(Provided)COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP/WCIV) -- U.S. Sen. Jim DeMint's resignation gives Gov. Nikki Haley authority to choose South Carolina's next senator, and the only indication she's made so far is that she won't appoint herself.
Speculation abounds over who she might pick to fill the seat through 2014, when voters will choose someone to serve the remaining two years of DeMint's term. The guesses began as soon as DeMint announced his resignation, effective Jan. 1, to become president of the Heritage Foundation, a conservative think tank.
Names tossed out as possibilities include the state's four congressmen recently re-elected to their second term.
Haley also could make history by appointing Rep. Tim Scott, who would become South Carolina's first black U.S. senator and the chamber's first black Republican from the South since Reconstruction.
The governor released a statement Friday morning:
"Appointing a
new member of the U.S. Senate is a solemn duty, and I take this responsibility
with utmost seriousness. I will make this decision in a manner that is
thoughtful and dignified, but also quickly.
"I want to
make two things clear from the outset. Number one, I will not take the
appointment myself. Number two, I will appoint a person who has the same
philosophy of government that Jim DeMint and I share.
"With all the
challenges we face as a state and nation, it is essential that the next senator
from South Carolina be dedicated to the principles that our state most
values."
