Latest / BOB DOLE : 1995 Clinton's Comeback / Politically Speaking (History Collection 5, The Lander University Forum Newspaper) Phil Gramm Comes to Greenwood Wendy Gramm visits Greenwood County November 13 1995

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Politically Speaking (History Collection 5, The Lander University Forum Newspaper) Phil Gramm Comes to Greenwood Wendy Gramm visits Greenwood County November 13 1995 · BOB DOLE : 1995 Clinton's Comeback

• 0:41
  SPEAKER_00: The Graham campaign makes several stops in Greenwood, November 13th, 1995, by Randall Wallace, staff writer, Phil Graham.
• 0:51
  SPEAKER_00: The Greenwood County Republican Convention was held recently with a presidential candidate for a keynote speaker, a United States Congressman speaking along with a lander alumni elected Greenwood County Chairman.
• 1:02
  SPEAKER_00: On hand for the event at the Greenwood County Courthouse were State Representative Jim Clobber, SC State Treasurer Richard Extram, GOP 3rd District Chairman Ellie Litt, State GOP Chairman Henry McMaster, U.S.
• 1:14
  SPEAKER_00: Congressman Lindsey Graham, and presidential candidate and U.S.
• 1:18
  SPEAKER_00: Senator Phil Graham.
• 1:19
  SPEAKER_00: Senator Graham entered the hall to a standing ovation and addressed the crowd for about 30 minutes.
• 1:25
  SPEAKER_00: He began the address by talking about the record-setting night on the Senate floor, in which the Senate voted 39 times until well past midnight.
• 1:35
  SPEAKER_00: Quote, we passed a contract with America in the U.S.
• 1:38
  SPEAKER_00: Senate.
• 1:38
  SPEAKER_00: Promises made, promises kept, quote, unquote.
• 1:42
  SPEAKER_00: He also said that South Carolina Senator Strom Thurman was as fresh on the last vote as he was on the first.
• 1:48
  SPEAKER_00: Graham said of his political past, quote, 14 years ago I was a foot soldier in the Reagan Revolution.
• 1:55
  SPEAKER_00: As president, I want to finish it.
• 1:57
  SPEAKER_00: I want less government and more freedom, unquote.
• 2:00
  SPEAKER_00: While discussing what he calls Washington's wasteful spending programs, Graham quipped, have you ever noticed that when you're going the wrong way down the road, that speeding up won't help?
• 2:12
  SPEAKER_00: The senator said he would not vote for any compromises of the Republican budget because he said as at the current rate of spending, every child born today will have to pay$187,000 in taxes on the interest on the national debt.
• 2:27
  SPEAKER_00: That is not on the economic suicide, that is immoral, and so help me God, I'm gonna stop that from happening.
• 2:34
  SPEAKER_00: Unquote.
• 2:35
  SPEAKER_00: He said that he hoped that by passing the line item veto, the president would cut a little bit of pork or a little piece of bacon out of the spending at least.
• 2:45
  SPEAKER_00: But he added, if I'm president, I will have to, I'll use the line item veto to cut the whole hog.
• 2:53
  SPEAKER_00: Senator Graham also made the solemn pledge to the Greenwood group, I'll make balancing the budget my top priority in my first term, or I won't run for re-election.
• 3:02
  SPEAKER_00: Senator Graham told the crowd that what separated him from President Clinton and the other candidates is, quote, I believe in something and I am not afraid to stand alone for my principles, even if they are unpopular.
• 3:15
  SPEAKER_00: I will cut no deals with America's future, unquote.
• 3:20
  SPEAKER_00: The senator also said that he was pro-life on abortion and that he realized that this was a controversial issue, but that he felt there was enough of a consensus to stop public funding of abortions and the groups that advocate it.
• 3:32
  SPEAKER_00: After Graham spoke, he was asked if he had a special message he wanted to send to the lander students, and he said, quote, my message is this be involved in politics, help elect me president, help save the country, but remember your mama and daddy are paying your tuition.
• 3:47
  SPEAKER_00: Don't squander this opportunity.
• 3:49
  SPEAKER_00: Study hard and make good grades.
• 3:51
  SPEAKER_00: I say this as a father who makes this lecture often, unquote.
• 3:55
  SPEAKER_00: Soon after Senator Graham left, a vote was held to elect the new Greenwood County Chairman.
• 4:00
  SPEAKER_00: The winner was a former Lander University College Republican chairman and a Lander alumni, Trey Ward.
• 4:07
  SPEAKER_00: I started my political career at Lander.
• 4:09
  SPEAKER_00: I later decided that politics is an advocation, not a vocation.
• 4:13
  SPEAKER_00: Lander was the best years of my life, and I learned a lot from the political science department, and I still use that today, unquote.
