No mystery here in my mind.
The unknown Alvin Greene won simply because he was not the Democratic Party's candidate.
House Majority Whip Jim Clyburn is calling for an investigation.... not into the election results, not because he claims there was some type of election fraud at the voting booths, in fact, I haven't seen one accusation that states the voters did not actually cast votes tallying 59 percent of the overall vote, for Alvin Greene instead of the candidate the Democratic Party itself backed.
Clyburn claims there were shenanigans going on, that Greene was some type of plant, implying but not outright accusing the Republicans of planting Alvin Greene.
Why would they? DeMint, by all accounts was going to sail into reelection no matter who won the Democratic primary.
But just for giggles, say someone, anyone, planted Greene, then forgot about him and did nothing else to help him win the primary... the people of South Carolina, 59 percent worth, voted for the completely unknown Greene, above the party choice, Rawl.
That is the bottom line the Democrats continue to try to distract the story from and avoid.
Greene has pending legal issues, which he might or might not be indicted for, but until then, he is the voter's choice, unlikely as that seems and unless someone is going to investigate voter fraud at the booths, claiming that voters did not cast those votes, Greene will be the candidate going up against DeMint in November.
Because despite the State Democratic Party Chair Carol Fowler requesting Greene withdraw, Greene has refused to do so, which means his name will be on the ballot in November.
Greene's alleged crime, which again, he has not been indicted for is described by his accuser in Wapo:
In a telephone interview from her Charleston home, Greene's accuser -- Camille McCoy, 19 -- says she didn't know that Greene was running.
"I really wish I'd known before the election, so I could have said something so that people would have known who they were voting for."
She says Greene asked her to look at pornography on his screen at a computer lab in a University of South Carolina dormitory and suggested, "Let's go to your room."
Showing an adult (over 18) pictures she considered to be pornography, and asking to go to her room. No wonder the state hasn't pursued charges.
Another tidbit from that Wapo piece.
The University of South Carolina confirms that Greene graduated in 2000 with a degree in political science. The Pentagon confirms that he served in the Army, and in the Army and Air Force national guards. Although Greene has not boasted of winning awards, the Pentagon says he was granted the Air Force Good Conduct Medal, National Defense Service Medal, Global War on Terrorism Service Medal and Korean Defense Service Medal.
Here are some questions Clyburn should be investigating.
How did the party itself not bother with a background check? How smart of a candidate was Rawl to not bother doing even a cursory check into Greene as his challenger in the primary?
Back to the Post and Courier piece which answers that.
The day after the election, Rawl canceled a fundraising event he had set for today for his expected November campaign and kicked himself for not investigating his opponent's background. "I feel kind of silly that we didn't check all of that, but then again, why would we?" he said. "I never met him, never saw a sign, never saw a bumper sticker."
Making a big deal about no signs, no website, no bumper stickers, isn't exactly smart either because it proves that Greene won for no other reason than he wasn't Rawl and he wasn't the Democratic Party candidate.
[Update] One of Greene's media interviews, with Shep Smith, below. (8 minute video)
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