Brian Kilmeade visits Sen. Tim Scott's hometown
Sen. Tim Scott, R-S.C., talks to Brian Kilmeade in his hometown of North Charleston, and discusses how his upbringing led him to go from poverty to becoming a senator.
EXCLUSIVE: If you need more proof that Sen. Tim Scott of South Carolina has quickly become one of the most prolific fundraisers among Senate Republicans, look no further than his campaign cash haul for the past three months.
Scott, the only Black Republican in the Senate and a rising star in the GOP, brought in nearly $7 million during the October-December fourth quarter of fundraising, according to figures shared first with Fox News on Tuesday.
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The senator’s fourth quarter haul follows the $8.3 million he raked in during the July-September third quarter and the $9.6 million he brought in during the April-June second quarter of fundraising. Scott's political team says that the senator has raised a total of $37.3 million so far in the 2022 election cycle.
Sen. Tim Scott of South Carolina, the only Black Republican in the Senate and a rising star in the GOP, launched his 2022 re-election campaign at a kick-off event in North Charleston, South Carolina, on June 28, 2021. (Tim Scott 2022 reelection campaign)
They also report that Scott’s fourth-quarter fundraising was fueled by contributions from 77,500 unique donors, and that the senator ended 2021 with over $21.5 million cash on hand.
"Senator Tim Scott has built an unmatched grassroots network of supporters that will power him to another term in the Senate," Scott campaign consultant Sam Oh told Fox News.
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And Oh argued that as President Biden’s "disastrous agenda continues to hurt our economy, our pocketbooks, and our way of life, the senator’s message is resonating with voters who want a Republican Senate majority that will hold this administration accountable."
As of now, Scott is unlikely to face a bruising re-election this year in the reliably red Palmetto State, where he won his 2016 election to a full term by nearly 25 points. In 2020, then President Donald Trump carried the state by 12 points, and Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham won re-election by 10 points despite record-breaking fundraising from Democratic challenger Jaime Harrison, who’s now the chair of the Democratic National Committee.
Sens. Tim Scott of South Carolina and Marco Rubio of Florida team up in October 2021 at a Republican State Leadership Committee event to help the GOP recruit more diverse and female candidates at the state legislative level. (Republican State Leadership Committee (RSLC))
Scott has become a high-profile Republican during his tenure in the Senate. He grabbed national attention early last year when he gave a well-received GOP response to President Biden's prime time address to a joint session of Congress. And he was the lead Republican in the eventually unsuccessful negotiations last year with congressional Democrats on a major police reform bill.
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Pundits see him as a possible 2024 GOP presidential nomination contender. His trips last year to Iowa and New Hampshire, which hold the first two contests in the presidential nominating calendar, sparked speculation about potential national ambitions, and his massive fundraising haul is as well.
Scott speaks during a Senate Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs Committee oversight hearing on Capitol Hill in Washington, Sept. 14, 2021. (REUTERS/Evelyn Hockstein/Pool)
"Tim Scott is a force," longtime New Hampshire-based Republican consultant Jim Merrill said.
"His strong numbers reflect how he has inspired activists and business leaders alike, good for both his reelection and for a potential presidential campaign in 2024," Merrill, a veteran of numerous GOP presidential campaigns, added.
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Asked by Fox News last year about a possible 2024 White House run, Scott downplayed such talk, declaring that his "only objective is to be the United States senator for the great state of South Carolina."
But Scott has also said that the 2022 race will be his last Senate campaign.
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