Saturday, legislators from across the South will be meeting in Charleston for the 64th annual Southern Legislative Conference so that they might return to their respective states with a little better ideas as to how to tackle issues that address the region. Off the top of our heads, some things that have needed attention for years are the neglect of public schools since desegregation, really trying to do more to move beyond manufacturing for a job base and totally restructuring the tax system. Alabama is really bad about this, since its constitution is even worse than ours, but South Carolina is doing things with the Taxation Realignment Commission. Maybe some lessons can be taken from that.
Beyond the event being held in the Lowcountry, South Carolina flavor is all over this year’s conference. Speaker of the House Bobby Harrell is the conference chairman, and Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke and U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham will speak at the opening plenary session, while U.S. Rep. Jim Clyburn will hold court at the closing plenary. The conference, which was paid for by donations from businesses, is expected to generate about $3.5 million for the local economy.
“This event will bring in thousands of new visitors and will create a multi-million dollar economic boost for our state,” Harrell said in a statement. “For many of the conference guests, this will be their first trip to our state and we hope our hospitality makes return visitors out of many of them.”
Part of the conference is indeed showing off local attractions — Charles Towne Landing, the South Carolina Aquarium, Dunes West (which we haven’t been to in 19 years, but it must still be nice, right?), the Culinary Institute of Charleston and nearby museums, among other things. That makes it seem like a relaxing few days in the Holy City, with some meetings in between. Oh, ho, would that be a mistake assumption. A cursory look at the agenda shows that, yeah, this means all sorts of work. Committees here and committees there on every type of public policy, meetings on this, that and the other. They’re going to have to play nine at Dunes West just to readjust.
And — oh, yeah — Darius Rucker is playing.
Commemorative resolutions are an every day part of life in an American legislative body. Usually they move through rather quickly and that’s that. In Congress, when a sports team wins a national championship, the usual thing to do is to have a resolution sponsored by a few people, there’s a little speechifying and the matter’s done. But not recently in the U.S. Senate, and not for the national champion Carolina baseball team.
U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham sponsored the legislation in the upper chamber to congratulate the team after a similar resolution, sponsored by U.S. Rep. Joe Wilson, made it out of the House (though the AP article mentions a “nasty floor fight”). But this one isn’t moving, not one bit.
“It’s one thing to not be able to do the big things which are hard, like reforming Social Security,” Graham said. “But it’s quite another to not be able to do the simple, appropriate and easy things like recognizing a team for winning a national championship.”
As the article points out, other resolutions from other senators are holed up in committee too, for the reason that it appears a small number of legislators seem to have some PTSD from getting picked last for kickball and are taking it out on successful athletes. Measures recognizing Alabama‘s 2009 football national championship (Richard Shelby, R-Ala.), Duke’s 2009-2010 men’s basketball national championship (Richard Burr, R-N.C.) and LSU’s 2009 baseball national championship (Mary Landrieu, D-La.) are going nowhere, along with resolutions dealing with NASCAR driver Jimmie Johnson and S.C. golfer Lucas Glover.
Really. There’s petty, and then there’s OMG SOOOOOOOOO PETTY.
Just as we were thinking of doing a piece on “Cat on a leash,” here comes “Graham in a noose.” You know, abortion’s been a hot topic for decades, and in the last century there was a time in which people could get arrested for advocating birth control. And in the grand scheme of things, we’re still dealing with the issue on a regular basis, though the fire has died down since the ’80s. So, what do you do if you’re a nationally-known pro-life activist? You go to South Carolina and hang a Republican U.S. senator in effigy.
That’s what Randall Terry did Monday. WYFF was all over the story, which is so absurd that you’d have to see pictures, which makes the station’s small yet apropos photo gallery so perfect. The way the story goes, Terry got his panties in a bunch over U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham voting to confirm Elana Kagan to the U.S. Supreme Court. And he’s going around the country doing “skits” for his television show involving senators who voted for confirmation. Naturally, Terry shows up in Greenville and strings up Graham in effigy, putting a picture of his face on the “head.”
In his second act, he strung up a pinata with Graham’s picture on it, and whacks were taken until — and this is the best part — the innards came running out. Was it tasty candy? Upstate peaches? Old “Gary Bauer for President” buttons? Why, no. Just a bunch of tiny plastic babies. But here’s the kicker of it all — Terry’s shenanigans don’t seem to have made national news until he came here, the nation’s humid greenhouse of crazy.
Not to get all Brad Wartheny, but this shit has to stop, and by that we mean the doctrinaire attitude that just seems to be getting worse. We wouldn’t be surprised if the whips actually start carrying whips now. From Democratic efforts in 2006 to Republican actions this year, it seems that unless you’re a robot for the activist base of your party, you’re on the hot seat.
