Bright has raised his profile mostly though flamethrowing comments. Graham challenger talks fundraising

South Carolina Republican Lee Bright said that while it would be nice to have the official backing of the gang he wants to run with in the U.S. Senate, he is preparing to go it alone if necessary in his primary challenge to Sen. Lindsey Graham.

“Oh, absolutely, we’d love to have Rand Paul, Ted Cruz’s [endorsement], and obviously we’ve reached out, but it’s a matter of them waiting,” Bright said. “Anytime you’re running against an incumbent, folks that are serving in the same body, it’s a sensitive issue and we’d love to see them get involved, but we’re not counting on it.”


Bright’s comments came in an interview with POLITICO Thursday during a swing through Washington, about a month after he launched an attack on Graham’s right flank. Since then, he has raised his profile in the national media mostly though flamethrowing comments like his description of Graham as a “community organizer for the Muslim Brotherhood,” in reference to Graham’s visit to Egypt during that country’s recent political turmoil.

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Two other Republicans are also challenging the two-term senator, and while it is seen unlikely that any of them can unseat the well-funded Graham at this point, they could create the conditions for a runoff — and force Graham to make a more rigorous case to conservative South Carolina voters on the road to 2014.

Paul (R-Ky.), whose father Ron Paul won Bright’s support in the 2012 presidential contest, has said that it is “probably unlikely that I’ll get involved” in the primary. Bright said that freshman Sen. Mike Lee (R-Utah) is the third senator with whom he sees himself aligning consistently, if elected. This younger wing of the GOP has challenged the party establishment on issues like foreign intervention, national security and immigration reform in recent months in what many see as a broader battle over the direction of the party.

“I’ve talked to him, I’ve met with him, he’s a good guy,” Bright said about Paul. “But basically if you’re going to win a race, somebody else can’t win it for you, as far as national figures. It’s the folks that talk to their next-door neighbors that win elections.”

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For now, all three challengers face a formidable challenge in fundraising and the polls. Graham had $6.3 million on hand at the time of the last filing and is said to be taking no chances on his reelection bid, even as supporters dismiss the challengers as unserious. Bright has not yet filed a fundraising report. A Landmark/Rosetta Stone poll in August found Graham at 42 percent, Bright at 13 percent, Nancy Mace at 10 percent and Richard Cash at 7 percent, with 28 percent undecided. Graham would need to hit 50 percent in the primary to avoid a runoff.

Bright said he believes that he could compete effectively against Graham if he could narrow the fundraising disadvantage to three-to-one, citing the state’s relatively small media markets as a helpful factor.

“You do reach diminishing returns,” he said. “I think if we can raise a million, million and a half on our own, I think that folks around the country — I think we’ll be able to raise a lot more, so it’s just getting that initial traction.”

”The country is facing extraordinary problems, and Senator Graham is a conservative problem-solver willing to tackle the tough issues,” campaign spokesman Tate Zeigler said in a statment, citing Graham’s American Conservative Union rating. “He looks forward to a spirited campaign.”

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Bright said he will make his state Senate record central to his campaign, seeking to contrast himself with Mace and Cash. In the past, that has included his backing of such red-meat proposals as commissioning a study on creating the state’s own currency; allowing marksmanship classes in schools; and imposing criminal sanctions on officials implementing Obamacare.

Should onlookers also expect more of the headline-grabbing language he has used to describe Graham?

“Oh, absolutely,” he said.

As for the two other challengers, Bright said that he did not know much about Mace’s policy views and that Cash is a “great guy” but more poorly equipped to win. He dismissed the idea that the three run the risk of bloodying each other too much in the primary to unseat Graham, insisting that the incumbent would be the focus.