = $1,542,084

John Cornyn, Texas

Oil & gas: $1,101,456 + Coal: $33,050 = $1,134,506

Roy Blunt, Missouri

Oil & gas: $353,864 + Coal: $96,000 = $449,864

Roger Wicker, Mississippi

Oil & gas: $198,816 + Coal: $25,376 = $224,192

Michael Enzi, Wyoming

Oil & gas: $211,083 + Coal: $63,300 = $274,383

Mike Crapo, Idaho

Oil & gas: $110,250 + Coal: $26,756 = $137,006

Jim Risch, Idaho

Oil & gas: $123,850 + Coal: $25,680 = $149,530

Thad Cochran, Mississippi

Oil & gas: $276,905 + Coal: $15,000 = $291,905

Mike Rounds, South Dakota

Oil & gas: $201,900 + Coal: none = $201,900

Rand Paul, Kentucky

Oil & gas: $170,215 + Coal: $82,571 = $252,786

John Boozman, Arkansas

Oil & gas: $147,930 + Coal: $2,000 = $149,930

Richard Shelby, Alabama

Oil & gas: $60,150 + $2,500 = $62,650

Luther Strange, Alabama (Appointed in 2017, running in 2017 special election)

Total: NA

Orrin Hatch, Utah

Oil & gas: $446,250 + Coal: $25,000 = $471,250

Mike Lee, Utah

Oil & gas: $231,520 + Coal: $21,895 = $253,415

Ted Cruz, Texas

Oil & gas: $2,465,910 + Coal: $103,900 = $2,569,810

David Perdue, Georgia

Oil & gas: $184,250 + Coal: $0 = $184,250

Thom Tillis, North Carolina

Oil & gas: $263,400 + Coal: $0 = $263,400

Tim Scott, South Carolina

Oil & gas: $490,076 + Coal: $58,200 = $548,276

Pat Roberts, Kansas

Oil & gas: $388,950 + Coal: $28,825 = $417,775

https://www.factcheck.org/2020/01/club-for-growth-action-5/

1/20

political leanings:Conservative

2018 total spending: $19.6 million

Club for Growth Action, the super PAC of the conservative Club for Growth, was launched in August 2010. On its website, the organization declares its mission is to “take on any Member of Congress on policy who fails to uphold basic economic conservative principles … regardless of party.”

The PAC targets some Republican incumbents in primary elections in order to replace them with “pro-growth, limited government conservatives.” Club for Growth Action states on its website that it has been “instrumental” in helping to elect conservatives such as Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas, Sen. Marco Rubioof Florida and Sen. Tim Scott of South Carolina....

==

==

TP 2010 takeover by FW

Tim Scott is America’s newest senator today after getting**tapped** by South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley (R) to fill the vacancy left by former Sen. Jim DeMint (R-SC).

For example, look to South Carolina, where Republican Senator Tim Scott, who sits on the Energy and Natural resources Committee, gave the GOP's weekly address and offered hisfull-throated support to KXL.

Scott is the Senate's seventh-biggest recipient of oil and gas industry contributions

sits on the Energy and Natural resources Committee

AA

LCV 5/0%

http://scorecard.lcv.org/moc/tim-scott

==

2013180McCarthy Confirmation (EPA)Air, Water 

2013151Border FenceLands/Forests, Water, Wildlife 

2013145Advancing Conservation in the Farm BillWater, Lands/Forests, Wildlife 

2013119Clean Water ProtectionsWater 

2013116National Endowment for the OceansOceans 

201394Jewell Confirmation (DOI)Lands/Forests, Wildlife 

201376Climate Change SafeguardsClimate Change 

201372Toxic Air Pollution from Power PlantsAir 

201361Keystone XL Tar Sands Pipeline (KXL)Climate Change, Dirty Energy, Water 

201359Pricing Carbon PollutionClimate Change 

201346Big Oil BudgetOther 

201341Military Investments in Advanced BiofuelsClean Energy, Dirty Energy 

20134Disaster Relief for Hurricane SandyLands/Forests, Wildlife, Climate Change, Other 

2012603Broad Environmental AssaultAir, Climate Change, Dirty Energy, Lands/Forests, Toxics/Public Right to Know, Water 