The big news in state politics yesterday, which seemed to break while we were enjoying a truly badass taco salad at Delaney’s, was that former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin is going to be coming down here to run around the state for Rep. Nikki Haley‘s gubernatorial campaign. It struck us as yet another in a long line of incredibly stupid political moves on her part, going back to the beginning of the campaign when her fundraising operation started off like an 18-year-old developed the plan. Actually, that probably happened.
Former The State editorial page editor Brad Warthen, who continues to show that he’s more intelligent than he let on when he was with the paper, opined, “Man-oh-man … like we didn’t have enough Crazy in South Carolina, we need to start importing it….” Indeed. There has been a tradition among some on the right since the early ’50s of an aggressive anti-intellectualism. As in, there was something good about being ignorant or uneducated. It came out among supporters of Dwight Eisenhower (though as the man who commanded allied forces in Europe and was a university president before he took the White House, was probably on the same level or more intelligent than Adlai Stevenson), it came out with certain statements by Ronald Reagan, and George W. Bush practically raised being an ignorant beneficiary of nepotism to an art form. Thankfully, George H.W. Bush, nominees Bob Dole and John McCain, and even Gerald Ford (despite jokes about his football playing days at Michigan) showed that you can be a conservative leader, smart, and not have to apologize for it.
We’d include “not pandering to the yokels” to that, but it’s exactly what McCain did, unfortunately. He eschewed his political instincts and better ideas and let his handlers, well, handle him. Instead of sticking to his guns and picking U.S. Sen. Joe Lieberman or someone else (eh, U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham?), he let his people foist Palin on him. And he could have won. Bush the Elder succeeded with Dan Quayle. But, he had the benefit of running against Michael Dukakis. Bush could have had a serving of mutton as his vice presidential nominee and still taken that race handily. And a serving of mutton probably would have been able to spell potato. McCain could have won, but he had the unfortunate business of running against Barack Obama, who even gaffe-prone Joe Biden couldn’t bring down.
But elevating being unintelligent, or anti-intellectual, into some sort of virtue, doesn’t help our state, or our nation, and neither does the woman who represents the modern embodiment of that movement. Congrats to Haley’s campaign. Now she’s definitely locked down that 15 percent showing she’ll have on primary day.
And that’s not the end of it, as it also went out that former First Lady Jenny Sanford is campaigning for Haley. In a tweet, we likened Sanford to Lady Macbeth. OK, so she’s not advocating for the deaths of certain powerful state leaders, but, as Warthen again wrote, “She did more than anyone else to bring us the disaster that is GOVERNOR Mark Sanford, and she wants to do it again, which is why she’s pulling out the stops for Nikki. And South Carolina just can’t handle any more of that.”
So, are the voters of our state going to sit idly by while their state government is hijacked, again, by extremists, or are we actually going to put competent people in office this time?
On Monday, U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham said that upcoming rules from the Environmental Protection Agency aren’t going to be good for business or “large homes.” He’s working with fellow senators John Kerry and Joe Lieberman on the legislation. That’s fine and all — there’s been a healthy debate on what’s the acceptable middle between capitalism and protecting the environment for more than 30 years.
Here’s the problem, however — he’s suggesting that certain EPA regulations should be decided by Congress and not the EPA. While that might play well with the uneducated masses, it’s not good policy. Far from it.
We spent months studying the EPA as the quintessential bureaucratic agency in the Federal government from a gentleman who made that his doctoral thesis. In previous political science classes (this was as a graduate, the others were as an undergrad), we could miss two months of class and still end up with a grade that rated a B+, if not better. This shit with the EPA was ridiculous, and took continual re-reading of the texts (for the uninitiated, that means it was hard).
We came away from that class with a healthy appreciation of the bureaucracy and how Congress regularly fucks up in giving it accurate instructions. Ergo, if the EPA isn’t doing what Congress wants, it’s less a mandate from the president and more that Congress didn’t write the law correctly in the first place.
So, if Congress couldn’t write the laws in such a way that Graham liked, it’s an even worse idea to take the job away from civil servants and give it to elected officials. If he wants to point fingers, he should do so at himself and his fellow legislators. The employees at the EPA are only carrying out what was strictly prescribed, or loosely prescribed, in what legislation was passed.
And that’s the fact, Jack.
Great googly moogly. Stray a little from the pack, and you get your ass handed to you. That’s what happened today when Howard Rich organization Americans for Limited Government ran a column on its Web site taking the wood to U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham, in a serious way. It wasn’t pretty.
With his sell-out late last week on the cap & trade bill in the U.S. Senate, Lindsay Olin Graham officially established himself as “The Watermelon Man.”
Green on the outside, pink on the inside, Graham will now serve as the pusillanimous poster boy for the amorphous mush that emerges when a Washington politician has soaked up far too much Potomac swamp water.
