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Sen. McCain Snubs South Carolina Straw Polls
Republican presidential hopeful John McCain is bypassing South Carolina county conventions and straw polls despite the presence of some of the state's most fervent GOP activists. The McCain campaign said his schedule precludes him from attending Saturday's convention in Spartanburg, S.C., that will attract his top rivals. Former Oklahoma Gov. Frank Keating will be McCain's stand-in at conventions in Spartanburg, Laurens and Richland counties this weekend. "In South Carolina, Senator McCain would prefer a format like a town hall meeting where he has an hour or an hour and half for personal, intimate access with voters who can ask him straight questions and expect straight answers," B.J. Boling, McCain's South Carolina spokesman, said Tuesday. In bypassing the conventions, McCain runs the risk of riling the same GOP activists who cost him the 2000 presidential primary against then-Texas Gov. George Bush.
Story Continues Below "It sends a signal he's taking them for granted and that's not a good signal," said Clemson University political scientist Dave Woodard. McCain is putting some effort into county conventions. His campaign has contacted delegates with mailings, staffed tables at the events and sent surrogates to speak for him.
But the stand-in strategy won't work everywhere. At Saturday's Greenville County GOP convention, surrogates can't address the convention, said Wendy Nanney, the county chairwoman. "We didn't want proxies. We really wanted the candidates themselves in order for the delegates to meet them," she said.
© 2007 Associated Press.
Editor's note:
Read more on this subject in related Hot Topics:
2008 Presidential Race Inside Cover Stories
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