2012600Regional Haze Air PollutionAir, Dirty Energy, Lands/Forests 

2012597Clean Water SafeguardsWater, Wildlife 

2012593Carbon Pollution Endangerment FindingClimate Change 

2012568Minnesota Boundary Waters Land ExchangeLands/Forests, Water 

2012554Land Conservation CutsLands/Forests 

2012536Safeguards ShutdownOther 

2012514Drinking Water ProtectionsWater 

2012506Offshore Drilling Safety ReformsDrilling, Dirty Energy 

2012468Hardrock MiningLands/Forests 

2012447Migratory Bird Treaty ActWildlife 

2012411Coal Ash PollutionDirty Energy, Water 

2012410"Oil Above All" Energy StrategyAir, Lands/Forests, Drilling, Dirty Energy 

2012395Public Health Basis of the Clean Air ActAir 

2012387Broad Assault on Lands & WildlifeLands/Forests, Wildlife 

2012385Public Land Grab by Federal Police AgentsLands/Forests 

2012329Nuclear Energy SubsidyDirty Energy 

The industry's spending is even more skewed in the U.S. Senate race in South Carolina. Oil and gas interests have contributed $226,801 to Sen. Tim Scott, a Republican, but nothing so far to his Democratic challenger, Joyce Dickerson,according to OpenSecrets.org. Perhaps not surprisingly, Dickerson opposes offshore drilling while Scott has worked on legislation to promote it. Scott is the Senate's seventh-biggest recipient of oil and gas industry contributions after John Cornyn (R-Texas), Mary Landrieu (D-La.), Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.), Cory Gardner (R-Colo.), Bill Cassidy (R-La.), and Steven Daines (R-Mont.).

==

cmd

Moral high ground and strength in numbers are going to have to when the day Keystone opponents, because there is no way -- no way-- that they could compete financially. In addition to the millions of dollarsTransCanada has spent lobbying for the KXL project, the American Petroleum Institute (API) has spent millions more.

That kind of spending carries a lot of clout.

"You cannot move a piece of legislations through Congress in the year 2013 unless the American Petroleum Institute proposes it," says Public Citizen Energy Program director Tyson Slocum. "You cannot move legislation without their consent. They are a de factofourth branch of government."

"They are one of the most profitable industries in the world, and they're throwing that money into Washington, DC," says Kate Colarulli of the Sierra Club. "They're buying politicians. When we see politicians that vote the oil the agenda, we see 500 times as much contributions coming from oil companies than we see going to politicians who don't vote the oil agenda."

For example, look to South Carolina, where Republican Senator Tim Scott, who sits on the Energy and Natural resources Committee, gave the GOP's weekly address and offered his:{ }full-throated support:{ }::{to KXL. Of course, he also decried opponents of the pipeline for killing jobs in favor of the environment.}:

Why was a newly appointed senator from South Carolina, a state not known for its thriving petroleum industry, stumping to build a foreign corporation's pipeline that doesn't come anywhere near his home state? Possibly because the oil and gas industry is among his largest sources of campaign contributions.

The $153,000 Scott has received from oil and gas contributors is a comparatively low take for a legislator willing to do the industry's bidding. In Washington, DC, a city where climate denial is something of a cottage industry, those who are willing to toe the corporate line can make out very well indeed.

The list of climate deniers in Congress is not a short one, but looking at the top achievers in the field shows a strong correlation between vehemence and campaign cash, just as Colarulli describes.

Tim Scott is America’s newest senator today after getting**tapped** by South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley (R) to fill the vacancy left by former Sen. Jim DeMint (R-SC). DeMint announced this month that he was leaving the Senate to head up the Heritage Foundation, an arch-conservative think tank in Washington DC.

Though DeMint left big, controversial shoes to fill for Republicans, few conservatives will be disappointed with Scott’s record. Elected to Congress just two years ago in the Tea Party wave, Scott has already garnered headlines for his plan to impeach President Obama, his legislation to cut off union members’ children from food stamps, and his defense of Big Oil.

Here’s a quick look at Scott’s record:

Greg Noth contributed research to this post.

