text: — Nancy Mace, the first woman to graduate from The Citadel, and state Sen. Lee Bright, one of the Legislatures more outspoken libertarians, say they will announce soon that they will run against U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham in next years Republican primary. 
   
   The two challengers would join Richard Cash, an Easley businessman who lost a 2010 Republican congressional runoff, in trying to block Graham from winning a third six-year term in the Senate. 
   
   However, a large field of libertarian opponents could help Graham by splintering Tea Party voters among his challengers, S.C. political scientists said. If Im Lindsey Graham, I want two or three people opposing me, Citadel political scientist Scott Buchanan said. 
   
   On her website, Mace said Thursday that she plans to make her announcement at 9 a.m. Saturday at a GOP breakfast in her hometown of Goose Creek. 
   
   Mace, who runs a Charleston public relations agency that has done political work, said she would talk about her campaign then. The 35-year-old political newcomer has said for months that she was mulling a run against Graham. The Seneca Republican has been targeted by Tea Party followers because, they say, of his willingness to compromise with Democrats on some issues. 
   
   Bright, a 43-year-old Spartanburg County truck company owner, said Thursday he plans to enter the race within the next few weeks. 
   
   Bright said he was waiting to see if either U.S. Reps. Trey Gowdy, R-Spartanburg, or Jeff Duncan, R-Laurens, enter the GOP primary against Graham. The congressmen have not announced any plans to challenge Graham, whom Bright said is too willing to allow government to intrude into private lives. 
   
   Unlike Mace, Bright said he has a voting record that voters can use to judge his commitment to limited government. In 2011, for instance, Bright introduced a bill to study creating a S.C. currency in case the federal government fell into financial ruin. 
   
   My having a record in the state Senate similar to the record of (former U.S. Sen.) Jim DeMint had in the U.S. Senate would be appealing to South Carolinians, Bright said. 
   
   Cash, 53, said the additional candidates will bring more interest into the race. He said he is not just running against Graham but wants to share his positive message of hope and heritage. 
   
   The Graham campaign declined comment until the candidates formally announce they are running. 
   
   With only 10 months before the June 2014 primary, Mace, Bright and Cash need to raise lots of cash fast to have a chance of overcoming the $6.3 million that the Graham campaign has on hand. 
   
   Grahams supporters also have started a super PAC to support his re-election bid. An anti-Graham political organization also was formed last month to defeat the 58-year-old senator. 
   
   Bright said he thinks he can raise the $5 million necessary to run a competitive campaign. 
   
   Some money could come from outside the state, such as from the Club for Growth, said Mark Tomkins, a University of South Carolina political scientist. 
   
   Do the Koch brothers come in? Tomkins said of the influential Midwestern businessmen known for backing conservative candidates. Im not sure they are not pleased with Graham. Theres a lot of money out there none of us know about. 
   
   Mace faces a tough challenge in going up against Graham, a seasoned politician, The Citadels Buchanan said. However, a good showing  winning about 40 percent of the primary vote  could propel her to another future office, such as the state Legislature. 
   
   Theres something to said for going through the gauntlet, Buchanan said. Shes aiming high on this one. 
   
   Bright will run a very aggressive campaign, experts said. 
   
   He is the in-your-face, red-meat conservative who will play real well with voters who are critical of Lindsey, Buchanan said. 
   
   But Tompkins said a Bright candidacy could anger libertarians who prefer Mace, popular in some circles because she broke the gender barrier at South Carolinas previously all-male military college. 
   
   He doesnt offer a story that can attract coverage the way Nancy Mace does, Tompkins said of Bright. With lots of time to go, I would expect conservatives to work hard to come behind a single candidate  and she may be better positioned than he is to take advantage of that effort. 
   
   Political analysts also said Grahams positions on some issues have grown more conservative as his 2014 re-election drew closer. For instance, Graham has launched several attacks against the Obama administration for its handling of the attack on the U.S. diplomatic mission in Benghazi, Libya. 
   
   Hes trying to cover his flank on the right side, Buchanan said of Graham. 
   
