The South Carolina primary in the U.S. presidential campaign will be held in four days.* A battle over race is unfolding among the presidential candidates from both the Democratic and the Republican parties. Republican candidates Ted Cruz and Marco Rubio are both fighting for the Latino votes in South Carolina, as they compete for second place. Democratic candidates Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders are aiming for the African-American vote, each attempting to take the lead.
In addition, Republican Jeb Bush even introduced members of the Bush family in hopes of boosting his election chances and squeezing into the top three spots.
The latest CBS News poll indicates that Republican candidate Donald Trump and Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton are both significantly ahead of their respective opponents, which is allowing each of their respective opponents to feel extreme pressure. Trump, with 42 percent of the voters, is leading while Cruz is at 20 percent, and Hillary, with 59 percent, is in the lead over Sanders who has 40 percent.
During the debate last Saturday, “honesty” was the hottest topic among the Republican pack. Rubio changed from his previously moderate position to one of attacking Cruz’s “dishonesty” with full force, while Cruz took aim at Trump, calling him the most dishonest candidate, to which Trump replied by strongly criticizing Cruz for being the most “dishonest person … in politics.” Today, Trump even attacked Cruz for being “the single biggest liar I’ve ever come across.”
Trump also did not spare the Bush family, strongly attacking former President George W. Bush for lying. After presenting his mother Barbara Bush earlier to help out, Jeb Bush then introduced his older brother George W. Bush today in South Carolina to support him. The usually low-profile George W. Bush has plans to help with the election in order to rescue his brother’s situation. Today, the unforgiving Trump mockingly said, “He tried the mother … now he’s bringing in his brother.”
On the Democratic side, Clinton, who was utterly defeated in New Hampshire, is attempting to regain the lead in South Carolina. Clinton’s trump card is the African-American vote in South Carolina.
Although Sanders has fully focused on securing African-American votes in South Carolina in recent days by continuously denouncing a white police officer for fatally shooting a black man, African-American organizations deemed Clinton as already having a favorable track record and solid relationships in the African-American community, while saying they have no knowledge of Sanders.
*Editor’s note: This article was written and translated prior to the South Carolina primary held on Feb. 20, 2016, in which Donald Trump claimed victory, and Jeb Bush dropped out of the race. The South Carolina primary for the Democratic candidates takes place Feb. 27, 2016.
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