It's a surreal sight on Friday night. Jam-packed in a downtown Columbia parking garage, the crowd is happily dancing, drinking and shouting above the deafening din of amplified music that can be heard down the block.

The music fades, and the host of the party, 6th District U.S. Rep. James E. Clyburn, whose district includes much of Orangeburg County, takes the microphone.

Standing in this room, he says, is "the next president of the United States! ... Now the problem we've got is trying to figure out which one it will be."

-- Howard Dean, former governor of Vermont and, more importantly, a friend of a friend of Clyburn's?

Proclaiming his support of affirmative action and health care reform and some other hot-button issues, Dean declares, "If you make me your nominee, I'll make you proud to be Democrats again. ... We are going to take our country back!"

-- U.S. Rep. Dick Gephardt of Missouri?

"You know how lucky you are to have Jim Clyburn representing you in the House of Representatives," Gephardt says. "When I'm president, we'll get rid of the Bush tax cuts" -- Democrats claim the president's plan cuts taxes for the rich and reduces services for the poor -- "and get health care for every citizen."

-- U.S. Sen. Bob Graham of Florida?

He blasted the Bush administration for its spending that took the nation from a surplus to a deficit, and he called for more money for education and health care.

-- U.S. Sen. John Kerry of Massachusetts? In introducing Kerry, Clyburn said he was "pleased to come to his defense" for exercising his right of "speaking his mind."

"Jim Clyburn is in the ranks of great congressmen," Kerry said. "Thank you, Jim Clyburn, for your service and all that you do." Kerry also led the crowd in a chant encouraging South Carolina's senior senator, Fritz Hollings, to run for re-election.

-- U.S. Sen. Carol Mosely-Braun of Illinois, whom Clyburn introduced as "my good friend, my personal friend"?

Mosely-Braun recalled that the senior President Bush had accused President Reagan of promoting voodoo economics. "I come from a long line of voodoo ladies, and I tell you this, Bush economics gives voodoo a bad name!"

Absent were four candidates -- U.S. Sen. John Edwards of North Carolina, U.S. Rep. Dennis Kucinich of Ohio, U.S. Sen. Joe Lieberman of Connecticut and the Rev. Al Sharpton of New York.

Clyburn's remark that the next president was in attendance did not go unnoticed by Kerry. "Jim Clyburn did us a great favor. He already eliminated four of our opponents and we thank him for that," Kerry said.

Whether Clyburn's remark was a bit of hyperbole, a slip of the tongue or a discreet nod to certain candidates, the attention paid to it shows how keenly the candidates are competing for his endorsement.

It matters "for the simple fact that he has a coalition of people that listen to him," said Danny Covington, chairman of the Orangeburg County Democratic Party.

"The reason he is powerful is because of the respect people have for Jim Clyburn," said Ruth Simpson of Orangeburg.

Another Orangeburg resident, Deloris Frazier, stopped dancing long enough to praise the congressman.

"Jim Clyburn and I go way back for many, many years. When I went to Washington, Jim's brother, John, took me under his wings and showed me the ropes," Frazier said.

"If it wasn't for Jim Clyburn and (his wife) Emily and John ... there wouldn't be a part of my life that says Deloris Frazier," she continued. "I'm for his cause. Every bit of it!"

Clyburn is fast becoming "the most influential congressman that's ever come out of South Carolina," Covington said.

"When he goes on the Hill, he carries votes. Anybody who has that ability is going to be asked up front, 'What is your opinion?' and Clyburn's opinion -- which is a South Carolina opinion -- is going to be on the table every time."

Residents of the 6th Congressional District have a "privilege and responsibility to have Clyburn understand how we feel, so that he can then reflect our opinions," Covington said.

"That gives us a lot of influence and a lot of clout."

T&D Staff Writer Lee Hendren can be reached by e-mail at lhendren@timesanddemocrat.com or by phone at 803-533-5552.

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