Why Tim Scott Gives Me Hope
It's not because he's Black...
South Carolina Senator Tim Scott is running for president. He made his announcement on Monday morning in the town where he was born, North Charleston, South Carolina. Kind of confusing, thankfully Scott is anything but.
As I wrote in my overview of his campaign launch on RedState:
I have covered Sen. Tim Scott a great deal, and have written about the eloquence, honesty, and gravity of his speeches. However, even I found myself surprised and impressed by this announcement speech. In a race that is already looking packed, Scott did the job of distinguishing himself, presenting distinctions that will separate him from the present frontrunner contenders: former President Donald J. Trump and Florida Governor Ron DeSantis.
That’s not an easy thing to do. Scott also fulfilled the cardinal rule of a good politician—he was not BORING and he didn’t have to try at authenticity or likeability—he has represented that in his 10 years as a United States senator. What you see is what you get.
Whether he gains the nomination or not, Scott’s candidacy gives me lots of hope. This, from a cynical, political junkie who sees very few electeds or candidates who actually stand for something. The lot of them are poll-tested and manufactured. There’s a part of refining and polishing that goes along with any job or position, so I am not talking about that. I am talking about the Katie Porters, Dan Crenshaws, and Liz Cheneys of the world, who stand for whatever gets them attention and power at that moment and pretend to stand for the people they were elected to serve, when all they stand for is themselves.
A WYSIWYG candidate like Senator Scott is a breath of fresh air. This is part of the reason why Donald Trump won the day—he doesn’t pretend to be anything he is not. In fact, he embraced his outsider status fully, as did the American people who voted him into office in 2016. So we need more candidates that pull from that book, whether they are fresh to the campaign trail, or already an elected official.
Scott does not apologize that he is a believer in Jesus Christ. If anything, he is very public that this is what steers his life and his political decisions. His campaign launch reflected this. He didn’t have to force it in, or pretend at it—it’s as natural to him as taking a breath—as it should be. There will probably be a contingent of people who scream the whole separation of church and state nonsense, but once again, it’s a reflection of a candidate who chooses to lead with who they are, not what they’ve been manufactured to be.
Scott extols America and the opportunities it has given him and his family. This does not mean he doesn’t acknowledge America or its sins, but he does not subscribe to the mantra that nothing has changed or that we have gone backwards. He reflects the nuanced conversation we need to be having, rather than the knee-jerk, polar opposite back and forth we tend to have.
Scott went on The Daily Show with Trevor Noah last year to promote his memoir, and talked about that need for nuance, but also that who you are should not be dictated by a position or a political party. Here’s a bit of that dialogue, and the entire 20 minutes is worth a listen.
Unlike the last Black man who ran for president, and spent eight years in the job, he doesn’t apologize for America or want to fundamentally transform it. Scott is unapologetically pro-America, pro-the American Dream, and pro-opportunity to always transcend, always rise above. Isn’t it a trait that we admired in our greatest presidents and look for in our candidates? It’s a nice change to have it in front of our faces once again.
I truly have no dog in this fight. There are some of these candidates who are definitely a hard No, while others can bring something new to the table and create a different tenor to the primaries and shift things in a different direction. My hope is that Scott will be one of those candidates who raises the tenor and shifts the direction.
We shall see.