COLUMBIA, S.C. — The Columbia Metropolitan Convention Center was packed on Friday night, as hundreds of republicans from all over the state gathered for the 52nd Annual Silver Elephant Dinner.
The annual fundraiser draws in candidates, donors and supporters from the SCGOP.
On Friday, Governor Henry McMaster, Senator Lindsey Graham, along with other members of the South Carolina legislature, were in attendance.
Mick Mulvaney, acting White House Chief of Staff, gave the keynote speech.
The former South Carolina 5th district congressman spoke about what he says the Republican Party has accomplished since President Donald Trump took office.
"Personal net worth is up, household savings is up, consumer confidence is up, everything is up across the board," says Mulvaney. "It's Make America Great Again economics. The Democrats simply refuse to get it. They're not in on the joke and I don't understand why they refuse to celebrate the fact that the country is a lot better off than before."
Before the dinner, Mulvaney, Graham and McMaster held a press conference.
The acting White House Chief of Staff was asked if he was concerned about the recent turnover in the House of Representatives. Several republican House members have said that they are not running for reelection.
"We were concerned I think last time going into 2018, because the numbers were up a couple dozen as I recall," says Mulvaney. "There's an ordinary turnover in congress anyway, there's 435 of them. So, the fact that eight or nine have announced in the House, people want to go back and do other things."
While there is a republican challenger in the presidential election, Mulvaney, McMaster and Graham have all expressed their continued support for President Trump.