In brief: S.C. Republicans move primary up
COLUMBIA, S.C. – South Carolina Republicans will hold their first-in-the-South presidential primary on Jan. 21 to trump Florida’s rule-breaking jump ahead in the party’s calendar.
State GOP Chairman Chad Connelly made the announcement Monday.
South Carolina had been poised to hold its primary in late February.
Florida’s Jan. 31 date breaks Republican National Committee rules and would cause the state to lose half its delegates to next summer’s national convention.
School evacuated near chemical fire
WAXAHACHIE, Texas – A fire sparked as workers mixed chemicals at a plant south of Dallas shot massive plumes of black smoke and bright orange flames into the sky Monday, forcing schoolchildren and residents to evacuate or take cover indoors to avoid possible exposure to dangerous gases.
Flames engulfed a large complex at a Magnablend Inc. facility in Waxahachie. The fast-moving blaze overwhelmed a sprinkler system and consumed a firetruck, but no injuries were reported from the fire or resulting smoke.
About 1,000 residents who had been evacuated were allowed to return to their homes early Monday evening, said Waxahachie Fire Department spokeswoman Amy Hollywood.
Bachmann losing more top aides
ST. PAUL, Minn. – Republican presidential candidate Michele Bachmann is losing her pollster and senior adviser in a staff exodus that raises questions about the viability of her White House bid and her campaign finances.
Pollster Ed Goeas plans to leave the campaign after upcoming debates in New Hampshire and Nevada, and senior adviser Andy Parrish is returning to the Minnesota congresswoman’s office where he served as chief of staff.
The moves signal an effort to preserve money three months ahead of the first Republican nominating contests. Bachmann began July with about $3.6 million, most of which had been transferred from her congressional campaign account.
Bachmann has struggled to match her vast reach among small-dollar givers with checks near the $2,500 maximum donation. An update on her campaign’s financial health is due by Oct. 15.
Yellowstone grizzly euthanized
BILLINGS – A grizzly bear that fatally mauled a hiker in Yellowstone National Park was killed after DNA evidence linked the animal to the scene of a second hiker’s death a month later, a park official said Monday.
The decision to euthanize the 250-pound female bear was meant to protect park visitors and staff, Superintendent Dan Wenk said.
However, the investigation remains open, and officials might never know definitively whether the same bear that killed California hiker Brian Matayoshi on July 7 also took the life of John Wallace of Michigan in August.