South Carolina Liberals: We Exist

A protest sign outside the GOP debate auditorium in South Carolina
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SPARTANBURG, SC — Up North Church St they came, a small group of progressives and labor types chanting the familiar “this is what democracy looks like!” chant of the 99%. They gathered in the appointed free speech zone across Church from tonight’s debate here and commiserated.

Yes, progressives. And yes, South Carolina. So, what’s it like to be on the left in the state that brought America the ultra tea-partyer, Sen. Jim DeMint? Surprisingly, satisfied, Democrats told TPM Saturday.

“If I was at this debate in Connecticut where I grew up, it would be uninteresting [to be a progressive],” Ben Montgomery, an educator from Spartanburg told TPM. He was holding one day-glo yellow sign attacking Republicans for being anti-science and one that read “aGainst Our Priorities.”

“Paradoxically, I feel here I have more of a voice,” Montgomery said.

His companion, Claudia DeShawn, said the focus for Democrats in the Palmetto State is on the local issues, where she said they’re making an impact. The pair said Spartanburg recently embraced the gay pride parade at the municipal government level thanks to the efforts of liberals in town.

The president of the South Carolina AFL-CIO, Donna DeWitt, helped lead the progressive protest outside the debate in Wofford. She said the power of labor in South Carolina is greatly underestimated.

“We’re not the least organized group in the country!” she exclaimed. “I want that on the record.”

She hinted that the progressive-leaning Occupy movement is giving her crew a boost even here, far from the epicenter in New York and other blue state cities.

“We might be a right to work state, but we’re also a workers’ state,” she said. “We want our country back.”

She gestured to the small group of progressives who had accompanied her on the short march to Wofford. “This is what democracy looks like,” she said.

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