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Updated 12:44 p.m. - South Carolina Sen. Jim DeMint, an influential Republican who has helped prod his party rightward, will step down from his seat in January to become the next director of the Heritage Foundation, a conservative think tank.
NBC's Chuck Todd and Kelly O'Donnell discuss the departure of Tea Party favorite from the US Senate, and possible replacements South Carolina Gov. Haley could pick.
DeMint announced Thursday that he planned to succeed Ed Feulner, the longtime head of the Heritage Foundation, next month. The news of his departure was first reported by the Wall Street Journal.
"I'm leaving the Senate now, but I'm not leaving the fight. I've decided to join The Heritage Foundation at a time when the conservative movement needs strong leadership in the battle of ideas," DeMint said in a statement. "No organization is better equipped to lead this fight and I believe my experience in public office as well as in the private sector as a business owner will help Heritage become even more effective in the years to come."
The Heritage Foundation said DeMint's "passion for rigorous research, his dedication to the principles of our nation’s founding, and his ability to translate policy ideas into action make him an ideal choice to lead Heritage to even greater success."
Since being elected to the Senate in 2004, DeMint has not-infrequently clashed with Republican leaders on specific pieces of legislation and the overall direction of the party.
His conservative obstinance made him a hero among the party's grassroots. DeMint wielded that influence through his Senate Conservatives Fund, supporting more ideologically pure candidates over candidates deemed more politically-able by Republican Party leaders.
DeMint had even been rumored in 2011 to be thinking of challenging Kentucky Sen. Mitch McConnell for the position of Republican leader, though he eventually declined.
Among DeMint's successes through his Senate Conservatives Fund was the championing of senators like Florida's Marco Rubio, Kentucky's Rand Paul, and Utah's Mike Lee. Among DeMint's failures were the two Senate candidates -- Richard Mourdock in Indiana and Todd Akin in Missouri -- who lost their 2012 bids in the wake of controversial remarks about rape.
"I think if you're interested in having Republicans control the Senate you have to back Republicans who fit their state and who can win in a general election not just in the primary," Maine Sen. Susan Collins, a moderate Republican, told NBC News about whether there were any lessons from DeMint's tenure on Capitol Hill.
J. Scott Applewhite / AP
Sen. Jim DeMint, R-S.C.
DeMint had said he would leave the Senate in 2016, following the completion of his second term, meaning his departure in January will be ahead of schedule.
South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley, another conservative Republican who enjoys grassroots support, will be allowed to name a replacement, who would have to face a special election in 2014 to serve out the remaining two years of DeMint's term. A variety of Republicans could jockey to replace DeMint, from Haley herself to a couple of her allies -- Tedd Pitts, her deputy chief of staff, or State Rep. Nathan Ballentine -- to U.S. Rep. Tim Scott or other members of the state's GOP establishment.
"Looking forward, Governor Haley will now appoint a new Senator, and I know she will make the right choice both for South Carolina and the nation," Scott Said in a statement.
South Carolina Sen. Lindsey Graham, a relatively more moderate Republican who's expected to face a primary challenge, is also up for re-election that fall.
There is also the broader question of who, among the 45 Senate Republicans, will seize the mantle of conservative leadership in the upper chamber. Several of the senators whom DeMint helped elect have modeled their actions after the Palmetto State senator, creating their own political action committees and breaking on occasion with the GOP leadership.
NBC's Tom Curry contributed.
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Probably the reason he is leaving in January, as of January the senate gets a big raise.even if he works for another company he will get a percentage of his senate salary.
at 62 he can retire and get 80 percent of his salary, not bad for goof off like DeMint Mr no voter, I get every month the senate voting record DeMint votes no on 99 % of bills.
Well, bye
think tank and conservative don't go together unless they are working on thinking into a box.
HA - To say the Heritage Foundation is a think tank is like saying a hotdog stuffed crusted meat lovers pizza deep fried in bacon and lard is health food.