   Even if he wins re-election, a hard-fought GOP primary could send a message to Graham. It puts pressure to be less cooperative and (not) sign on to those grand bargains with Democrats, Tompkins said. 
   
   CORRECTION: This story was updated to reflect Lindsey Graham's correct number of terms in the Senate. ||||| The Constitution. The Bill of Rights. The Declaration of Independence. To some these are little more than historical documents, but to conservatives these are the law of the land. It is clear as one reads them, the foundation of our country was built with limited government and the free market in mind. 
   
   However, Washington is out of touch. Special interests throw money at career politicians. These same politicians fail to lead and simply react to the latest controversy to gain a spot on Sunday morning talk shows. 
   
   With congressional approval at an all time low, it’s easy to understand why some would prefer to appear on television sets rather than face their constituents back at home. 
   
   President Reagan once said “Freedom is never more than one generation away from extinction,” that we must fight for it, protect it and hand it down to future generations. 
   
   Yesterday South Carolina Senator Lindsey Graham endorsed President Obama’s intrusive arm of big brother regarding the collection of data and phone records: 
   
   “I’m a Verizon customer. I don’t mind Verizon turning over records to the government if the 
   
   government is going to make sure that they try to match up a known terrorist phone with somebody in the United States. I don’t think you’re talking to the terrorists. I know you’re not. I know I’m not. So we don’t have anything to worry about.” 
   
   Senator Graham went on to challenge Senator Rand Paul of Kentucky. In his attack, Graham leads us to believe that “In Senator Paul’s world” those who value the constitution would leave America in a weakened position against its enemies. However, true conservatives believe that we can follow the constitution and defend our country against the enemy without sacrificing our freedom. 
   
   One week Senator Graham wants to debate the rights granted in the Second Amendment and another he questions the First Amendment rights of American citizens. And yesterday he tells us it’s ok for the government to search our phone records even if we are law abiding citizens. 
   
   Most would agree with Senator Graham that radical Islam is the foremost threat to our nation’s security. However, if we are truly protecting Americans from this grave threat, then how does it make sense to supply arms and aid to countries who support radical Islam, bring harm to our allies, burn our flag, hate our culture and allow terrorists to plot against the United States and her friends? 
   
   In Senator Graham’s world, arming al-Qaeda in Syria is a good idea. 
   
   In Senator Graham’s world, your rights as an American citizen are granted by the ruling political class and not by our Creator. 
   
   In Senator Graham’s world, government should always be trusted but never the American citizen. 
   
   In Senator Graham’s world, the Constitution doesn’t exist. 
   
   In Senator Graham’s world, the entire Bill of Rights is negotiable. 
   
   In Senator Graham’s world, our constitutional rights seem constantly up for debate. 
   
   In Senator Graham’s world, he says we’re fighting for freedom but is the first to surrender all of them. 
   
   In Senator Graham’s world, America is going broke, and taxing hard working Americans while spending more money the country simply does not have. 
   
   In Senator Graham’s world, I am concerned about the future of our country. 
   
   Maybe Senator Graham has been living in a world of his own for too long. 
   
   ### 
   
   Nancy Mace is the first woman to graduate from The Citadel, the military college of South Carolina. She is the author of In the Company of Men published by Simon and Schuster. She is a small business owner of a public relations and marketing firm, The Mace Group, based in Charleston, South Carolina. ||||| The first female graduate of the Citadel is raising money in preparation for a 2014 primary challenge against GOP Sen. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina. 
   
   Nancy Mace is scheduled to officially announce her political plans on Saturday, and the married mother of two is already signaling her intent to oust Mr. Graham from office next year by asking supporters to donate to her campaign. 
   
   “I need your help to make sure that South Carolina’s conservative values are represented in the U.S. Senate,” Mrs. Macesaid on her website. “We have a long campaign ahead of us, and we can’t do it without your support.” 
   
   Tea party groups have been clamoring for someone to try to topple Mr. Graham, who they say has habitually sold out the limited government principles that fuel the grass-roots movement. They call him a “RINO,” or “Republican In Name Only.” 
   