• 4:21
  SPEAKER_00: Mr.
• 4:21
  SPEAKER_00: Ward's plans as the new county chairman are, quote, to put the county's fundraising back in order.
• 4:27
  SPEAKER_00: It hasn't been functioning well, and also wants to move the party into a modern politics using things like polling, direct mail, phone banking, and modern technologies.
• 4:37
  SPEAKER_00: He hopes to help the college Republicans here at Lander and get them involved in the upcoming campaign.
• 4:42
  SPEAKER_00: Several Lander students attended the convention, including Adam Meyrick, Diane Kirkkonic, Ryan Modum, and Randall Wallace.
• 4:49
  SPEAKER_00: The convention also had a presidential straw poll of the people in attendance.
• 4:54
  SPEAKER_00: Senator Phil Graham won with 53 votes.
• 4:56
  SPEAKER_00: Senate Majority Leader Robert Dole finished second with 33 votes, followed by Alan Keyes with 14.
• 5:01
  SPEAKER_00: Steve Forbes 7, Pat Buchanan and Richard Luger with 3.
• 5:05
  SPEAKER_00: Colin Powell and Lamar Lanzander with 2.
• 5:07
  SPEAKER_00: Bob Dornan, Ross Perrow, and Duke Greenrich all got one vote apiece.
• 5:12
  SPEAKER_00: Wendy Graham.
• 5:13
  SPEAKER_00: Dr.
• 5:13
  SPEAKER_00: Wendy Graham, the wife of one of the leading candidates for the presidency, Senator Phil Graham, was in Greenwood County for a midday luncheon earlier last week.
• 5:22
  SPEAKER_00: The Third District Republican Party invited the Lander College Republicans, and Dr.
• 5:26
  SPEAKER_00: Graham was the guest of the Graham campaign's three county chairmen, Ellie Litz, Norma Curtis, and Juanita Hughes.
• 5:34
  SPEAKER_00: Dr.
• 5:34
  SPEAKER_00: Graham arrived early for the luncheon and talked to several people before the event.
• 5:38
  SPEAKER_00: She asked about the Lander University College Republicans and about the political activity in general of Lander students.
• 5:44
  SPEAKER_00: She said that she hoped they would become involved in the upcoming campaign year.
• 5:49
  SPEAKER_00: She stood for several photographs with the arriving guest and answered several questions about hers and her husband's viewpoints on several issues.
• 5:57
  SPEAKER_00: Dr.
• 5:57
  SPEAKER_00: Graham addressed the gathering for about 20 minutes, discussing her beliefs as to why her husband, Senator Phil Graham, should be elected president of the United States.
• 6:07
  SPEAKER_00: Dr.
• 6:07
  SPEAKER_00: Graham said of her husband, Phil is not afraid to stand alone for what he believes in.
• 6:12
  SPEAKER_00: She also said the Senator, on his first day on the Senate Finance Committee, fought for and got a$245 billion tax cut that the Republicans had promised.
• 6:22
  SPEAKER_00: She said that Phil Graham would balance the budget and pointed out that the last time we had a balanced budget interest rates were at 3%.
• 6:30
  SPEAKER_00: If we can do that again, we can get America back.
• 6:33
  SPEAKER_00: Dr.
• 6:33
  SPEAKER_00: Graham also said that she was pro-life and the only candidate's wife that has gone on the record and said that she was, was that, was her.
• 6:43
  SPEAKER_00: Dr.
• 6:43
  SPEAKER_00: Graham gave the crowd a tour of her family's history in America.
• 6:47
  SPEAKER_00: Her grandparents came to the United States at the turn of the century from Korea to harvest sugarcane in Hawaii.
• 6:52
  SPEAKER_00: They did not come here looking for more government, but looking for more freedom and opportunity.
• 6:58
  SPEAKER_00: Her father would go on to college and become an engineer, getting a job as a sugarcane company in Hawaii, the first Asian American to become an officer of a sugarcane company in the United States.
• 7:09
  SPEAKER_00: She was born in Hawaii, married Phil Graham 25 years ago, and has two sons.
• 7:14
  SPEAKER_00: She also has a PhD in economics.
• 7:17
  SPEAKER_00: When her husband came to Washington as a member of Congress, she got a job in the Reagan administration staff.
• 7:23
  SPEAKER_00: She moved up to the chairmanship of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission and under President George Bush.
• 7:29
  SPEAKER_00: In this position, she oversaw the trading of the same sugar cane her grandparents came to America to harvest.
• 7:36
  SPEAKER_00: Of her family's story, she said this quote, that really is the story of America in action, and what other our country can do if you'll let it.