Who will replace him? Sen. DeMint resigns to head Heritage; Left hateful
http://twitter.com/#!/MacFarlaneNews/status/276709692904984577
Wow. The Wall Street Journal broke the news that Senator DeMint is resigning in order to head up The Heritage Foundation.
Whoa! Sen DeMint is leaving the Senate to head up Heritage.
— Justin Hart (@justin_hart) December 6, 2012
Twitter is buzzing with the news.
Wow, Jim DeMint and Heritage Foundation are trending nationwide on Twitter. Would’ve expected this to be more of a niche story.
— Alicia M. Cohn (@aliciacohn) December 6, 2012
Wow.Jim DeMint (R-SC) resigning from the Senate next month to head up Heritage Foundation.Never saw that coming.
— Ken Rudin (@kenrudin) December 6, 2012
RT @ethanklapper: News: Jim DeMint is leaving the Senate to lead the Heritage Foundation on.wsj.com/THksng / Whoa, now.
— Jason Linkins (@dceiver) December 6, 2012
More from Senator DeMint:
DeMint statement:“I’m leaving the Senate now, but I’m not leaving thefight.”
— Lisa Lerer (@llerer) December 6, 2012
RT @amandacarpenter: Here’s a link to the official DeMint release announcing his resignation 1.usa.gov/TUxBWB
— Brian Faughnan (@BrianFaughnan) December 6, 2012
The press release from his office:
December 6, 2012
DeMint to Leave Senate to Lead the Heritage Foundation
WASHINGTON, D.C. — Today, U.S. Senator Jim DeMint (R-South Carolina) announced that he will leave the Senate at the beginning of January to become the next president of The Heritage Foundation, the largest and most respected conservative think tank in America.
“It’s been an honor to serve the people of South Carolina in United States Senate for the past eight years, but now it’s time for me to pass the torch to someone else and take on a new role in the fight for America’s future.
“I’m leaving the Senate now, but I’m not leaving the fight. I’ve decided to join The Heritage Foundation at a time when the conservative movement needs strong leadership in the battle of ideas. No organization is better equipped to lead this fight and I believe my experience in public office as well as in the private sector as a business owner will help Heritage become even more effective in the years to come.
“I’m humbled to follow in the footsteps of Ed Feulner, who built the most important conservative institution in the nation. He has been a friend and mentor for years and I am honored to carry on his legacy of fighting for freedom.
“My constituents know that being a Senator was never going to be my career. I came to Congress as a citizen legislator and I’ve always been determined to leave it as citizen legislator. South Carolina has a deep bench of conservative leaders and I know Governor Haley will select a great replacement.
“One of the most rewarding things I’ve done in the Senate is work with the grassroots to help elect a new generation of leaders who have the courage to fight for the principles of freedom that make this country so great. I’m confident these senators will continue the legacy of conservative leaders before them.”
Jim DeMint was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives in 1998 after owning a successful advertising and market research company for twenty years. DeMint left the House after limiting himself to three terms and then was elected to the U.S. Senate in 2004 and re-elected in 2010.
During his time in office, DeMint has been tireless advocate for Americans taxpayers. His goal has been to support and defend the Constitution, which was written to preserve liberty by restraining the federal government. Toward that end, he authored legislation to balance the budget, ban earmarks, replace the tax code, and reform our entitlement programs. He also led the fight against unconstitutional power grabs like the Wall Street bailout and Obamacare.
Sen. DeMint is a staunch conservative and the Left is, predictably, giddy with hate at the news.
Elizabeth Warren will be a Senator and Jim DeMint won’t.
— John Whitehouse (@existentialfish) December 6, 2012
Ga GOP state sen gets a cushy tax-funded job — kind of thing that makes GOPers nuts when Dems do it.bit.ly/WJ4xlR
— Cynthia Tucker (@ctuckerprof) December 6, 2012
BREAKING: SC Senator Jim DeMint leaving the Senate to spend more time being an insane asshole with the Heritage Foundation. #p2 #gop #ctl
— Bachmann’s Brain (@BachmannsBrain) December 6, 2012
@smshow @wegoted @edshow @thom_hartmann @randiradio Jim DeMint is LEAVING Senate?! OBAMA BROKE HIM! HAHAHA #lolgop #gop #gopfail #tcot #tlot
— Da Man On The Street (@DaManOnThStreet) December 6, 2012
FUCK YES! RT @mikeallen: Sen. Jim DeMint will replace Feulner as president of @heritage; will leave Senate in early Jan on.wsj.com/YRIqiK
— Chris Com (@chriscom) December 6, 2012
SC Senator Jim DeMint leaving Senate for the Heritage Foundation. Thanks for playing!
— Abby Huntsman (@HuntsmanAbby) December 6, 2012
Media Matters’ Oliver Willis is oh-so-classy, as always.
Sen. Jim DeMint to Head Heritage Foundation on.wsj.com/THkKdO crazy leading crazy
— Oliver Willis (@owillis) December 6, 2012
this one is dedicated to sen. jim demint: youtube.com/watch?v=Sj_9Ci…
— Oliver Willis (@owillis) December 6, 2012
flashback: Sen. Jim DeMint calls defeating Obama like Waterloo youtube.com/watch?v=mHV4nD…
— Oliver Willis (@owillis) December 6, 2012
i believe sen. demint has had *his* waterloo.
