CHARLESTON, S.C. --- John McCain's first presidential bid failed in South Carolina after a nasty campaign.
Back for a second shot, it's not so much vengeance he seeks, but victory.
"Eight years is a long, long time in politics," the Arizona senator said Wednesday, reveling in another New Hampshire triumph while explaining why he could succeed in South Carolina, where he once failed.
Times have changed, he says, and so has the state. It's also a different nomination fight than it was back then -- wide-open, fractured and lacking a front-runner with the weight of the establishment behind him.
Republicans in South Carolina hold their primary Jan. 19; Michigan is up next, on Tuesday.
In 2000, Mr. McCain cruised into South Carolina fresh from a stunning 18-percentage point win over establishment favorite George W. Bush only to go down in bitter defeat in the first-in-the-South primary. On the TV airwaves, Bush allies vastly outspent the GOP underdog. Underground, Mr. McCain was assailed in negative telephone calls and a whisper campaign that spread rumors about him and his family.
This year, his backers have set up what they're calling a "truth squad" to use high-profile South Carolina surrogates to counter negative campaigning in a state known for brass-knuckles politics -- and avoid a repeat of 2000. Said Mr. McCain: "I'm not sure the people of South Carolina would stand for it again."
Next week, Mr. McCain will head into the thick of the South Carolina race having racked up at least one, maybe two wins; his aides see Mike Huckabee emerging as Mr. McCain's greatest threat now that Mitt Romney is weakened from two major losses and has pulled his advertising in South Carolina to focus more on must-win Michigan.
Fred Thompson, a former Tennessee senator, is struggling to mount a comeback in South Carolina, while Rudy Giuliani, a former New York mayor, is hoping for a respectable showing. They once ranked at the top of polls in the state but both have since watched their standings fall.
Mr. Huckabee and Mr. McCain, however, have momentum from respective wins in hotly contested Iowa and New Hampshire.
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