Colbert Sought Naming Rights For South Carolina Primary
Imagine what could have been: Iowa votes for Ron Paul! New Hampshire breaks for Mitt Romney! And the entire Republican presidential contest switches gears and focuses on ... The Colbert Super PAC South Carolina Republican Primary?
It was nearly the case, Stephen Colbert revealed today.
In an op-ed in The State newspaper, the Comedy Central star reveals he held serious talks with South Carolina Republican Party officials about helping them fund the state's first-in-the-South primary through his super PAC, to the tune of $400,000.
That's no small offer: Until 2008, the state Republican Party had paid for the entire primary process, renting the polling places and voting machines, printing the ballots and providing the volunteers. In 2008, the state paid for both parties' competitive primaries. This year, the state GOP looked like it would be on the hook once again.
"So I called up the South Carolina GOP and said, 'How much cash would you have to raise to keep your promise to counties? Off the record; I'll never tell a soul.' They said, '$400,000,'" Colbert writes in The State today. "I said, 'I can cover that. No strings attached.'"
"Of course, I can't offer that kind of no-strings-attached-money without getting something in return. I told them I wanted the naming rights to the primary, and a non-binding referendum on the ballot. If they weren't prepared to horse trade for these two requests, they should never call me back. Well, they didn't call me back. They got on a plane and flew to New York to make the deal. Because money talks, B.S. walks, and $400,000 flies business class."
The South Carolina Republican Party confirmed they had been engaged in talks with Colbert, talks sources said have continued for months. And party chairman Chad Connolley did visit Colbert in New York, a spokesman confirmed.
"Stephen Colbert, the private citizen, called out of the clear blue and made an unsolicited offer to help his home state. We were intrigued and met with him, but also wary," said Matt Moore, the South Carolina Republican Party's executive director.
Colbert says he told the state party he would give them the money if they would brand the event "The Colbert Super PAC South Carolina Republican Primary" on all press releases and official signage, and if they would add a non-binding referendum on the question of whether corporations are people or "only people are people."
But a state Supreme Court ruling squashed Colbert's dreams, leaving counties on the hook to pay for the primary instead of the state party. The court also pulled Colbert's referendum from the ballot.
"The S.C. Republican Party no longer needed my $400,000, but being Southern gentlemen, they graciously offered to still want it. They would sell me the naming rights, if instead of giving my cash to the counties, I handed it directly to the party. I asked in return that they petition the court to get the referendum back on the ballot. They said no. I offered less money, $200,000, since I was getting only half of our original agreement. They said no," Colbert wrote. "If nothing else good comes from this, we have at least narrowed down the exact value of sanctity -- somewhere between $200,000 and $400,000."
But, says Moore, nothing actually went into writing. "We determined it was not in the State Party's best interests to accept Mr. Colbert's offers," he said. "Everything was not 'agreed to.' We did not sign his proposed contract. Despite our repeatedly saying 'no,' Stephen Colbert, the comedian, seems intent on being involved. It's exactly why we were wary in the first place."
"The State Party will not be involved with Stephen Colbert going forward," Moore said.
The South Carolina GOP may not answer when he calls, but we'll bet they'll be the butt of a few jokes on Colbert's show in the next few weeks.
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