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South Carolina Candidate's Comments Raise Questions

COLUMBIA, South Carolina – As reported by the Associated Press: "In a campaign ad that began airing last weekend, U.S. Senate candidate and former Gov. David Beasley says he learned a lot from his failed re-election bid in 1998.

"After a gaffe in Tuesday night's debate with U.S. Rep. Jim DeMint, though, observers wonder whether he learned enough.

"…On Tuesday, Beasley drew criticism for a new exaggeration. He was asked for his stance on expanding bingo operations for the Catawba Indian Nation.

"'I don't think there is probably anybody in this country that has paid a higher price ... than I have when I took on the gambling issue in South Carolina,' he said. 'They spent 20 to 30 million dollars against me in my gubernatorial campaign.'

"…Observers say there's no way that much money was dropped in the campaign - legally or otherwise.

"… 'I think David's gone over the top here a little bit,' said Dick Harpootlian, Erwin's predecessor and the man most responsible for raising the money to help beat Beasley.

"At best, all spending in the campaign, including independent video gambling industry spending, came to around $10 million, Harpootlian said. Some estimates have put gambling-interest spending in the 1998 election as high as $3 million…"

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