GEORGETOWN, S.C. - Democrat Dick Gephardt told a rally near a shuttered steel mill Wednesday that his campaign for president is about jobs and fair trade policies for all American workers

"Everything I'm talking about in this campaign is designed to build new jobs in this country," Gephardt told the crowd of about 150 people, many of them steelworkers, who gathered just down the street from the idle Georgetown Steel Co. mill.

The facility closed last year, throwing about 500 workers out of jobs. In contrast to neighboring coastal counties, Georgetown County's unemployment rate of 14.5 percent is one of the highest in the state.

"When you're talking about trade and jobs and Georgetown Steel, you're not just talking about jobs - you're talking about families, you're talking about lives, you're talking about schools, you're talking about churches," Gephardt said.

Gephardt, campaigning for votes in South Carolina's Feb. 3 Democratic presidential primary, told the crowd he's the only candidate who has fought what he called bad trade agreements such as NAFTA and the China trade deal.

Sam Wragg, who worked at the steel mill for 25 years before retiring, said the mill's closing was a shock.

"No one ever believed that place would close. That was one of things no one ever could imagine," said Wragg, 75. He said he's worried what will happen to Georgetown without the steel jobs.

"I was here before the mill came. I was here before International (Paper) came. The city was a ghost town. There was no cash flow in the city. I'd hate to see it go back to that," he said.

Gephardt, who has been endorsed by the United Steelworkers of America as well as other labor unions, stood on the platform in front of a giant American flag. He was joined by local steelworkers as well as Leon Lynch, the president of the United Steelworkers of America.

Before the rally started, there was a somber air at the rally's site. Small groups of people stood in the chilly January sun, and speakers blared Bruce Springsteen's "My Hometown," with its lyrics about textile jobs moving overseas. Down the street, the steel mill, with its dull red walls and green roof, sat idle.

"South Carolina is going to be in a pivotal spot February third," Gephardt said. "The whole country is going to be looking at South Carolina."

He asked the crowd for their votes, predicting, "We're going to win in Iowa, we're going to get a better-than-expected result in New Hampshire, and if we can win in South Carolina, I'm going to be on my way to the Democratic nomination."

U.S. Rep. Jim Clyburn, who has endorsed and campaigned for Gephardt, accompanied the Missouri congressman and said he was optimistic about Gephardt's chances.

A South Carolina poll two weeks ago by the American Research Group showed Gephardt in the middle of the pack among the nine Democratic candidates. The same poll, however, indicated 30 percent of the likely voters were undecided.

"A lot of people are going to wait as long as they possibly can," Clyburn said. "Because we have this many candidates out there, it's confusing to people."

Clyburn said that with the holidays over, many people are just starting to pay attention to the campaign.

"Quite frankly, those of us who are (political) junkies are the only ones paying attention over the holidays," he said. "People are now beginning to focus."

One of those in the crowd was Chris Giles, 49, who operates assisted living homes in Rock Hill and Georgetown.

"I like his plans for senior adults. I think they have been neglected long enough," he said of Gephardt. "If he is given the opportunity, he will make sure they have health care coverage and can afford medicine."