   Mrs. Mace’s campaign announcement will come roughly a week after a conservative South Carolina group launched a grassroots campaign targeting Mr. Graham in the 2014 election. 
   
   Carolina Conservatives United, a non-profit organization, said Mr. Graham has made a habit of saying one thing, but doing another, selling out their limited government principles and showing “contempt” for small government advocates. 
   
   “We never know which Lindsey Graham will show up in Washington each day,” said Bruce Carroll, the group’s chairman. “He’s more likely to side with liberal Senate Democrats on important votes than with Senator Tim Scott or the South Carolina Republican Congressional delegation.” 
   
   Mrs. Mace delivers a similar message on her website. 
   
   “Voters here in South Carolina are frustrated with the status quo,” she said. “Washington is out of touch, and the only way to change Washington is to change who we send to Washington.” 
   
   Mr. Graham appears to be in good financial shape as he looks toward winning a third term. As of June 30, he had $6.3 million cash on hand for re-election, and polls have shown he is on sturdy footing. ||||| The first woman to graduate from the Citadel is planning to challenge South Carolina Sen. Lindsey Graham in the Republican primary next year. 
   
   Charleston businesswoman Nancy Mace will head to Goose Creek Saturday to announce her Senate campaign, The Daily Caller News Foundation has learned. 
   
   “This isn’t about one senator,” Mace told TheDCNF. “The only way to change Washington is to change who we send to Washington.” 
   
   “Washington is out of touch,” she added. “Voters are frustrated. They’re looking for someone authentic.” 
   
   In a June fundraising email, the Senate Conservatives Fund listed Graham as one of three Republican senators the group would support a primary campaign against if “strong, conservative challengers emerge.” 
   
   Mace, who has written articles for The Daily Caller, is a Fort Bragg native who graduated from South Carolina’s military college in 1999, becoming the first woman graduate since the Citadel was founded in 1842. She later wrote a memoir of her experience at the school and runs a public relations firm in Charleston. 
   
   Last year, Club for Growth president Chris Chocola told a Christian Science Monitor event that Graham was a potential target. 
   
   “If you’re looking to the horizon of 2014,” Chocola said, “the sun may rise over South Carolina.” 
   
   South Carolina Republican state Sen. Tom Davis predicted to TheDCNF last year that “someone will challenge Lindsey Graham.” 
   
   After Graham spoke out in support of the National Security Agency’s data collection practices under the Obama administration, Mace wrote a scathing post at the conservative blog RedState chastising the senator. 
   
   “In Senator Graham’s world, the Constitution doesn’t exist,” she wrote. “In Senator Graham’s world, the entire Bill of Rights is negotiable.” 
   
   Mace’s phrasing is a play on Graham’s criticism of Kentucky Republican Sen. Rand Paul in the wake of the NSA leaks: “[I]n Rand Paul’s world, you have almost no defense against terrorists.” 
   
   “In Senator Graham’s world, arming al-Qaeda in Syria is a good idea,” Mace retorted. 
   
   When Paul ran ads against several swing state Democratic senators who voted against his proposal to stop foreign aid to Egypt, Pakistan and Libya, Graham came to their aid. Graham joined West Virginia Democratic Sen. Joe Manchin in a conference call defending his vote. 
   
   “I think the overwhelming majority of Americans oppose giving tax dollars to countries that hate our culture, burn our flag and train terrorists,” Mace told TheDCNF. 
   
   Mace said that Graham refers to his Republican critics as being “to the left of Obama, but he has has been with Obama on many issues.” She pointed to the Gang of Eight immigration bill — Graham’s harshest critics nickname him “Grahamnesty” — along with the Troubled Assets Relief Program bailout, cap and trade and his votes to confirm Supreme Court Justices Elena Kagan and Sonia Sotomayor. 
   
   Mace argued that justices in the mold of these Obama appointments “upheld Obamacare,” the controversial federal health care reform law she would like to defund. 
   
   Last year, Graham distanced himself from the Americans for Tax Reform pledge against tax increases, causing the group’s leader Grover Norquist to brand him “not a thought leader in the Republican Party.” 
   
