Two South Carolina County Republican Party chairmen defended Sen. Jim DeMint (R-S.C.) by likening him to Jews who "take care of the pennies."

Bamberg County GOP Chairman Edwin Merwin and Orangeburg County GOP Chairman James Ulmer wrote the Orangeburg Times and Democrat to defend DeMint in a newspaper editorial Sunday that said he was not funneling enough funds to local projects.

"There is a saying that the Jews who are wealthy got that way not by watching dollars, but instead by taking care of the pennies and the dollars taking care of themselves. By not using earmarks to fund projects for South Carolina and instead using actual bills, DeMint is watching our nation's pennies and trying to preserve our country's wealth and our economy's viability to give all an opportunity to succeed."

The conservative Palmetto scoop, another local paper, could only muster a facepalm, writing "It's people like Ulmer and Merwin that make many folks fear for the future of the once Grand Ole Party."