Saturday, Oct. 24, 2009

Dawson: McBride places presidential debates at risk

If Myrtle Beach wants to host internationally televised presidential debates before the 2012 election, it would be a "risky choice'' to elect Mark McBride as mayor, a former high-level Republican official said Thursday.

McBride, the city's former mayor and one of five seeking the nonpartisan post, could not be reached for comment.

Katon Dawson, former state GOP chairman who missed by eight votes becoming the national party's leader, made the remarks while he was in town to receive an award from the Grand Strand Business Association for his work to bring the presidential candidate debates to Myrtle Beach in 2008.

He said he did not come to speak about the campaign, but had been following the city race closely and when he was asked his opinion, he gave it.

The Myrtle Beach Area Chamber of Commerce calculated that the debates had a publicity value of $18 million and an economic impact of $12 million, said Brad Dean, the organization's president.

Dawson did not comment on the other candidates or specifically endorse incumbent John Rhodes, but said he remembers past controversies when McBride was mayor, such as a fistfight during a council meeting.

Such actions do not reflect well on the city or on the party if it were to hold more presidential debates in Myrtle Beach, Dawson said.

The city got international attention during the debates and can't afford to risk that new image by taking a step backward into controversial politics, he said.

He and other national GOP officials did careful background work before scheduling the 2008 debates to make sure nothing unfavorable about Myrtle Beach or its officials would be turned up by the national or international media, because they did not want anything to come up to make the party look bad and draw attention from the debates.

Dawson is still working as a volunteer in the GOP's effort to regain the party's control of Congress and the White House, and consults on events such as the debates held in Myrtle Beach. He is also working to see that South Carolina retains its key role in the nominating process with its early primary, he said.

The primary debates for the GOP nomination will be in the spotlight in the next race because the Democrats will nominate Obama for re-election, Dawson said.

In 2008, the S.C. presidential primary was held in January. Myrtle Beach snagged one of two GOP debates prior to that primary, and when the event had to be rescheduled, the city and its backers were able to pull it off.

That's because of the abundance of rooms in the area, and also because of the city's connection with the convention center, Dawson said.

It took a city council and mayor working smoothly together to make the arrangements, he said. He does not believe the party would have the same assurances of smooth operation if McBride were in office, he said.