Editorial roundup: Friday, Sept. 13, 2019

Recent editorials from South Carolina newspapers:

The Post and Courier

Sept. 11

Ultimate victory over terrorism will be winning hearts

Most Americans remember Sept. 11, 2001, vividly, but many others who will reach voting age this year were just babies when al-Qaida terrorists hijacked four airliners, crashing two into the World Trade Center's twin towers in Lower Manhattan and a third into the Pentagon. The fourth crashed in a Pennsylvania field amid a struggle between passengers and the hijackers.

So it makes sense that public schools in hard-hit New York are now required to provide a moment of silent reflection on each Sept. 11. All Americans should do the same. Because everything changed that day. And that day continues to shape our future.

Within a few hours, nearly 3,000 Americans died, and the United States has been at war more or less ever since. About 15,000 soldiers have died, and there is regrettably still no viable end in sight. Though the remnants of al-Qaida in Afghanistan pose far less of a threat today, the organization's twisted ideology lives on in the form of ISIS, Boko Haram and dozens of other terror groups.

Through it all, the United States has thankfully avoided any further large-scale terror attacks. We may be tired of war in Afghanistan, Iraq and elsewhere, but we cannot simply give up the fight. We can, however, prepare for a more peaceful future.

Before Congress are two bipartisan bills, one sponsored by Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., that would help move U.S. strategy away from direct military actions and toward attacking the terrorism at its ideological sources to prevent future attacks. The basic idea behind the proposed Global Fragility Act - H.R. 2116 and S. 727 - is to help prevent the kind of social breakdowns overseas that give rise to terror organizations.

Practically speaking, it would mean helping rebuild terror-ravaged countries, rather than bombing them, and working to prevent extremism in fragile states. The legislation would authorize the State Department and U.S. Agency for International Development to initiate a broad range of diplomatic and humanitarian efforts in at-risk countries. It would also establish a fund to help "stabilize conflict-affected areas at risk from the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria and other terrorist organizations," according to the House version.

In the long run, such an approach should be part of the bigger picture for our own security and prosperity.

And by the same token, we can't afford to let fragile states collapse in our own backyard like Venezuela, Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador.

It should be abundantly clear to the world that the United States will never shy away from military conflict when our American way of life is threatened. But, as Americans, we must also acknowledge that the ultimate victory over terror will come in winning hearts and minds, rather than expending blood and treasure.

The Times and Democrat

Sept. 4

S.C. candidates are legitimate, deserve Republican primary

National poll numbers consistently show more than 50 percent of Americans disapprove of the job being done by President Donald Trump. But the numbers may be as misleading as the popular vote outcome in the 2016 presidential election. The president is unpopular in "blue" Democratic states and quite popular in traditionally "red" Republican states.

Fifty-three percent of voters in South Carolina said they approve of Trump - and 86% of Republicans approve, according to AP VoteCast, The Associated Press' nationwide survey of the 2018 midterm electorate.

And the numbers are holding. The Winthrop Poll from April showed nearly 80% of Republican or Republican-leaning South Carolinians approve of Trump.

The numbers and the lack of Republican opposition to Trump's re-election have had Republicans here considering whether to hold a primary election in 2020.

South Carolina's GOP Chairman Drew McKissick told The Associated Press in December that the party is weighing cancellation of its February 2020 presidential primary.

"The state party and the grassroots within the state, all around the state, totally support the president," McKissick said. "The purpose of political parties is to unify around the platform and elect candidates who will advance that platform."

South Carolina Republicans have reason to be proud of their primary. Since its 1980 inception, the winner in the "first in the South" primary has become the eventual Republican nominee in all but one year. Republican nominee Mitt Romney finished second behind winner Newt Gingrich in 2012. And in some years, the primary has been critical in reinvigorating the campaign of the eventual nominee after early setbacks in Iowa and New Hampshire.

There is, however, precedent for not holding a primary. In 1984, the GOP called off the GOP vote as President Ronald Reagan sought a second term. The same was done when President George W. Bush was seeking a second term in 2004.

As a rule, Republican presidents fair better in the general election when they face no primary opposition. That may not be the case with Trump.

The president thrives on campaigning. If states in which he is most popular do not hold primaries, far less attention will be paid to the GOP campaign than otherwise would be the norm. And that lack of attention will come as Democrats are amid a major race for the party's nomination.

South Carolina is a key battleground for those Democrats, with the primary on Feb. 29 falling fourth on the electoral calendar. And it will be only the second primary for the field of candidates. New Hampshire votes on Feb. 11 after Iowa's caucuses on Feb. 3 and before Nevada's caucuses on Feb. 22.

The Palmetto State is awash with Democratic hopefuls while Republicans, if there is to be no primary, essentially will remain on the sidelines.

More important now, however, in the primary decision is the presence of opposition to the president. Joining former Massachusetts Gov. Bill Weld is Joe Walsh, a former Illinois congressman and tea party favorite who is now a radio talk show host. Former S.C. Congressman Mark Sanford is also testing the waters, and there remains the possibility that former Ohio Gov. John Kasich will enter the race.

The contenders may be considered long shots, but they are legitimate candidates.

Republicans have until 90 days before the primary date to notify the state whether they will be voting. In a solidly "red" state such as South Carolina with the numbers showing overwhelming support for Trump, Republicans and independents seemingly would welcome the opportunity to give the president a big primary victory.