The senator Tim Scott hasn’t exactly been subtle about his national ambitions. After the South Carolina Republican’s presidential campaign was a costly failure, Scott struggled to reach 5 percent in the polls, in part because he seemed terrified of differentiating himself from others. Donald Trump — began the senator embarrass oneself in apparent hopes of joining the former president’s list for 2024.
There is, however, an important part of Scott’s CV: his critics within the party seized.
Time magazine reported months ago that the senator “will have to overcome an irremediable MAGA World sin: he voted to certify Joe Biden’s 2020 electoral victory.”
He did, indeed. Just hours after the January 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol, the Senate voted to certify the results of the 2020 presidential election. Of the chamber’s 100 members, only eight far-right Republicans voted against certification — and Tim Scott was not among them.
Additionally, during a presidential primary debate last summer, the senator said that then-Vice President Mike Pence: “absolutely” did the right thing on January 6. In case it’s not obvious, it’s not Trump’s position.
With that in mind, what is the South Carolinian willing to do to solve his partisan “problem”? Like NBC News noteScott seems to have opted for the most unfortunate solution possible.
Time and time again, host Kristen Welker pressed the Republican to simply say, “Yes or no“, whether he was willing to accept the results of the 2024 presidential election. He wouldn’t say so — even though Scott was willing to question the integrity of NBC News’ journalism for reasons unknown.
WATCH: @kwelkernbc request @SenatorTimScott (RS.C.) if he accepts the result of the 2024 elections.
Scott: “The 47th President of the United States will be Donald Trump. »
Welker: “Will you accept the results of the 2024 elections, whoever wins?
Scott: “That’s my statement… pic.twitter.com/EN9ZeNFDSp
– Meet the Press (@MeetThePress) May 5, 2024
It’s worth stopping to appreciate the extraordinary circumstances in which we find ourselves. Traditionally, senior senators we didn’t even ask if they were prepared to accept the results of the elections in their own country, because the answer would have been obvious.
But in 2024, as the radicalization of Republican politics intensifies, Scott is not only being asked: refused to answer — presumably because the senator knew that if he responded in a way that expressed support for democracy, it would have angered Mar-a-Lago.
In other words, Scott believes that the key to solving the Trump team’s “problem” is to appear more openly hostile to the American political system, which could in turn strengthen its domestic ambitions.
Like the GOP race to the bottom unfolds, I still believe that no one should want to be vice president so badly.
This article was originally published on MSNBC.com