— Oliver Willis (@owillis) December 6, 2012
Stay classy, toots. Love the “new tone!”
Sen. DeMint said in the press release, “One of the most rewarding things I’ve done in the Senate is work with the grassroots to help elect a new generation of leaders who have the courage to fight for the principles of freedom that make this country so great.”
Good news, conservatives: the Senate Conservatives Fund will continue in the fight after @jimdemint‘s departure: senateconservatives.com/site/post/1674…
— Joshua Treviño (@jstrevino) December 6, 2012
Speculation over that next generation started swiftly.
RT @hotlinejosh: SC law allows Nikki Haley to appoint temporary successor before special election takes place.
— Brian Faughnan (@BrianFaughnan) December 6, 2012
MT @jeffzeleny: DeMint, a thorn in the side of GOP establishment, resigning to run Heritage Foundation. Can Gov. Haley appoint herself?
— Nick Confessore (@nickconfessore) December 6, 2012
No shortage of very conservative House members to replace DeMint: Gowdy, Duncan, Scott
— Ethan Klapper (@ethanklapper) December 6, 2012
Names you’ll hear a lot about in coming days: Reps. Tim Scott, Mick Mulvaney, state AG Alan Wilson (son of Joe), State Sen. Tom Davis
— jimgeraghty (@jimgeraghty) December 6, 2012
Gov. Nikki Haley now has the ability to give the US Senate its only black Senator — a conservative from South Carolina named Tim Scott.
— Erick Erickson (@EWErickson) December 6, 2012
Don’t count out Tim Scott just yet. It’s Nikki Haley’s decision. If she offers a Senate seat, who can say no?
— Dan McLaughlin (@baseballcrank) December 6, 2012
RT @peterhambycnn “DeMint has made it known in Columbia that he wants Tim Scott to be appointed to his seat, sources tell CNN”
— David Chalian (@DavidChalian) December 6, 2012
And, some more jackassery from Willis.
eye roll, knowing grin at the tim scott talk. #southcarolina
— Oliver Willis (@owillis) December 6, 2012
Get it? The GOP is racist and stuff! That’s why they want Tim Scott.
Heritage is celebrating the news, as are other conservatives.
We are excited to announce Sen. @jimdemint as the next president of The Heritage Foundation! herit.ag/11KQWA3
— Heritage Foundation (@Heritage) December 6, 2012
Heritage staff gathering for an all-staff meeting. The mood is electric.
— Lachlan Markay (@lachlan) December 6, 2012
In my nearly 6 years with @heritage, I don’t think I’ve been more excited. Welcome, @jimdemint! herit.ag/11KQWA3
— Rob Bluey (@RobertBluey) December 6, 2012
Standing ovation for @edfeulner and @jimdemint. They’re addressing @heritage staff right now. twitter.com/RobertBluey/st…
— Rob Bluey (@RobertBluey) December 6, 2012
Standing ovation for Feulner and DeMint. Someone yells “hoo rah!” twitter.com/lachlan/status…
— Lachlan Markay (@lachlan) December 6, 2012
Very happy for you guys. RT @lachlan: Heritage staff gathering for an all-staff meeting. The mood is electric.
— Dan McLaughlin (@baseballcrank) December 6, 2012
RT @ewerickson: Here’s my take on Jim DeMint and Heritage.Conservatives should be really excited by this.redstate.com/2012/12/06/two…
— Lachlan Markay (@lachlan) December 6, 2012
DeMint’s a step up & to the right for Heritage, better than recycling the old guard.
— Dan McLaughlin (@baseballcrank) December 6, 2012
The move of @jimdemint to take over @heritage is simply awesome. Stale Beltway orthodoxies, prepare for affliction.
— Joshua Treviño (@jstrevino) December 6, 2012
Sen. DeMint tweets the news.
It’s been an honor to serve the people of South Carolina, now it’s time to pass the torch and take on a new role 1.usa.gov/TUxBWC
— Jim DeMint (@JimDeMint) December 6, 2012
Twitchy will continue to monitor and bring you further developments.
Update: Sarah Palin and Sens. Rubio and Toomey send their congratulations and thanks.
We look forward to Jim DeMint’s new leadership at the Heritage Foundation, and we’re all grateful for his past leadership in the Senate.
— Sarah Palin (@SarahPalinUSA) December 6, 2012
Sad to lose @jimdemint in the #Senate. But excited he is staying involved in the cause with @heritage. #tcot #gop
— Marco Rubio (@marcorubio) December 6, 2012
Congratulations to @jimdemint. Your departure will be a huge loss for U.S. Senate & conservative movement.
— Senator Pat Toomey (@SenToomey) December 6, 2012
Update: Hmm. Tim Scott speculation grows.
The rights for TimScottforSenate.com were (privately) purchased today.
— Bob Cusack (@BobCusack) December 6, 2012
Endorsed?!
A great choice! RT @peterhambycnn DeMint has made it known in Columbia that he wants Tim Scott to be appointed to his seat, sources tell CNN
— Sarah Palin (@SarahPalinUSA) December 6, 2012
And Tim Scott weighs in.
I want to thank Senator DeMint for the tremendous work he has done on behalf of South Carolina and the nation. ow.ly/fSGBu
— Tim Scott (@RepTimScott) December 6, 2012
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