Report: GOP Sen. Scott Prepares for 2024 Presidential Run

Facts

• On Monday, The Wall Street Journal — citing people familiar with the matter — reported that South Carolina Republican Sen. Tim Scott, the only Black Republican in the Senate, is planning to enter the 2024 GOP presidential primary.¹
• Scott has become well-known among Republicans ever since his praised official party response to Pres. Biden's first address to Congress in 2021, which saw him proclaim that 'America is not a racist country.'²
• He has reportedly organized a 'listening tour' to start on Thursday in Charleston, SC, followed by a multi-day visit to Iowa next week, and has been confirmed to speak at the South Carolina Family Council's 'Vision '24' forum on March 18.³
• This comes days after Axios reported that Scott had hired former Colorado Sen. Cory Gardner and longtime Republican operative Rob Collins to co-chair a super PAC, known as Opportunity Matters Fund Action, supporting his political efforts.⁴
• Former Pres. Donald Trump and former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley are the only official GOP presidential candidates so far. Other possible contenders include Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and former VP Mike Pence, as well as Mike Pompeo, Asa Hutchinson, and Chris Sununu.⁵
• Roughly a year out from the Iowa caucuses and the New Hampshire primary, Trump has garnered 47% in a Morning Consult poll as of Tuesday, leading his closest rival DeSantis by 16 percentage points. Meanwhile, Scott is at 1%.⁶

Sources: ¹Wall Street Journal, ²Intelligencer, ³Politico, ⁴Axios, ⁵Forbes and ⁶Morning consult.

Narratives

• Narrative A, as provided by Washington examiner. Scott is a breath of fresh air in American politics, combining substance and attitude that evokes former Pres. Ronald Reagan's sense of can-do in a humble yet optimistic way. If he does decide to run for president, however, he must be prepared for a steep road to the White House, in which he certainly will face unscrupulous and even fabricated claims against him.
• Narrative B, as provided by The daily beast. Scott is among potential candidates that should consider not running for the 2024 Republican ticket to prevent Trump from winning this nomination. A crowded field can only serve the former US president's interests as it would fragment the anti-Trump conservative camp, allowing the roughly 30 percent die-hard Trumpists to form a majority in the primaries.

Predictions