USC’s former Student Body Vice President Katie Thompson knows a thing or two about political scandal.
During last year’s Student Government elections, her campaign was the only one charged with an election violation; then, a semester after taking office, she resigned after being confronted by The Daily Gamecock with evidence of her involvement in the August fraternity rush controversy.
But though Thompson may no longer be involved in SG, she’s not out of politics.
The third-year public relations student is currently volunteering for a national campaign effort of a presidential candidate who’s embroiled in some controversy himself: former Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich.
With his success in recent debates and a Thursday endorsement from Texas governor and primary dropout Rick Perry, Gingrich has made a surge in the Palmetto State — the most recent Rasmussen poll shows him taking the lead from Republican front-runner Mitt Romney in popularity among South Carolina voters.
But Gingrich still struggles with those who question his values, citing reports regarding extramarital affairs and an interview in which his second wife said he’d asked for an “open marriage.”
Gingrich has largely refused to comment on the affairs, calling them personal and unrelated to his electability as a candidate.
Speaking to naysayers, Perry reached out to voters, acknowledging that Gingrich isn’t perfect.
“But who among us is?” Perry asked. “The fact is, there is forgiveness for those who seek God.”
Thompson, the national co-chairman of Students for Newt, as well as the organization’s regional director for South Carolina, understands the criticisms but said she agrees with Perry’s sentiments.
“It does matter,” Thompson said. “Those things should absolutely come into the conversation. But they happened before I was born. I know what happened; I did the research. It’s almost nice to know your candidate isn’t perfect.
“That’s the beauty of how we elect our president. I want to judge my candidate on whether they can help me and this country. I do believe [the personal questions] will be a factor for some voters, but evaluating these candidates, the question is: Who can beat our incumbent president? Social issues will dissolve around that one.”
Like Perry did in his endorsement, Thompson stressed Gingrich’s conservative credentials as a key voting issue.
“Newt constantly profiles himself as a (Ronald) Reagan conservative,” Thompson said. “He has the ideas and solutions to keep pushing us forward. We need to, as a country, keep creatively thinking about moving forward. Newt thinks outside the box.”
More specifically, Thompson pointed out Gingrich’s Social Security plan for young people.
“His ideas for personal savings and personal investment account for students are very personalized to what we’re looking for,” she said. “We’re concerned about [our] future; we’re concerned about jobs. Debt and unemployment is a huge issue. I feel more assured that when these ideas come forward I’ll have a secure future, which I haven’t felt confident about since (President Barack) Obama got elected.”
Thompson has volunteered for the Gingrich campaign since November and said it has taken her to about 20 campaign events across the state in Columbia, Myrtle Beach, Charleston, Aiken and Bluffton.
She expects the Saturday night’s election to go well for Gingrich.
“I’m confident it’s going to be a Gingrich win,” she said. “South Carolina is where campaigns come to die. The other candidates are falling into line; I have full confidence that they’ll fall into line behind Newt.”
What about after this weekend? The SG presidential elections are next month — will we be seeing another Thompson campaign?
“Hell no,” she said, with a laugh. “I had my opportunity, and I did what I came to do. I like to think and know I made an impact.”