Campbell Kicks Off Congressional Campaign

by: Jennifer Read

Wed Sep 23, 2009 at 16:13:27 PM EDT

Carroll Campbell III, a Charleston businessman and son of former South Carolina Gov. Carroll Campbell, formalized his entry into the First Congressional District race Wednesday and wasted no time blasting a fellow Republican, incumbent Rep. Henry Brown.

"I have been in the Wendy's restaurant business. And when I take a look at Mr. Brown's record, I have to ask, 'Where's the beef?'" Campbell said. "Unfortunately, Mr. Brown's beef is nothing but pork."

Standing on this town's new pier underneath the Cooper River bridge - a setting chosen because of the USS Yorktown and Columbus Street Terminal in the background, Campbell vowed to break from "back-slapping, old-style" politics and fight to curtail spending in Washington, to push for simpler, fairer taxes and to promote new jobs in South Carolina.

When I first heard that Campbell wanted to enter the race earlier this year, I thought perhaps Brown would finally feel the pressure of a serious primary challenger. But in the months since Campbell first announced his desire to seek the seat, he's failed to develop a consistent message or flesh out a substantial platform to take on the battle-tested incumbent. A handful of hackneyed one-liners and Daddy's good name won't be enough for the political newcomer to topple the GOP stalwart in June. And given Brown's current 12 to 1 money advantage over Campbell, the new kid will have to work double time in the coming months if he hopes to raise enough cash to mount a serious challenge to Oh Henry.

On the Democratic side, it's still a wait-and-see game. Today's news that Robert Barber plans to run for Lieutenant Governor, means all eyes now fall on S.C. House Rep. Leon Stavrinakis, who is still mulling a possible run. Also on the radar, Air Force Col. Robert Burton - a Mount Pleasant Democrat who is expected to launch his campaign in late fall. So far, S.C. political newcomer Robert Dobbs is the only announced Democratic candidate for the First District seat.

Currently, CQ Politics rates the SC-01 race a hopeful "Leans Republican."