Sen. Tim Scott, a Republican from South Carolina, has taken a significant step toward competing for president in 2024 by announcing the formation of a presidential exploratory committee.

In a video shared with Fox News, Scott spoke about his message of faith, hope, and unity, adding, “This is the fight we must win. And that will take faith. Faith in God, faith in each other, and faith in America.”

“On this day, April 12, 1861, in this harbor, the first shots of the Civil War were fired and our country faced the defining moment: Would we truly be one nation, under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all. America’s soul was put to the test – and we prevailed,” Scott said in the video.

Scott added that “Today, our country is once again being tested. Once again, our divisions run deep and the threat to our future is real.”

“Joe Biden and the radical left have chosen a culture of grievance over greatness. They’re promoting victimhood instead of personal responsibility and they’re indoctrinating our children to believe we live in an evil country,” Scott said.

Scott charged that Democrats “weaponize race to divide us to hold onto their power,” and highlighted that “when I fought back against their liberal agenda they called me a prop. A token. Because I disrupt their narrative. I threaten their control. They know the truth of my life disproves their lies.”

In announcing his exploratory committee, Scott vowed that he’ll “defend the Judeo-Christian foundation our nation is built on, and protect our religious liberty.” And he pledged to “stand up to Communist China, and restore opportunities for hardworking Americans to thrive and prosper” and “fight to give every parent a choice in education so their children have a better chance in life.”

Scott also said he’ll defend the nation’s borders as well as “our neighborhood streets” and emphasized he’ll “protect our most fundamental right -the right to life itself.”

WATCH:

I will never back down in defense of the conservative values that make America exceptional.

That's why I'm announcing my exploratory committee for President of the United States.

This fight is personal.

I want every American to have the same opportunities I had. pic.twitter.com/HV56pbyKdB

— Tim Scott (@votetimscott) April 12, 2023

Former Arkansas governor Asa Hutchinson announced his candidacy for the Republican nomination in 2024 on ABC News earlier this month.

“I have made a decision. And my decision is, I’m going to run for president of the United States. While the formal announcement will be later in April, in Bentonville [Arkansas], I wanted to make clear that, to you, Jonathan, I am going to be running. And the reason, as I’ve traveled the country for six months, I hear people talk about the leadership of our country, and I’m convinced that people want leaders that appeal to the best of America, and not simply appeal to our worst instincts,” Hutchinson said.

“And how does the indictment of Donald Trump by the Manhattan D.A. change this race?” anchor Jon Karl asked him.

“Well, that adds to the unpredictability of it. And I think it’s a sad day for America that we have a former president that’s indicted. And so it’s a great distraction, but at the same time, we can’t set aside what our constitution requires, which is electing a new leader for our country, just because we have this side controversy and criminal charges that are pending,” Hutchinson said.

“And so we’ve got to press on, and the American people are gonna have to separate what the ideas are for our future, gonna talk about border security and the economy. We have to talk about those. We have to talk about the leadership of America in the world whenever you have Russia and China, taking advantage of any weakness that America shows. So we can’t be sidetracked for a year and a half,” he said.

EXCLUSIVE: Former GOP Gov. Asa Hutchinson announces during an interview with @JonKarl that he will be running for president.

“I'm convinced that people want leaders that appeal to the best of America and not simply appeal to our worst instincts.” https://t.co/DmytxAAfAL pic.twitter.com/f2lcIBQeqD

— This Week (@ThisWeekABC) April 2, 2023

More on this story via Conservative Brief:

In February, Nikki Haley announced she was also running for the 2024 Republican nomination.CONTINUE READING…