Republican presidential hopeful Tim Scott is making the case in a new television ad running in Iowa that the United States will be a stronger nation if its elected leaders put more “faith in God” and in the “values embedded in the Gospel.”
The South Carolina senator is among a field of Republican White House hopefuls looking to carve out their own niche with the born-again and Evangelical Christians that have been traditionally the most powerful voting bloc in the GOP caucuses, which are set to kick off the nomination contest on Jan. 15.
“Our country is founded upon a Judeo-Christian rock,” Mr. Scott says in the ad, which is part of a broader $6 million buy. “Our rights don’t come from a government. They’re inalienable. They come from a Creator.”
“Jesus Christ is the Lord of my life. If we want a better America, I think it starts with faith in God and faith in each other,” he says in the ad. “We must preserve the ability to worship as we see fit.”
Mr. Scott, the sole Black Republican in the Senate, is dropping the ad ahead of the Family Leadership Summit — Principle Over Politics on Friday in Des Moines.
The event is billed as the biggest gathering of religious and social conservatives in the Midwest and is attracting a number of presidential hopefuls — including Gov. Ron DeSantis of Florida, former Vice President Mike Pence and former U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley.
Former President Donald Trump will not be there. His campaign cited a scheduling conflict.
Mr. Trump is the clear front-runner in the race and has a habit of sucking all the oxygen out of the room at most Republican events.
His absence presents Mr. Scott and the rest of the non-Trump Republicans in the race with an opportunity to provide these votes with a glimpse into how their faith guides them in the public arena and prove they will be more reliable than Mr. Trump on the key issues if they become the party’s standard bearer.
“I’m excited to join the FAMiLY Leadership Summit to talk with caucus-goers who wear their faith on their sleeves and hold Jesus in their hearts,” Mr. Scott said in a recent press release. “Iowa voters are ready to end this Biden retreat, and restore faith in America.”
Mr. Scott barely registers in the early polling. Like others in the race, he has a lot riding on the results in Iowa and has had an active presence in the state.
The 57-year-old senator has been introducing himself to voters, saying his life story — growing up in poverty to a single mother in the Deep South and rising to become a successful businessman and congressman — not only proves that the United States is not only the best nation on Earth but refutes the left-wing belief that it is fundamentally racist.
Before the Family Leader Summit, Mr. Scott plans to engage with Iowa voters earlier in the day at a town hall meeting in Davenport.
Mr. Scott graduated from Charleston Southern University and is a member of Seacoast Church in Charleston.
• Seth McLaughlin can be reached at smclaughlin@washingtontimes.com.
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