Hmmmmmmmmmmmmm, that sounds really tasty. LOL
@Ozzie - it did make me wonder what that would actually taste like!!!
deep fried batter coated BUTTER
the tea party will rise again , not for right wing socialist thought but for sound economic policies , we must stop spending, we are spending our way to be like greece. We need to control public pensions, hold down medicare and
have SS come into effect when people turn 70. fiscal discipiline regardless of party
The tea party brand is toast ... ruined by the crazies. However, we do need reform in the worst way. Military spending is out of control, costs of the drug war, "Homeland Security" ha ha, Medicare drug prices, farm subsidies, oil industry subsidies, Wall Street subsidies, hedge fund subsidies (Romney tax rate 13.9%!), industries that privatize profits while socializing costs (polluters, Walmart, et al). They're all part of common sense reform. The problem is the lack of common sense politicians across both aisles willing to do the heavy lifting for the American people. They're almost all bot & paid for and we put up with it. So we have no one to blame but ourselves ... we get the politicians we deserve.
I have to agree at least in part with your view. The country is in need of some centrist candidate options from BOTH Parties. The existing situation is detrimental to all citizens. Spending has to be controlled, but it needs to be controlled with a social conscience. Military and other government contracts should not be cash cows for contract winners. Military contracts should never accept 'cost over-run' gouging. I am not an isolationist, but I think we need to feed and provide healthcare for Americans BEFORE we provide money, weapons, food, medicine, et. al. to other nations. Our soldiers should be paid more and their service related injuries should be state-of-the-art. We can not expect reasonableness if we continue to send only Left-wing and Right-wing extremists to Washington to make policy.
PAT GIRL, quit kidding, this IS your job, because I notice that you're still here making comments later. LOL that's OK, you gotta have them little fantasies, I guess.
Good riddance to the disgusting punk moron. He's leaving for one reason, money.
I am glad to read that Senator is going in the tank.
maybe he'll even get his turn in the barrel, too
Good riddance to another corporate whore.
that's PROSTITUTE - Politicians NEVER give it away FREE.
Hallelujah and amen!!!!! he's gone!
What a christmas present for SC! He never did anything for my district or the state anyway.I guess when you're tring to be king why bother with the little people.Now if we can recall or impeach Haley for giving our SS#'s to the Russians.
she can solve your problem the easy way - she will nominate HERSELF to replace the POS
Wow, from all this hatred toward anyone that has a conservative view point is rather disturbing. Every last one of you that thinks this way, say good by to The United States of America, the Land of the Free and Home of the Brave. You are all sell outs for your new "savior" and "rock star appealing leaders. "But wow he sounds great and gives us all that free guv-ment money". SAD! This course we are on will remove anyuones ability to think freely, seek their own chioce for health care, you wont be able to own any sort of weapon (rifle or hand gun), and everything you say against this regime will be deemed a "terrorist act".
Long live everyone with conservative beliefs and all you haters and "if it feels good do it" people, be damned!
"all this hatred toward anyone that has a conservative view point is rather disturbing."
Just as all of your hatred toward anyone that has a liberal view point is rather disturbing.
the problem with "Konservatives" (spelling intentional) is that they have NO (as in ZERO) compassion.
They are generally the most SMUG, self centered people I know (and I know a whole bunch of them - some tending to like "BIRCH" as their favorite tree)
Like it or not, with restrictions on availability of BIRTH CONTROL, even more on abortion (generally made by MALES, BTW), reduction in support for education (Frothy said it was SNOBbish to support higher education for the masses) and a WHOLE lot of other items - the right-wing-nut "representatives and senators" are causing the very downfall they decry.
It's one thing to REDUCE "pork barrel" and quite another to cut off needed services.
So in closing - you can always "be damned" yourself. Remember - you will have brought it upon YOURSELF, BY YOURSELF
fork - who advocated restrictions on the availability of birth control? That seems to be a myth unless you a policy introduced that woulimit availability. What I heard was that people should pay for their own birth control. There is a difference between support for education and continuing to feed the trough of education without increased results. And, what exactly does the federal department of education do? Why is this a federal agency?
Some of what you determine are "needed" services, I'd bet are wanted services. Furthermore, they are not services that should be provided at the federal level.
It is this kind of thinking that it is "OK to slaughter unborn babies" so "I can screw what ever and when ever and not have any reprocussions" that will destroy this country. This is an extension of not caring for human life. Oh and it is not the publics responsibility to fund this debotchery.