Adding insult to injury, The Watermelon Man got thumped by fellow Senator John Kerry, who convinced the diminutive Carolinian to co-sponsor the ruinous cap and trade bill by promising to let America drill for a little bit of its own oil and build a couple of nuclear power plants here and there. We hasten to add that rumors about the gullible Graham also buying into Kerry’s promises to walk on water and build a swing set on the moon have not yet been confirmed.
It doesn’t take long for the writer, Carter Clews, to call, in effect, South Carolina’s senior senator a hippie, a socialist and, ah, short ([randynewman]because short people have no reason to live[/randynewman]). And if you pay attention to the wording later in the column, the allusion is made to the Senator giving it up — yes, in that way — to the Democrats on cap-and-trade.
Frankly, we don’t have much time for this business. America has two major political parties, not a hodgepodge of groupings. That means you can’t have strict ideological purity, because if you do, you can’t have a majority party. That’s what makes our country different than most other representative democracies in the world. The Democrats dealt with this for decades before most Southern white members either retired or flipped to the Republicans. The Republicans dealt with it, too, until most of its moderates were either excommunicated or defeated in elections. Funny how most of these actions have happened in the past 50 years.
Anyway, point is, if someone agrees with you 75-95 percent of the time, they’re your bud. Ask yourself this: Do you have a friend you disagree with? It might be their general behavior sometimes, who they date/marry or other assorted things. Of course you do. Do you not be friends with them anymore? Of course not. You’re buds, and have more you agree on than not. That’s what political parties are like. And declaring war on one of your own is pretty dirty pool.
The past week has seen some interesting polls put into the field, one by the Republican-leaning Rasmussen and one by the Democratic-leaning Public Policy Polling. Depending on who you believe and what you believe, you’ll come out from looking at the polls with your own idea about South Carolina’s U.S. senators.
The Rasmussen poll took a look at the dichotomy between U.S. Sens. Jim DeMint and Lindsey Graham. For almost five years, it’s been pretty clear that the Palmetto State’s representatives in the nation’s most deliberative body are fairly different fellows. You can explain it this way and that, but it comes down to this: DeMint won’t compromise with Democrats. Graham will. Everything beyond that is spin for whichever side you support.
According to the poll, which has a 4.5 percent margin of error and a sample of 500 people, 38 percent want the S.C. Republican Party to be more like DeMint. About 32 percent want it to be more like Graham. The balance doesn’t know or doesn’t care. The favorability/unfavorability ratings for both men are about the same — which is to say, they’re both a little more than 60/30 positive, with the difference between the senators being within the margin of error.
According to Real Clear Politics, that looks good for DeMint keeping his seat in next year’s election.
DeMint’s favorable rating in this survey is 63 percent, while 25 percent have an unfavorable view. That number is certainly in the range where incumbents can be considered safe.
But hey, PPP is giving Democrats some hope. That poll had a margin of error of 4.1 percent and a sample size of 570 people. The rub here is that President Barack Obama, DeMint and Graham are all below 50 percent approval (O: 46, D: 44, G: 43). The real difference is that Obama’s negatives are pegged at 49 while the GOP senators have much lower negative ratings (D: 29, G: 35). Also, support for the Democratic health care plan is just getting hammered here, 53-35 against.
Democrats looking for a positive outlook could play up the 47-38 advantage DeMint has over a generic Democratic opponent. That gets donkey types breaking out their “The Candidate” DVDs to analyze the McKay-Jarmon race. We’re still extremely suspect of any chance a Democrat has of defeating DeMint next year. The “generic Democrat” number is bolstered because Democrats really don’t like DeMint, and there’s an anti-incumbency vibe going down (like ’92, ’94, ’06 and ’08).
Unless there’s a seriously game-changing event in this race, we’re still putting the over/under at DeMint by 10.
The elections to the U.S. Senate of Lindsey Graham in 2002 and Jim DeMint in 2004 sent men with decidedly different styles and base constituencies to Washington. Graham, his power play as a House manager in President Bill Clinton’s impeachment trial notwithstanding, has an m.o. for working across party lines and drawing support from moderates. DeMint has a reputation as a standard-bearer for activist conservatives.
The foundation has been laid for tension, and Graham’s consultants’ blog, The Palmetto Scoop, went after DeMint in comments on a post about Graham’s support, or lack thereof, of cap-and-trade legislation.
Ouch. Does Graham approve of this? And if so, what does it say about the current state of relations between South Carolina’s senators? Also, there could be spillover into next year’s state elections. You would think that Atty. Gen. Henry McMaster‘s people wouldn’t be looking to rip into and freeze out the guy who will be at the top of the GOP ticket, and someone who’s pretty popular with the type of Republican voters who show up for the primaries.