==

Rep. Tim Scott, an ALEC Alum, Nominated to U.S. Senate

by Brendan Fischer — December 18, 2012 - 7:31am

 Share this

Representative Tim Scott (R-SC), who was a member of the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC) as a state legislator and was voted into Congress in the Tea Party wave of 2010, has been nominated to replace Jim DeMint in the U.S. Senate.

"I was a member of ALEC,” Rep. Scott told the right-wing *Washington Times* earlier this year.

As a Congressman, Rep. Scott discussed impeaching President Obama over the debt ceiling negotiations and said he believes the federal government should "never" regulate guns "in any way." He has also been described as one of the most anti-union members of Congress, proposing a bill to strip the National Labor Relations Board of its power to limit employers' union-busting activities and co-sponsoring legislation that would kick families off food stamps if one member went on strike.

As the Center for Media and Democracy has documented, ALEC has been a key avenue for the National Rifle Association to advance its pro-gun agenda in the states, and has been a major proponent of anti-union legislation, with Michigan copying ALEC language verbatim for its recently enacted "right to work" laws.

"They were very receptive when I was a member of [ALEC]," Scott told the Washington Times.

Scott will replace Senator Jim DeMint, who is retiring from the Senate to lead the Heritage Foundation, a right-wing think tank co-founded the same year as ALEC by the same person, Paul Weyrich. The Heritage Foundation is also an ALEC member, and at ALEC's meeting last month in Washington DC, the Heritage Foundation's James Sherk gave a presentation titled "how to limit union influence and expand worker choice."

Scott was appointed to DeMint's seat by South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley who herself was an ALEC member when she was in the state legislature. As Bob Sloan has described at the Voters Legislative Transparency Project, Governor Haley appears to have become an ALEC "Legacy" member, which would allow her to maintain a formalized, ongoing relationship with ALEC even after leaving the state legislature.

Scott will be the first African-American to represent the South in the U.S. Senate since reconstruction.

ContributorTotalIndivsPACs
Club for Growth$75,950$75,950$0
Edens & Avant$49,263$49,263$0
Blue Cross/Blue Shield$47,500$9,500$38,000
Boeing Co$40,349$17,349$23,000
Elliott Management$37,650$37,650$0
Fennell Holdings$36,750$36,750$0
Fluor Corp$34,350$16,350$18,000
Goldman Sachs$33,899$19,399$14,500
AFLAC Inc$29,500$14,500$15,000
Lpa Group$28,075$28,075$0
Cancer Treatment Centers of America$25,300$25,300$0
Nelson, Mullins et al$24,950$13,650$11,300
Burroughs & Chapin$24,900$24,900$0
Publix Super Markets$24,900$9,900$15,000
Credit Union National Assn$24,000$0$24,000
Honeywell International$24,000$0$24,000
Google Inc$21,600$8,100$13,500
CSX Corp$20,500$4,500$16,000
New York Life Insurance$20,500$500$20,000
Scana Corp$20,500$750$19,750
FIRST ELECTED:2010

Rep. Tim Scott was appointed to the Senate on January 2, 2013.

Leadership PAC (1): 

Tomorrow Is Meaningful

Career Fundraising

1989 - 2014 Total Receipts: $6,395,756
1989 - 2014 Total Spent: $3,182,964
Debts: $0
Last Report:Monday, September 30, 2013

Top 5 Contributors, 2010 - 2014

ContributorTotalIndivsPACs
Club for Growth$75,950$75,950$0
Edens & Avant$49,263$49,263$0
Blue Cross/Blue Shield$47,500$9,500$38,000
Boeing Co$40,349$17,349$23,000
Elliott Management$37,650$37,650$0

...view more data

Top 5 Industries, 2010 - 2014

IndustryTotalIndivsPACs
Real Estate$378,878$318,063$60,815
Insurance$335,475$96,975$238,500
Retired$286,968$286,968$0
Securities & Investment$248,649$200,149$48,500
Health Professionals$227,125$105,625$121,500

...view more data

Source of Funds

Individual Contributions$3,483,292(54%)
PAC Contributions$2,396,366(37%)
Candidate self-financing$0(0%)
Other$516,098(8%)

blog:

Senator Tim Scott, are you listening?

