South Carolina Governor Nicky Haley has announced she's appointing Tim Scott, currently a Republican Representative for SC, to replace Jim DeMint, who recently resigned as senator.
Scott is a cultural and economic conservative, endorsed by the tea party. (Think Allen West?) This is a man who fought for, as wikipedia reports,
having the Ten Commandments posted outside the county council chambers, saying it would remind members of the absolute rules they should follow. The county council then unanimously approved the display and Scott nailed a King James version of the Commandments to the wall. Shortly after, the ACLU and Americans United for Separation of Church and State sued. After an initial court ruling said the display was unconstitutional, the council settled to avoid accruing more legal fees. Regarding the costs of the suit, Scott said, "Whatever it costs in the pursuit of this goal (of displaying the Commandments) is worth it."
Wikipedia also reports:
is the U.S. Representative for South Carolina's 1st congressional district . Elected in November 2010 to the 112th Congress , he is the first Republican African-American Representative from South Carolina since 1901. Scott is also one of the two members of the 2010 freshman class chosen to sit at the House Republican leadership table. Scott, a fiscal and cultural conservative, ran for Congress on a platform of reducing federal spending and taxes. He was endorsed by Tea Party groups and other prominent Republicans.
Previously, Scott served one term in the South Carolina General Assembly (2009--2011), and 13 years on the Charleston County Council (1996--2008). ] A graduate of Charleston Southern University, Scott owns an insurance agency and has worked as a financial advisor.
... He will be the seventh African American to serve in the US Senate, and the first black Republican to serve since Edward Brooke of Massachusetts.
