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Among the worst-kept secrets in Washington, D.C. in recent years was that U.S. senator Tim Scott of South Carolina had grown tired of life in our nation’s capital – and was eager to return home to the Palmetto State.
When Scott ran for his second full term in the U.S. Senate in 2022, he said it would be his last time running for the seat. I referenced Scott’s Beltway malaise during a recent article about his potential political pathways forward. Like so many D.C. Republicans, those pathways were dependent in large part on whether former U.S. president Donald Trump recaptured the White House.
Which Trump did… convincingly.
In the aftermath of Trump’s decisive victory, one particular path is coming into focus for the 59-year-old North Charleston native… marked by several unmistakeable signs that Scott’s distaste for Capitol Hill is abating.
Scott ran against Trump in 2024, but heartily endorsed his candidacy upon dropping out of the race. While many believe Scott could be in line for a key cabinet appointee in Trump’s second administration, recent moves suggest he will be staying in the U.S. Senate – and, as a result, in Washington, D.C. – hoping to help advance Trump’s agenda legislatively.
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Scott is currently the ranking GOP member of the Senate banking committee, and is line to become chairman of this influential panel now that the GOP has claimed control of the Senate. In fact, GOP control of the chamber was sealed with the defeat of current banking committee chairman Sherrod Brown of Ohio.
According to our sources, in addition to this plum post Scott has also lined up the votes to become the next chairman of the National Republican Senate Committee (NRSC) – the political arm of the new GOP majority. Scott would succeed Steve Daines of Montana as NRSC chairman.
With two influential offices his for the taking, Scott seems less likely to consider a cabinet post – and increasingly unlikely to return to South Carolina to run for governor. This would also mean his Senate seat – which many thought might be opening up in 2025 – will remain on lockdown for the foreseeable future.
Keep it tuned to FITSNews as we continue to track the fallout from Trump’s victory in the Beltway… and beyond.
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ABOUT THE AUTHOR …
Will Folks is the founding editor of the news outlet you are currently reading. Prior to founding FITSNews, he served as press secretary to the governor of South Carolina. He lives in the Midlands region of the state with his wife and seven children.
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