Way Back When the thought of having an African American man elected as a representative of your state would get as many hearty laughs as an episode of the Andy Griffith Show.  Way Back When you would have to eat your lunch at separate lunch counters.  Way Back When you would have to drink out of a separate water fountain.  Way Back When you would attend inferior schools with outdated textbooks and materials.  Way Back When people were actively trying to put systems in place to prevent you from participating in a representative democracy.

Well, I guess that last one doesn’t seem too far fetched, actually.

This past week, Senator Tim Scott failed miserably at the Way Back When game.  As the first African-American senator from the south since 1881 and the first African-American representative from South Carolina since 1897, he, along with other prominent members of the Republican Party, received an invitation to attend the 50th anniversary of the March on Washington.  As someone who grew up in poverty, but was able to make something of himself via his hard work and a dedicated mother working 16-hour days, it seemed only natural that Scott would be in attendance for the historical event.

Unfortunately, Tim Scott was nowhere to be found.

As news media began to comment on the clear lack of Conservative presence at the event, the right wing spin machine quickly went to work claiming that the event was some liberal invite only and that no Conservatives were invited.  Scott, entering the public eye for his conspicuous absence, also claimed that he too didn’t receive an invite.  However, news media quickly confirmed that Scott, along with the entire Republican Congressional caucus, did, in fact, receive invites to the event but declined.  Some, like Eric Cantor, were too busy dealing with oil lobbyists.  Others, like Tim Scott ran into the problem of having to make a decision fearing the wrath of his constituency:  The Tea Party.

And we all know how the Tea Party feels about Black folk.

Yes, herein lies the problem for Scott, the interim senator from the Palmetto State.  As someone who was appointed by Tea Party darling Nikki Haley, Scott knows that it was Tea Party support that helped him become the replacement for departing senator Jim DeMint in 2011.  He owes his allegiance to a group of people who see him as a second class citizen, a feel-good story that his constituents use to convince themselves they aren’t inherently racist.  However, for most of them, people with the complexion of Scott are not only scary, but also inferior.  The majority of them openly wish that Way Back When had never ended.

This is the deal with the devil that Scott has made.  Rather than pay tribute to the man who enabled him to become a representative and then a senator, Scott has to bow to the Tea Party powers that be or else face the threat of being primaried, most likely by someone who needs a little more suntan lotion.  Scott, like every single member of his party, chose not to attend the event for fear of alienating his base of Tea Party voters.  This left an entire political party absent from a moving tribute to one of the most influential figures of the last century.

Hey Republicans, how’s that minority outreach working out for you?

A New Low: How the Tea Party Trolled Tim Scott Into Selling Himself Out was written by Trevor LaFauci for

wiki

Timothy Eugene "Tim" Scott (born September 19, 1965) is the junior United States Senator for South Carolina and a former member of the United States House of Representatives forSouth Carolina's 1st congressional district. A Republican, he became a senator in 2013 after South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley named him to fill the U.S. Senate seat vacated by Jim DeMint.[5] He was elected to the House in November 2010 to the 112th Congress and served from 2011 to 2013. The first Republican African-American Representative from South Carolina since 1897[6] he was one of the two members of the 2010 freshman class chosen to sit at the House Republican leadership table.[7] Scott, a fiscal and cultural conservative, ran for Congress on a platform of reducing federal spending and taxes.[8] He was endorsed by Tea Party groups.[8][9] Scott is running in a special election in 2014 for the final two years of DeMint's second term.

A graduate of Charleston Southern University, Scott owns an insurance agency and has worked as a financial advisor.[8] He served one term in the South Carolina General Assembly (2009–2011) and 13 years on the Charleston County Council (1996–2008).[9][10]

Scott is one of only two African-American members of the United States Senate and the tenth African-American to serve in the United States Senate. Scott is the first African-American senator from the state of South Carolina and the first from the South since 1881.[11] Scott took office in the Senate on January 2, a day before the rest of the freshmen, resulting in a seniorityranking of 88, several places ahead of where he would have been had he been inaugurated on the regular date. Scott was joined by a second African-American Senator in the 113th Congresswhen Mo Cowan was appointed to a U.S. Senate seat from Massachusetts on February 1, 2013 and served until July 16, 2013.[12] Scott is one of two African-American senators in the 113th Congress, alongside New Jersey Senator Cory Booker.

