Scott’s Senate campaign started adding conservative media folks to their supporters’ email list this week, as journalists received messages welcoming them to the “team” they never signed up for.

The forced sign-ups seemingly occurred the same day Scott gave a sweeping speech in Des Moines, in the first caucus state in the Republican primary. He pitched conservatism as the antidote to anger and victimhood, leveraging his own family story as proof that being a racial minority is not a handicap in America. Inspiring, sure, but hardliners argue Scott’s history of advocating for criminal justice and police reform should be disqualifying.

Either way, Cockburn is keeping his fingers crossed for an awkward showdown between Scott and former UN ambassador Nikki Haley, who first appointed Scott to the Senate while serving as the Palmetto State’s governor.

[Duane’s convinced that Scott will get in too. I’m not so sure, but this tends to validate Duane’s position. I like Scott, but I think he’d be better served by running for the position after a term as governor. Republicans don’t generally rally to Beltway denizens, and those who have managed to win a nomination from the Senate perform poorly in general elections. No one remembers the presidencies of John McCain, Robert Dole, and Barry Goldwater for a reason. — Ed]