Rep. James Clyburn (D-S.C.) thinks President Biden is “avoiding embarrassment” with his push for South Carolina to be the first state in the 2024 Democratic primary, he said in an interview this week.
South Carolina is currently slated to open the race Feb. 3, followed by Nevada and New Hampshire three days later, then Georgia, then Michigan, according to a schedule approved by the Democratic National Committee in February. It is unclear, however, if that lineup will hold.
But the current schedule sets Biden up to face voters first in South Carolina — a primary he won in 2020 by double digits, amping up his then-lagging campaign — and not Iowa, the traditionally first-in-the-nation state, where Biden came in fourth last cycle.
In the general election, however, Biden lost to then-President Trump in South Carolina by roughly 11 percentage points.
Asked by CNN’s Chris Wallace why Democrats are emphasizing South Carolina when their prospects of winning the state in 2024 are dim, Clyburn pointed to Biden’s need to lock up the nomination.
“Well, you got to win the nomination first. Why should President Biden sit back and allow a state that he finished fifth in be first up?” he said during an interview on CNN’s “Who’s Talking to Chris Wallace.”
Clyburn — the assistant Democratic leader in the House — endorsed Biden ahead of the 2020 primary in South Carolina, a move that was widely seen as helping Biden win the state and ultimately secure the nomination.
The Democratic lawmaker rejected the notion that Biden was “stacking the deck” by moving states like South Carolina to the beginning of the primary schedule regardless of Democrats’ chances in the general election, arguing that Biden is trying to avoid being “embarrassed” during the nominating contest.
“I don’t think you’re stacking the deck,” he told Wallace. “I think you’re avoiding embarrassment. And that is what he is attempting to avoid here. And I would expect anybody to do the same.”
Asked if states such as Iowa and New Hampshire, which for years have led the Democratic nominating schedule, could potentially embarrass Biden, Clyburn pointed to the demographics in the state.
“Well, if you do not have the demographics as required for Democrats in the general election, and neither one of those states have the Democrat or the demographics that are favorable to Democrats in the general, I think we know that,” he responded.
Biden officially launched his 2024 reelection campaign last month, setting up a potential rematch between him and Trump. The president jumped in the race despite some polls showing that a contingent of voters do not think he has the mental sharpness to serve effectively and others expressing support for the party nominating someone else.
Asked if Democrats are better off putting someone else on the ticket in 2024, Clyburn said, “I don’t think so.”
“When you go into a general election, it’s going to be Democrats against Republicans. What’s the Democratic agenda? What’s the Democratic vision for the future? And what’s the Republican agenda and vision for the for the future? And then you look at the candidates, and you compare your candidate against their candidate. That is when it comes to fruition,” he said.
Pressed on if concerns about Biden mean Democrats are risking having Trump be reelected, Clyburn again said no.
“I don’t think so, not in the least,” he responded.
He brushed aside polls that Wallace cited.
“One poll may say one thing, and one poll will say another. I’ll go over the average of those polls. And Biden is 4 to 8 points in the lead. And that’s before people really get a chance to look in on their performances and their vision and listen to their vision for the future,” he said.