SC: Former Gov. Beasley (R) eyeing Senate run

Associated Press

CHARLESTON, S.C. - Former Gov. David Beasley said he is considering entering the race to replace outgoing U.S. Sen. Ernest "Fritz" Hollings.

"My wife and I and the children are going to have to give some great thought to it and listen to some of my friends and neighbors across South Carolina," Beasley told The (Charleston) Post and Courier. "I love my family, my state and my country. I've got to figure out how best to serve all three, with my family being the priority."

Beasley said he is encouraged and flattered by private polls that say he would beat other candidates in a Republican primary. Four candidates are seeking the GOP nomination - former state Attorney General Charlie Condon, U.S. Rep. Jim DeMint of Greenville, Myrtle Beach Mayor Mark McBride and Charleston real estate developer Thomas Ravenel.

Democrats seeking Hollings' seat include state Education Superintendent Inez Tenenbaum and Camden native Marcus Belk.

Beasley lost his 1998 re-election bid in a race that centered on his difficult decisions to fight video poker and to try to move the Confederate battle flag from the Statehouse dome.

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They seem to be heading towards a vicious primary. None of the republican candidates seem very good and Tenenbaum seems like a strong candidate. Now that the democrats are united I think that we really have a very good chance now of holding this seat in a very republican state.

There's a lot of right-wingers in South Carolina who are still in denial over lossing the Civil War. The flag issue will most likely hurt him in the primaries, although I have respect for him taking the stand on the issue that he did.