SC’s Tim Scott plays role in GOP race with candidate forums

COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) — More than 2,000 voters packed into a Columbia theater recently to see for themselves what it’s like to experience businessman Donald Trump in person.

The GOP presidential hopeful got an enthusiastic response as he waved to the crowd and cracked jokes about his opponents, the Obama administration and Washington insiders.

But the hall erupted when U.S. Sen. Tim Scott addressed the crowd. The Republican amped up voters, sounding more like a fiery preacher than the soft-spoken politician many have come to know.

The event officially serves to help both Scott and the state’s voters decide whom to support in 2016. But with South Carolina’s other U.S. senator already seeking the nation’s highest office, the meetings also serve as a way to elevate Scott’s own profile.