S. Carolina looks like Clinton country as she makes final push

McClatchy Washington Bureau (TNS)

COLUMBIA, S.C.

Hillary Clinton made a final pitch before South Carolina begins voting on Saturday, telling an outdoor rally in the state’s capital city that she wants the results “to send a strong signal.”

Joined by her husband, Bill Clinton, the two were introduced as the 42nd and 45th presidents. Bill Clinton did the warm-up for his wife, calling the visit a “bit of a homecoming” for the couple.

He noted his wife first came to South Carolina to help end the practice of putting black teenagers in prison with adults.

“And she’s been making things happen ever since,” he said.

Earlier, candidate Clinton promised an audience at a historically black college in Orangeburg that she’ll preserve President Barack Obama’s legacy.

“I am a proud defender of President Obama,” Clinton told a crowd in the gymnasium at South Carolina State University, just minutes before Bernie Sanders, her Democratic primary rival, took to the stage at nearby Claflin University. “We are not going to let Republicans rip away the progress we made.”

Polls show Clinton with a wide lead over Sanders, and a decisive win is likely to give her campaign momentum heading into Super Tuesday, when 12 mostly Southern states and one territory vote.

She focused mostly on Republicans in a 15-minute speech.

At South Carolina State University, entertainer Star Jones repeated Clinton’s claim at a recent debate that being a woman means she’s not part of the political establishment.

“We have had 44 male presidents of the U.S.; that’s called establishment,” Jones said. “Forty-four boys is enough. It’s time for Madam President.”

Clinton and Sanders have made aggressive efforts to court black voters, who account for 55 percent of registered Democrats in the state. But not all students in the audience said they had made up their minds.

Jayah Washington, 21, a senior studying speech pathology, said she likes Clinton’s focus on issues important to the black community, including police-involved shootings and the Flint, Mich., water crisis.

But she said she was hoping to hear more from Clinton about her plans to make college affordable.

“I like Sanders talking about free tuition,” she said. “But even if he gets into office, I think it would be hard to do.”

Clinton continues to hold a commanding lead in the South Carolina primary with most polls showing her leading Sanders by double digits.