Tuesday, May 14, 2013
Say bi-partisan effort should be an example for the House.
In a press conference at the Statehouse on Tuesday, Treasurer Curtis Loftis and Sen. Vincent Sheheen (D-Kershaw) announced the need to establish a special fund that would compensate victims of the Department of Revenue’s cybersecurity breach last September. Loftis and Sheheen made the announcement as the House begins deliberations over the budget. The measure they called for would require an amendment to the existing budget bill. In order to be reimbursed from the fund, a South Carolina taxpayer would have to submit a claim to the Treasurer’s office and proof that a financial loss occurred as a result of the breach. More than six million people may have been affected by the hack. Read Patch's coverage of it HERE. Last month, Sheheen …
Monday, May 13, 2013
Suggests November election results might have been different.
Lindsey Graham learned a long time ago that a politician who tries to please everyone doesn’t stay a politician for long. He’s the rare elected official who can infuriate and pander to the same group of people within a matter of minutes. Considering he is up for re-election next year, it might seem prudent for Graham to dial back the rhetoric, but if Monday is any indication that won’t be happening any time soon. That Graham, the one who sounds ready to impeach Barack Obama as quickly as he would talk fiscal policy with the President over dinner, was on full display during a session with the media in Greenville. On Benghazi “We still don’t know who changed the talking points, but they were unconnected to reality on the ground,” Graham …
Saturday, May 11, 2013
Local branches take part in Columbia and Greenville.
Two of the local chapters of the non-profit group Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense in America held rallies in Greenville and Columbia on Saturday to coincide with Mother's Day weekend. The group formed shortly after the Newtown massacre in December has held several rallies in South Carolina in support of passing tougher gun legislation. Supporters of gun control in the Palmetto State have received mixed news of late. On the positive side, Gov. Nikki Haley recently signed the so-called "Boland Bill," which will make it more difficult for people who have been adjudicated as mentally ill to obtain a firearm. "That was very encouraging," said Erin Dando, of the Upstate chapter of Moms Demand Gun Sense. "Our real goal is making sure loopholes …
Thursday, May 9, 2013
The group will gather to read the Mother's Bill of Rights.
Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense in America will host a gun legislation rally at the statehouse on Mother’s Day, a press release stated. Moms, supporters and victims of gun violence will meet in front of the statehouse at 10 a.m. on Sunday, the release stated. Participants will then circle the statehouse before reading the Mother's Bill of Rights and honoring those participants who have lost someone to gun violence. Read the Mother's Bill of Rights HERE. Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense in America was created to build support for common-sense gun legislation, the release stated. Moms Demand Action is also encouraging moms to create eight paper flowers on behalf of the eight children shot and killed in America every day, the release stated…
Says it benefits working parents.
A bill co-sponsored by Rep. Joe Wilson (R-2) passed the House of Representatives on Wednesday and will now move to the Senate. The bill, called the Working Families Flexibility Act of 2013, passed by a vote of 223-204, which was along party lines. The bill seeks to change the U.S labor law that says hourly workers are required to paid time-and-a-half for every hour they work over 40 in a week. The bill would allow employers to exercise that option or use the time beyond 40 hours toward 'comp' time. The 'comp' time option is already given to many public-sector employees. But Democrats say giving employers the 'comp' time options would create circumstances ripe for the possibility of worker exploitation. In a statement following the House …
Wednesday, May 8, 2013
The small tax increase would generate $1.1 million for county law enforcement, according to a report from The State.
Lexington County Council is considering a small tax increase that would allow the sheriff's department to hire a few more deputies, according to a report in The State. The plan would generate an extra $1.1 million for county law enforcement and could add up to five more deputies, according to the report. The tax increase could add as much as $4.44 to a Lexington County homeowner's property tax bill for a house valued at $100,000. Discussion of the tax increase surfaced at Tuesday's meeting as county council continues to work on the budget for the new fiscal year starting July 1. Read more from The State.
Tuesday, May 7, 2013
Voters may have not forgiven the former governor but they kept the First District seat in Republican hands Tuesday.
To become one of the most spectacular political stories of a Comeback Kid, Mark Sanford didn't need forgiveness — and didn't receive much from voters who admitted to personally disliking the former governor — but needed to take advantage of the South Carolina First Congressional District's dislike of national Democrats like House Minority Speaker Nancy Pelosi and President Barack Obama. The Republican nominee for S.C. First Congressional District won 54 percent of the vote in Tuesday's special election triggered by the appointment of former Congressman and now-Sen. Tim Scott to the U.S. Senate. While the district has remained in GOP control for more than 30 years, Sanford was outspent and, at times, lagging behind his Democratic rival …
The formerly disgraced Republican governor returns to Congress with a victory.
Mark Sanford, whose political career was left for dead with dozens of ethics violations and an extramarital affair made very public, will return to Congress. With 100 precinct of precincts reporting, Sanford collected 54 percent of the votes against Elizabeth Colbert Busch in South Carolina's First Congressional District special election. Turnout was very high for a special election at 31 percent, which helped the former governor in the highly conservative district. In the end, Sanford didn't win on forgiveness — which is good, because he didn't get it. See how Sanford was able to win the election here. On Wednesday, Sanford got more good news when he settled a Charleston County Family Court case against his ex-wife, Jenny Sanford. See …
Monday, May 6, 2013
The final vote on the sale of the pond will take place at the May 20 meeting.
The final vote on the sale of Barr Pond to a housing developer will take place at the next Lexington Town Council meeting, members voted Monday night. The final reading was scheduled for Monday, but members of the Lexington Wildlife Chapter who have called the pond home since 1955 urged council to reconsider. The town agreed to postpone the final vote until their May 20 meeting and suggested that Lexington Wildlife Chapter leaders meet with the housing developer to work out an agreement that would allow the chapter to continue to use the pond after a subdivision is built around it. The developer is offering the town $60,000 for the water rights and a small 5-acre section of land near the pond. SCE&G, which owns 11 acres of land around the…
All you need to know about the past, present and future of the race for South Carolina's First Congressional District.
9:15 a.m. Update: Former Gov. Mark Sanford didn't need forgiveness to win Tuesday's special election. Which is good, because he didn't get it. But that doesn't mean he didn't know how to win. See how the Comeback Kid made it happen. His opponent, Elizabeth Colbert Busch, meanwhile, was unable to take advantage of the loads of media hype and attention her campaign received. In fact, the political novice avoided engaging Sanford on many topics or in the media. See what she told supporters on Tuesday night. 8:30 p.m. Update: With 71 percent of the precincts reporting, CNN and the Associated Press have projected Mark Sanford as the winner in Tuesday's special election for the First Congressional District. 7 p.m. Update: The polls are now …
stanley seigler
5:07 pm on Wednesday, May 15, 2013
a circus compared to a lied into war (iraq) that cost some 3000 plus murders of our children...and probably 100,000 of iraqi citizens...and untold injured on both sides... more ›