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United States News Title: Haley win a boon for Palin, Romney Haley win a boon for Palin, Romney By ANDY BARR | 6/23/10 4:45 AM EDT Haley isn't the only Republican whose star is rising in an early state crucial to the GOP. AP Nikki Haley may have been the big winner in South Carolina Tuesday, but she isn’t the only Republican whose star is rising in an early state that is key to winning the GOP presidential nomination. Both Mitt Romney, the former governor of Massachusetts, and Sarah Palin, the former governor of Alaska, were also winners in the 2012 sweepstakes. They got behind Haley at critical junctures in her campaign for governor while the rest of the potential GOP presidential field either endorsed another candidate or stayed out of the fray completely. As a critical early primary state and a conservative bellwether, South Carolina is a good place for GOP presidential hopefuls to have friends in high places—especially friends who owe you one. And in 2012, if Haley is elected governor in November, there will hardly be a more valuable ally than the 38-year-old state legislator. She would instantly become one of the party’s most prominent faces, likely giving her more sway in determining her party’s next nominee than Gov. Mark Sanford had in 2004—and perhaps even a larger role in the race. “She will instantaneously be at the top of everyone’s list as a possible [vice presidential] nominee,” said Saul Anuzis, the former chairman of the Michigan GOP, said of Haley. While both Palin and Romney will have a powerful friend in the governor’s mansion—Haley has made it clear in numerous statements that she is grateful to both for their support—the other Republican prospects will have to contend with the consequences of betting on the wrong horse. Former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee’s pick of Lt. Gov. Andre Bauer fizzled, former Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum’s decision to back Rep. Gresham Barrett was slightly better and former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani’s selection of state Attorney General Henry McMaster didn’t get him very far. The rest of the field, however, didn’t even suit up. Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty, Rep. Ron Paul (R-Texas) and former House Speaker Newt Gingrich all sat out the primary – though Pawlenty is planning to visit the state on June 29. Of course, there’s still plenty of time to mend fences, and the governor’s imprimatur can only go so far in a primary. As former state Republican Party Chairman Katon Dawson pointed out, “there are plenty of high profile Republicans to go around in South Carolina that will give any well-funded candidate a shot.” Indeed, Huckabee’s strong second-place showing in the state in 2008 would have seemed highly unlikely two years before. Then there’s the question of Haley’s tough choice if Palin and Romney both decide to run. As one of the state’s top GOP operatives said in an interview, the question being asked by close observers is: “If they both come stumping through South Carolina in a couple of years, who is Haley going to endorse?” From Romney’s perspective, the case is clear: big risk should equal big reward The former Massachusetts governor endorsed Haley when she polled in single digits—and well before it was a nationally popular cause. In doing so, Romney broke with his former South Carolina team as Terry Sullivan, his state political director in 2008, worked for Barrett’s campaign as a consultant for First Tuesday Strategies. And more than putting some skin into the game, Romney found innovative ways to support her. After his lawyers discovered that South Carolina campaign finance law would allow not only his federal political action committee, but also his five statewide PACs to each give Haley $3,500 for both the primary and general, Romney went ahead and gave her campaign the eye-catching sum of $42,000. He followed up the early endorsement and stack of cash with a second visit to South Carolina to campaign for Haley’s runoff bid. “[Romney] was there early for Nikki Haley,” said veteran Republican operative John Weaver, who said Haley’s win gives Romney a clear edge in South Carolina. “He helped her raise badly needed campaign funds and rebuffed his own in-state team to side with her.” “Romney made an early and significant bet on Haley,” added Anuzis. “A victory would be perceived as a big plus.” Palin, however, endorsed Haley—and 1st District GOP nominee Tim Scott, who also won a runoff Tuesday—only once they had become frontrunners. Still, many in South Carolina political circles credit her visit to the state with pushing Haley past her rivals. Haley’s campaign tied itself to Palin after the visit, running a television ad featuring the former Alaska governor down the stretch. “[Haley’s] turning point was the Sarah Palin event and the footage from that event she used in ads,” said South Carolina-based Republican consultant Wes Donehue. “Romney’s endorsement was a one-day story.” Palin was also instrumental in swatting down political blogger Will Folks’ claim of having had an extramarital affair with Haley, announcing the day after Folks posted the item that she thought he was trying to “make things up.” And like many of the other Republican women who Palin affectionately refers to as her “mama grizzlies,” the former GOP vice presidential nominee appeared personally invested in Haley—she connected the South Carolinian to the same devout and emotional following that adores and donates to her. Republican strategist Mary Matalin argued the power of a connection to Palin in the GOP base alone is enough to tip the scales for Haley toward the former Alaska governor. “No one has a better track record in this midterm than Sarah Palin and not just tactically by having the Iowa and South Carolina governors, but strategically, by dominating message and voter intensity,” said Matalin. “She is the indisputable anti-Obama, which is the jet fuel of the intensity engine.” Read more: www.politico.com/news/sto..._Page2.html#ixzz0rgZT7NOt
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Another win for the TP and Palin.
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