Politics & Government

Sen. Tim Scott Gearing Up for First Statewide Race

The junior senator also talks about Obamacare and his voting record compared to Lindsey Graham.

After addressing graduates of the South Carolina Criminal Justice Academy on Friday, Sen. Tim Scott met with the media to discuss, among other things, Obamacare and his first election campaign as a Senator.

As part of his remarks to the new law enforcement officers, Scott reminded them of the nature of public scrutiny. It’s something he’s learned about in the seven months since he became a senator.

“When you enter into public service the fishbowl gets smaller and the fish get bigger. And the eyes stay on the bowl,” Scott said. “Public service comes with a price and I wanted to make (the graduates) aware of that.”

Find out what's happening in Columbiawith free, real-time updates from Patch.

Obamacare

Scott said that as Obamacare gets nearer more problems will be uncovered—such as the delay the administration placed on implementation of some portions of it. 

Find out what's happening in Columbiawith free, real-time updates from Patch.

Earlier this week, Carolina Care, the second largest issuer of individual health insurance plans in the state, said it will be leaving South Carolina by the end of the year.

“What people saw as panacea will only get worse. The solution is worse than the problem. We need a private sector, competitive process to improve access to health care. What we’ve done so far doesn’t do that,” Scott said.

Scott also said he believes the worst is yet to come in terms of the cost. “After spending 2 trillion dollars we’ll go from 15 percent uninsured to 10 percent,” he said. “The prices will go up, according to the numbers of I’ve seen, as much as 61 percent.”

In 11 other states however, prices are expected to go down, and dramatically so. A report published yesterday by the Health and Human Services Department said that premiums will be 18 percent cheaper than originally expected in those states.

Re-Election

Though Scott has been in public office for some time, his election campaign in 2014 will be the first time he runs statewide. While Lindsey Graham has no shortage of challengers, none have emerged against Scott, in either party.

Nevertheless, Scott isn’t taking anything for granted since he is not as well known in the rest of the state as he is in the Lowcountry.

“The greatest challenge (in running for re-election) is that I can’t clone myself," he said jokingly.  

"We’re spending as much time in the state as possible. I’m a big believer that where you represent, you also serve. I have to learn the opportunities that are unique to every community. That’s different for me.”.

Scott realizes he will always to be compared to Graham, but said that doesn’t enter into his thought process when he votes on legislation.

“I think about South Carolina and I think about what the voters want. I feel like I’m consistently aligned with who they are. I think my voting record reflects them,” he said.

On recent votes, Scott and Graham cast opposing ballots, notably on immigration reform. But Scott said not too much should be made of that.

“We’ll always have differences,” he said.


Get more local news delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts.

We’ve removed the ability to reply as we work to make improvements. Learn more here

More from Columbia