   The New York Times quoted Graham saying he was willing to accept higher tax revenues to prevent cuts in defense spending, although his office later clarified that he was referring only to closing tax loopholes. 
   
   With more than $6.3 million in cash on hand, Graham will be a formidable opponent for newcomer Mace. The two-term senator easily turned back a primary challenge from former Republican National Committeeman Buddy Witherspoon in 2008. 
   
   South Carolina Republican Rep. Trey Gowdy told an interviewer earlier this year, “Lindsey Graham will be fine.” 
   
   “He’s not in trouble,” Gowdy said. “He’s a better lawyer than I am. He’s more persuasive than I am.” 
   
   The South Carolina Republican primary is scheduled for June 2014. 
   
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   Content created by The Daily Caller News Foundation is available without charge to any eligible news publisher that can provide a large audience. For licensing opportunities of our original content, please contact licensing@dailycallernewsfoundation.org. ||||| In Washington, thousand-page “reform” bills are frequently passed before anyone knows what’s in them. The latest is supposed to fix our broken immigration system. The bill, which was cobbled together by the Senate’s so-called Gang of Eight, would grant legal status to those in our country illegally before securing the border — and it’s not clear it would really secure the border at all. 
   
   But the biggest problem with the bill is the way its authors seem to have ignored the economic impact amnesty will have on law-abiding, taxpaying citizens for decades to come. 
   
   I don’t believe the Gang of Eight’s claim that this plan will be deficit neutral, despite the recent Congressional Budget Office estimate. After all, when was the last time the government correctly estimated the cost of legislation? Common sense suggests that the tax revenue collected from the newly legalized low-wage workers will not offset the cost of the benefits to which they will be legally entitled. According to a recent Heritage Foundation study, the bill would cost taxpayers $6.3 trillion. And even the CBO concluded that the bill would decrease wages and increase the unemployment rate, at least in the short term. 
   
   Moreover, rewarding illegal immigrants sends a terrible message to those working hard to earn citizenship the right way. We simply can’t reward those whose first act in our country was to break the law. 
   
   The notion of “comprehensive” immigration reform reminds me a lot of “comprehensive” healthcare reform. It will be years before we understand the true cost of Obamacare and the burden it will have on businesses and taxpayers. Likewise, if the Senate immigration bill becomes law, it will be years before we understand its full impact. 
   
   On Thursday, 14 Republican senators joined with the Democrats to vote for this bill. It is a shame that one of them — Lindsey Graham — represents my home state of South Carolina. 
   
   South Carolina needs a senator who will put border security first, not just pay lip service to it. South Carolina needs a senator who will work for the people he represents and not for the leftists who crafted this bill. South Carolina needs a senator who will not subsidize or incentivize more illegal immigration, who will not support legislation that will increase unemployment, and who will not support pork-laden legislation drafted behind closed doors. 
   
   Most of all, South Carolina needs a senator who will put forth solutions that help our economy. We should secure the border, fix our broken visa program, and then work toward finding a way to address illegal immigration without encouraging more of it. 
   
   Nancy Mace, the first woman to graduate from The Citadel, the military college of South Carolina, is the author of “In the Company of Men,” published by Simon and Schuster. She is the owner of a public relations and marketing firm, The Mace Group.
target: – Lindsey Graham has drawn a potentially formidable primary challenger. Nancy Mace, the first woman to ever graduate from the Citadel, plans to throw her hat in the ring, she tells the Daily Caller. Mace, 35, graduated from the military college back in 1999, and has since written a memoir and founded a PR firm. She'll officially announce her candidacy tomorrow, but she's already been raising money in preparation, the Washington Times reports. Mace has gotten a head start attacking Graham online; in a Red State column last month she savaged him at length for supporting the NSA's phone surveillance programs. In another on the Caller she sounds like she's trying out campaign language, with a series of "South Carolina needs a senator who..." statements as she blasts him for backing immigration reform. But Mace will also have to beat two other libertarian-leaning challengers who could split the Tea Party vote, the State points out.