The Day In Politics: Republicans

COLUMBIA, ORANGEBURG, CHARLESTON, SOUTH CAROLINA -- In his first few events here, an energetic John McCain's veered sharply to the right as he faced a barrage of attacks from rivals. And Mitt Romney started his final two-day swing through the Palmetto State by instantly lowering expectations. Fred Thompson and Mike Huckabee, fighting for faith conservatives, trained accusations at each other.

McCain, speaking in Greenville this morning, cited to an audience in Greenville his career pro-life stance, saying his opponents are willfully distorting his record.

McCain's rivals believe that McCain's advisers want to exaggerate the amount of attacks against him in order to replicate the charged environment of 2000, only with a McCain more outraged and more ready to respond.

But it is true that supporters of Mike Huckabee are telephoning McCain supporters in the state with the message that McCain is really pro-choice.

Drew McKissick, a South Carolina conservative activist, sent an e-mail blasting McCain's support for embryonic stem cell research and his status as a leader of the "Gang of 14" who brokered a compromise over judicial nominations in the Senate. Romney's campaign blasted McCain in a research briefing entitled "Defeated by Defeatism."

At a Romney event in Charleston, his staff openly acknowledged that he would not finish first here. He is not running television ads here. His crowds are not large, although about 50 braved an ocean's chill for an hour to hear Romney give a brief version of his stump speech this afternoon. Tomorrow, he flies to Nevada for two full days of campaigning.

(above: waiting for Romney)

McCain's campaign is also re-airing an ad that plays to cultural conservatives. It mocks an earmark Hillary Clinton obtained for a Woodstock museum in New York.

An adviser to Huckabee told CBN's David Brody, so far as McCain was concerned, "the gloves are off."

Thompson was asked about about rumors he was a shill for McCain. He denied these and blamed Mike Huckabee's campaign for spreading them. Thompson's campaign later accused Huckabee of flop-flopping on the desirability of a national smoking ban.

The Associated Press reported that Huckabee softened his floated proposal to stop immigration from countries who harbor terrorists. "''I think we just need to do a more thorough job of ensuring that when people come here, and they come from nations that the State Department has designated as terrorist nations, that we are diligent in background searches,'' he said, per the AP. Huckabee's campaign promised a major endorsement in Charleston on Thursday.