FLORENCE, SC (WMBF) Several Republican presidential candidate made their way to the Pee Dee Tuesday, where they asked voters to pick them come Saturday in the Palmetto State's primary.
Mitt Romney spoke before a small, but energetic crowd Tuesday morning at the Florence Civic Center, where he lunged at President Obama for excessive spending and talked about his business record, which he'd use to create jobs on day one.
Romney also sat down with WMBF News to respond to local concerns like I-73 and the pending lawsuits against Palmetto State laws.
"South Carolina should be free to make sure that people coming to South Carolina and getting benefits from South Carolina are legal residents of this country, and then secondly voter ID, look we have to show an ID to get Sudafed from the drugstore," said Romney.
Romney won't promise to make I-73 a priority, but does recognize its importance.
"I do think in some respects it makes sense to have these dollars go back to the states and let states make their own decisions about where to build a highway," he said.
Former Speaker Newt Gingrich addressed a packed house at a Florence art gallery, where he told voters he's the only viable candidate to beat Obama.
"Any vote for Santorum or Perry in effect is a vote to allow Romney to become the nominee," Gingrich said.
He promised to get to work on I-73 after joking about his delay in getting to the Pee Dee from the beach.
Tuesday afternoon Texas Gov. Rick Perry met voters at the Drive In restaurant in Florence, where he made a short campaign stop.
Several of the candidates will make stops in Columbia, before heading to a debate in Charleston on Thursday.
Copyright 2012 WMBF News. All rights reserved.
All content © Copyright 2000 - 2012 WorldNow and WMBF, a Raycom Media Station.