A security protocol became assured of when Gov. Mark Sanford, U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham and Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano agreed to Project Seahawk, a plan to protect ports like S.C.’s State Ports Authority. The headquarters for the project is at the old Charleston Navy Base. The plan was developed after 9/11 to adequately coordinate federal, state and local government entities.
Graham said the Port of Charleston is, “one of the most strategic locations in the United States in the war on terror.” Part of the project is a large number of cameras, which cover local highways, the Arthur Ravenel Bridge and numerous marshlands in the area of the port.
Because of Sanford’s issues with his six-day disappearance and his affair with an Argentine businesswoman, he did not not allow himself to be available to questions from the press. The same day, Senate Majority Leader Harvey Peeler gave his consent to appointing Sen. Tom Davis, Sanford’s former chief of staff, to the State Ports Authority’s board.
“Tom Davis’ knowledge, experience, and commitment to running an efficient port operation made him the obvious choice,” he said. “Senator Davis will take a conservative approach to the oversight committee that ensures accountability and a focus on economic development. His extensive background and knowledge of port issues is exactly what we need on this committee.”
Davis, who had opposed the SPA restructuring bill, committed himself to doing the best job he can.
“I am pleased that Senator Peeler recommended me to Senator McConnell to serve on the committee and accept that appointment,” Davis said. “I sincerely appreciate the faith that Senator Peeler has shown in me. It is no secret that I opposed the port-restructuring bill, but now that it has become law it is time to move on and do the best we can for South Carolina ports. And in that regard, I think I am well suited and qualified to oversee the operations of the South Carolina State Ports Authority and to screen the qualifications of new members to the ports authority board to ensure that the its objectives are met.”
The cheese, and Gov. Mark Sanford, stands alone. Wednesday brought more statements from S.C. Republicans, with the sentiment going from obliquely asking him to resign to outright demanding it. According to a top state Republican in Politico, “His support has collapsed. … He was made aware that his support is getting to be dang-near nonexistent.”
That response was in reference to phone calls to Sanford made by U.S. Sens. Jim DeMint and Lindsey Graham, and U.S. Rep. Gresham Barrett. DeMint made an appearance on “Fox & Friends” this morning, saying that the Governor should “make the right decision about what needs to be done,” but didn’t want to elaborate beyond that. If DeMint stepped away from Sanford, which is what it looks like, it would be a body blow to to the Governor’s credibility. Both largely share the same policy positions and political constituencies. DeMint is quoted in South Carolina Radio News all but advocating for Sanford to go.
“I’m concerned that he’s no longer in a position to lead the state,” DeMint said. “A number of us are talking to him quietly and we hope it can be resolved.”
State Republican Party chair Karen Floyd echoed the sentiment, saying, “For the past two days, I have been speaking with Republican leaders across South Carolina. There is clearly a growing view that the time may have come for Governor Sanford to remove himself and his family from the limelight, so that he can devote his efforts full-time to repairing the damage in his personal life.”
Rep. Dan Hamilton went a step further, encouraging Sanford to take a serious look at leaving office and letting the state move on from the mess he’s taken from his private life and put in the public eye.
“Unfortunately, in light of recent less than candid and contradictory statements, it has become clear that Gov. Sanford has lost the ability to effectively govern at this time,” he said. “I regretfully ask the Governor to consider resigning his position and take the time to focus on his personal well being and his responsibility as a husband and father. The job of Governor is temporary in nature and can be passed on to other people. The role of husband and father is permanent and cannot be done by anyone else.”
Rep. Nikki Haley, who is seen as Sanford’s heir in her run for governor, broke her week-long silence by saying, “What we do need to hear from the governor is an explanation as to how he can lead our state going forward. He has a responsibility to outline what he wants to accomplish over the next 18 months and how he intends to accomplish it. I remain willing to listen to that case, but if he cannot make it convincingly, then he must move on.”
And, it seems that Sanford has totally lost the Republicans in the Senate. Last night, a number of powerful GOP senators signed a letter asking the Governor to resign. As the hours have moved on, four more Republican senators (Sens. Danny Verdin, Ronnie Cromer, Shane Martin and Wes Hayes) have come out publicly for resignation, representing over half of the caucus. Senate President Pro Tempore Glenn McConnell, highest-ranking senator, has come just short of advocating Sanford’s resignation, instead leading with the fact that the Governor has lost any support he once had.
“Neither I nor my colleagues in the General Assembly can require that the Governor resign,” McConnell said in a statement. “That decision is his alone. I do believe, however, that the Governor has lost the support of the people that is needed to govern. Therefore, I would ask the Governor to look in his heart and decide whether with his family situation and the public uproar over what he has done and said locally and nationally whether he can lead our state for the remainder of his term.”
Now, even Sanford pal and former chief of staff, Sen. Tom Davis, put out a statement saying that he has yet to make up his mind on the matter. When you can’t even get your boy to back you up, it’s probably time to pack it up and hit the dusty trail.