Contents

  [hide] 

Early life, education, and business career

Scott was born in North Charleston, South Carolina to Ben Scott, Sr. and Frances Scott,[13] a nursing assistant. His parents were divorced when he was 7, and he grew up in poverty under the care of his mother who worked 16-hour days.[9] He has an older brother who is a Sergeant Major in the U.S. Army.[14]

Scott attended Presbyterian College from 1983 to 1984, on a partial football scholarship, and graduated from Charleston Southern University in 1988 with a B.S. in Political Science.[8][15]

In addition to his political career, Scott owns an insurance agency, and works as a financial advisor.[9]

Charleston County Council (1995–2008)

Elections

Scott ran in a February 1995 special election to the Charleston County Council at-large seat vacated by Keith Summey, who resigned his seat to become Mayor of North Charleston.[16][17]He won the seat, receiving nearly 80% of the vote.[18] He became the first black Republican elected to any office in South Carolina since the 19th century,[10] and serving for a time alongside Paul Thurmond, the son of the late Republican U.S. Senator, Strom Thurmond.[19]

In 1996, he challenged Democratic State Senator Robert Ford in South Carolina's 42nd Senate district, but lost 65%–35%.[8][20]

He won re-election in 2000.[21] In 2004, he won re-election with 61% of the vote, defeating Democrat Elliot Summey (son of Mayor Keith Summey).[22][23]

Tenure

Scott served on the Council from 1995 until 2008, becoming Chairman in 2007.[13]

In 1997, Scott supported posting the Ten Commandments outside the county council chambers, saying it would remind members of the absolute rules they should follow. The county council then unanimously approved the display and Scott nailed a King James version of the Commandments to the wall. Shortly after, the ACLU and Americans United for Separation of Church and State sued. After an initial court ruling said the display was unconstitutional, the council settled to avoid accruing more legal fees.[24] Regarding the costs of the suit, Scott said, "Whatever it costs in the pursuit of this goal (of displaying the Commandments) is worth it."[24]

In January 2001, President Bill Clinton's Department of Justice sued the city of Charleston for racial discrimination by having all at-large districts. Scott, the only African American member of the council, stated, "I don't like the idea of segregating everyone into smaller districts. Besides, the Justice Department assumes that the only way for African-Americans to have representation is to elect an African-American, and the same for whites. Obviously, my constituents don't think that's true."[25]

Committee assignments

South Carolina House of Representatives (2009–2011)

Elections

In 2008, incumbent Republican State Representative Tom Dantzler decided to retire. Scott ran for his seat in District 117 of the South Carolina House of Representatives and won the Republican primary with 53% of the vote, defeating Bill Crosby and Wheeler Tillman.[27] He won the general election unopposed,[28] becoming the first Republican African-American representative from South Carolina in more than 100 years.[29][30]

Tenure

Scott staunchly supports the state's Right-to-Work laws and argued that Boeing chose South Carolina for that reason.[31]

In South Carolina Club for Growth's 2009–2010 scorecard, Scott earned a B and a score of 80 out of 100.[32] He was praised by the South Carolina Association of Taxpayers, for his “diligent, principled and courageous stands against higher taxes.”[33]

Committee assignments

United States House of Representatives (2011–2013)

Elections

2010

See also: United States House of Representatives elections, 2010#South Carolina

Scott entered the election for lieutenant governor before switching to the race for South Carolina's 1st congressional district following the retirement announcement of Republican incumbent Henry Brown. The 1st district is based inCharleston, and included approximately the northern 3/4 of the state's coastline (except for Beaufort and Hilton Head Island, which were in the 2nd District).[35]

Scott ranked first in the nine candidate Republican primary of June 8, 2010, receiving a plurality of 32% of the vote.[36] Fellow Charleston County Councilman Paul Thurmond, son of U.S. Senator Strom Thurmond, ranked second with 16% of the vote. Carroll A. Campbell III, the son of former Governor Carroll A. Campbell, Jr., ranked third with 14% of the vote.[19][37] Charleston County School Board member Larry Kobrovsky ranked fourth with 11% of the vote. Five other candidates had single digit percentages.[38]

