South Carolina Senator Tim Scott is all the rage among the GOP chattering class. The former Republican presidential candidate has emerged as a favorite as Donald Trump barrels toward the nomination and talks up his shortlist of possible running mates.
The Senate’s lone Black Republican is viewed as a kind of “magical African-American friend” able to solve Trump’s electoral math and demographic problem. In one fell swoop, Scott, with his Black face and “cotton to Congress” story, can accelerate Trump’s appeal to Black men. But more importantly, Scott can assuage White voters who might be concerned that a vote for Trump is a vote for racism. It’s what political scientists call an “indirect appeal.”
This, at least, is the theory. Yet, as the Republican primary has shown, the idea of Scott is likely better than the reality.
Exhibit A is Scott’s disastrous run for the GOP nomination for president, where he polled mostly in the single digits, disappeared on the debate stage and awkwardly kissed and embraced his now-fiancée, just in case there were any questions about his bachelor status. Things haven’t gotten any better since he dropped out. Trump has alpha-dogged the genial Scott at every turn. He has mockingly repeated that Scott, 58, is a better advocate for him than he was for himself on the campaign trail. He has embarrassed and demeaned Scott with quips about his engagement.
“He’s engaged to be married. We never thought this was going to happen. What’s going on?” Trump said at a New Hampshire event, as Scott beamed next to him.
For his part, Scott dutifully declared his love for Trump after the former president’s rout of Nikki Haley in the New Hampshire primary.
“He puts on a big optimistic smile and aims it at Trump,” texted a GOP strategist who regularly convenes White voters for focus groups, when I asked about Scott. “He tells them they’re not racist. That Trump’s not racist,” said the strategist who requested anonymity in order to speak candidly.
Scott doesn’t have much of a distinguished record in the Senate, where he has left a fairly light footprint, arriving after then-Governor Haley
appointed him to fill a vacant seat in 2012. He ran for a full term in 2014 and again in 2022. His last competitive race was in 2010 when he beat Senator Storm Thurmond’s son for a House seat.
He has seen some success with legislation he championed related to investments in historically economically distressed areas (opportunity zones), and he was one of the co-sponsors of the First Step Act criminal justice overhaul, which was signed by Trump. He also joined Democrats
Corey Booker and then-Senator Kamala Harris in co-sponsoring anti-lynching legislation, which was signed into law by President Joe Biden in 2022. But he hasn’t been a standout known for a record of accomplishment on any signature issue.
However, just by being Black, Scott has become a defense against claims that the GOP is hostile to the interests of a diverse electorate.
He showed a brief streak of independence in 2019 when he broke with his party on the issue of race, penning an op-ed in The Washington Post about then-Representative Steve King who had a history of making incendiary, racist comments and a history of getting a pass from his fellow Republicans. Scott had had enough, calling out his party for being silent and for “often still struggling when it comes to civility and fairness.” It was a rare move for a Black Republican, which as a group has typically downplayed racism and turned those claims back at Democrats.
“Some in our party wonder why Republicans are constantly accused of racism — it is because of our silence when things like this are said,” Scott
wrote. “Immigration is the perfect example, in which somehow our affection for the rule of law has become conflated with a perceived racism against brown and black people.” He also said he found Trump’s disparaging comments about African countries “disappointing.”
This, in many ways, was the bare minimum Scott could have done, given how egregious the offenses were.
But Scott has remained silent about Trump’s more recent examples of racism as he auditions for vice president and tries to remain in good standing with the MAGA king.
When Trump said immigrants were “poisoning the blood of our country” in December, Scott didn’t offer the slightest rebuke. What about Trump’s racist assertion that “the Blacks” like him because of a shared criminality?
“The mug shot, we’ve all seen the mug shot, and you know who embraced it more than anybody else? The Black population,” Trump said in a speech last month at the Black Conservative Federation’s annual gala, which Scott attended. “It’s incredible. You see Black people walking around with my mug shot, you know, they do shirts.”
Crickets from the South Carolina senator.
If Trump, who didn’t tap a single Black person for a top cabinet position picks Scott as his running mate, you can be sure that Scott will be called upon to answer and rebut every crazy thing Trump says. Trump might not call Scott “my African American” but that’s essentially how Scott would function. Witness Black Republican Representative Byron Donalds of Florida, who defended Trump’s offensive statements that he is beloved by “the Blacks” because they have experienced discrimination in the justice system just like he has. Donalds, like Scott, was among the attendees at the gala.
“I think that’s part of it,” said Donalds, who also seems to be auditioning for a place on Trump’s team.
That kind of rhetoric and unquestionable allegiance isn’t likely to help
Trump’s standing with Black voters, particularly Black men. (Here’s some context on Black male voters from 2020. Nationally, Trump got 19 percent of the Black male vote — or 4 percent of the overall electorate. In swing states, the numbers were roughly around 10 percent. Nevada was a high-water mark, where he won 26 percent of the Black male vote.)
Being a sycophant is clearly a requirement for the job of Trump’s number two, see Vice President Mike Pence. But a Southern Black man slavishly carrying water for Trump would surely spark a different impression and feeling among African American voters.
White voters might like it, most Black voters would not.
There is, of course, a storied tradition of Black Republicans. Ed Brooke, Colin Powell and Condoleezza Rice come to mind as best in class public servants. Scott isn’t in that standout group.
Republicans claim to hate identity politics and are seeking to roll back diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives at companies and universities. And yet, Scott would in fact be the diversity pick. If you love affirmative action, you will love Tim Scott. Republicans have lambasted Vice President Kamala Harris, who has been tested politically, claiming she is unqualified to be president. But somehow, Scott is qualified?
One thing is certain. If Scott is Trump’s pick, people would pay money to see a debate between him and Harris.
Nia-Mallika Henderson is a Bloomberg opinion columnist. Views are personal and do not represent the stand of this publication.
Credit: Bloomberg
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