Just becouse someone is conservative does not mean they are smug. It means they see ther is a higher power to answer to.
As for seperation of church and state; this was about practicing religion in other forms and faiths other than the Kings Church. It is NOT the seperation of God and Country. However if you dont believe in anything you were also welcome. Keep in mind "Don't push you lack of faith on those that do".
God Bless America!
Susan Collins doing squat thrusts over a fire hydrant would make me extremely happy. I cannot stand this thick tongued, speech defective woman who has made a career of being a politician instead of a statesperson. Watcing and listening to her makes me want to barf. Snowe is gone and Collins needs to go also.
Attack her politics, fine. But attack her speech impediment? No class ... your mother didn't raise you right.
I tend to agree - I remember a line from "I Claudius" about a speech impediment where he said "Isn't what a man s-s-says more im-m-m-portant than how he says it?"
I don't like her politics - and I didn't like Failin Palin either - but TRIG was entirely "off limits".
Any chance DeMint will take his 534 buddies with him?!?!
That would be the BEST thing to happen to this country.
Good riddance to one of the worst partisans in the history of the US Senate. Don't let the door hit your arse on your way out. Maybe South Carolina will vote in someone less problematic next time ... but probably not.
Thank goodness!! And not a moment too soon for America and its people!
Next, to get rid of McConnell. Then maybe our Congress will stand a chance of doing the People's work for what's best for America and its people for a change, instead of only for the rich and the Tea Party.Plus, take out a ton of hate that infects the Congress even more than the Tea Party.
I am truly glad to see DeMinted go! And I can't think of anything that deserves him more than the Tea Party.
And he will retire.........when?
A tea party member going to a think tank should first realize he and his ilk IS the problem with the GOP. They still DO NOT get it.
DeMint is one of the brightest and most compelling members of the Senate and has for a while now, expressed his conviction that carerr politicians are a problem, rather than a solution, to the leadership vacuum we face.
Maybe Nikki Haley will appoint herself, like former SC Gov. Fritz Hollings did. She seems to be a person the national media likes to claim to be influential, so SC voters may have more exposure to our general political bent. Tim Scott would be an excellent choice as well, maybe even better.
Now that the Republican Party is a dinosaur, the only ones left are the dodo's, and we thought they were extinct!
Yeaaaaaaaaaaaah!
First, Arthur66 should be issued a letter of censure for xeroxing mushuluu's comment and changing it. A 2 year old at a Tea Party? A teenager getting her kicks? A treasurer or current vice-president of the Heritage Foundation? Where did she leave her etch-a-sketch? Get an etch-a-sketch! Would someone please demonstrate the etch-a-sketch for Arthur666?
DeMint reminds me of another classy Republican who leaves important work unfinished, the former mayor of Wausilla, Alaska, Mrs. Palin. So cute! SuperStar!
P.S. Historical note: In the 1700's, slavery spread like a disease from South Carolina into Georgia, then the Indians had to move to Oklahoma. What I'm trying to say is that South Carolina has probably the prettiest state flag of the 50 with the moon and palm, but they have never been known for their intellectual contributions to American life. Pro-business, the first steam locomotive was trialed in South Carolina, it was a more efficient way to cart the slaves around.
Others have already pointed out that the esteemed governor of S.C. will select his seccessor, so my state will simply get more of the same. I don't expect any changes in this state. South Carolina continues to be ranked dead last in education and my county is ranked dead last in wages. That's right, dead last in the entire country. Yep, tea party politics is working great for us. The things that SC excels in are spousal abuse, people living in mobile homes and high crime. Still, the people in our state vote 2-1 for the same "conservative" law makers. I have no idea why.
Why do I stay here? I have a lot of family ties, but when I retire, it probably won't be here.
No great loss. Don't let the door hit ya in the ass on the way out.
"the conservative movement needs strong leadership in the battle of ideas," DeMint said in a statement.
Or, in other words, figuring out how to deceive people better, advance their voter suppression programs and buy more influence. They have no "ideas", only new ways to lie about the same old crap.
Pay - You've got the GOP pegged absolutely correct!