Because no candidate had received 50 percent or more of the vote, a runoff was held on June 22, 2010. Scott faced off against Paul Thurmond. Scott was endorsed by the anti-tax National Club for Growth,[39] various Tea Party movement groups, former Alaska Governor and Vice Presidential nominee Sarah Palin,[9][40] Republican House Whip Eric Cantor,[41] former Arkansas governor Mike Huckabee,[42] South Carolina Senator Jim DeMint, and the founder of the Minuteman Project.[8] Scott defeated Thurmond[43] 68%–32% and won every county in the congressional district.[44][45]

According to the Associated Press, Scott "swamped his opponents in fundraising, spending almost $725,000 during the election cycle to less than $20,000 for his November opponents".[9] He won the general election, defeating Democrat Ben Frasier 65%–29%.[46] Following the election, Scott and Allen West of Florida became the first African-American Republicans in Congress since J.C. Watts retired in 2003.[47] Scott also became the first African-American Republican elected to Congress from South Carolina in 114 years.[6]

2012

See also: United States House of Representatives elections in South Carolina, 2012

Scott was unopposed in the primary and won the general election, defeating Democrat Bobbie Rose 62%–36%.[48][49]

Tenure

Congressman Scott, one of two African-American Republicans elected to the House in 2010, declined to join the Congressional Black Caucus.[50]

In March 2011, Scott co-sponsored a welfare reform bill that would deny food stamps to families whose incomes were lowered to the point of eligibility because a family member was participating in a labor strike.[51][52] He introduced legislation in July 2011 to strip the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) of its power to prohibit employers from relocating to punish workers who join unions or strike.[53] The rationale for the legislation is that government agencies should not be able to tell private employers where they can run a business.[53] Scott described the legislation as a common sense proposal that would fix a flaw in federal labor policy and benefit the national and local economies.[53] The NLRB had recently opposed the relocation of a Boeing production facility from Washington state to South Carolina.[53]

Scott successfully advocated for federal funds for a Charleston harbor dredging project estimated at $300 million, arguing that the project is neither an earmark nor an example of wasteful government spending.[54] He said the project was merit-based, and in the national interest because larger cargo ships could use the port and jobs would be created.[54]

During the summer 2011 debate over raising the U.S. debt ceiling, Scott supported the inclusion of a balanced budget constitutional amendment in the debt ceiling bill, and opposed legislation that did not include the amendment. Before voting "no" on the final bill to raise the U.S. debt ceiling, Scott and other first term conservatives prayed for guidance in a congressional chapel. Afterwards, Scott asserted that he had received divine inspiration regarding his vote, and joined the rest of the South Carolina congressional delegation in voting no on the measure.[55][56]

Committee assignments

Scott was appointed by the House Republican Steering Committee to both the Committee on Transportation and the Committee on Small Business.[67] He was later appointed to the powerful Committee on Rules and relinquished his other two committee assignments.

United States Senate

2014 election

Main article: United States Senate special election in South Carolina, 2014

Scott will be running in November 2014 for the right to serve the final two years of DeMint's term. He will then run for re-election to a full six-year term in 2016.

Tenure

On December 17, 2012, South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley announced she would appoint Scott to replace retiring Senator Jim DeMint, who had previously announced that he would retire from the Senate to become the President ofThe Heritage Foundation.[5] Scott is the first African-American to serve from South Carolina in that state's history. In addition, Scott was one of two black senators in the 113th Congress alongside Mo Cowan (and the first since senatorRoland Burris retired in 2010 after succeeding President Barack Obama), and is the first African-American Senator to serve from the Southern United States since Reconstruction.[68]

It was reported that Scott, along with Rep. Trey Gowdy, former South Carolina Attorney General Henry McMaster, former First Lady of South Carolina Jenny Sanford, and Director of the South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control Catherine Templeton, were on Governor Haley's short list to replace Sen. DeMint.[69] In her decision to pick Scott, Governor Haley said: "It is important to me, as a minority female, that Congressman Scott earned this seat, he earned this seat for the person that he is. He earned this seat with the results he has shown." [70]

Committee assignments

Personal life

Scott is unmarried.[13] He owns an insurance agency and he is also a partner in Pathway Real Estate Group, LLC.[10] Scott is a devout evangelical Christian.[71][72][73] He is a member of Seacoast Church, a large evangelical church in Charleston, and is a former member of that church's board.