Wednesday, April 17, 2013
With 2014 elections looming, and both facing challengers, the two SC political leaders are heading in opposite directions.
The Winthrop Poll released its April figures on Wednesday morning, showing how South Carolina residents feel about their political leaders, national leaders and the country in general. Two candidates who face 2014 election opposition find themselves going in opposite directions. Gov. Nikki Haley saw her overall approval rise 1 percentage point to 43.5 percent from the February poll. Among Republicans and those who lean GOP, it rose to 69 percent from 66.8. Haley's spokesman Rob Godfrey told Patch: “While the ups and downs of poll numbers are interesting to many political observers, Gov. Haley pays much more attention to South Carolina's jobs numbers, and she is thrilled that they are growing by the thousands.” U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham, …
Wednesday, April 10, 2013
Democrat will challenge Gov. Nikki Haley.
Vincent Sheheen put to rest months of speculation by announcing his candidacy for Governor on Wednesday morning. The Kershaw Democrat will likely challenge Gov. Nikki Haley in a rematch of the 2010 race which saw Haley win by 4.4 percentage points. Haley has not officially announced her candidacy, but is expected to do so after the legislative session ends in June. Sheheen has been a persistent critic of Haley's since then, most recently pointing to the cybersecurity breach of the Revenue Department as an example of Haley's leadership failures. In an email to supporters Sheheen wrote: South Carolina is the greatest state in the union, with unlimited potential. But let's face it, the status quo is not working. I want what you want - a …
Monday, April 8, 2013
Caterpillar machinery supplier to invest millions, create 250 new jobs.
Illinois-based McLaughlin Body Company announced Monday it plans to build a new plant in Anderson County, creating 250 new jobs. The $22 million facility, to be located at 5121 Old Pearman Dairy Road in Anderson, will supply a new Caterpillar facility in Georgia, company officials said. McLaughlin Body Company, based in Moline, Ill., is a manufacturer of operator protection systems, including cab enclosures and metal components for construction, military, agriculture and other heavy-duty vehicles. At a ceremony Monday attended by Gov. Nikki Haley, company officials said they expect to add the 250 jobs over the next five years. “The search for a new location was extensive and we felt South Carolina and Anderson County was the best choice …
Tuesday, March 26, 2013
Senator's book tour gives him the latitude to talk policy without the election spotlight.
It’s too soon to say if the proposals in Vincent Sheheen lays out in his book will be effective. But as a public relations device it’s already yielded great results. For the last few weeks the Kershaw County senator has travelled the state talking about his book “The Right Way” and his ideas to improve South Carolina. Given that Sheheen seems all but certain to again challenge Nikki Haley for governor, the tour is a pre-campaign of sorts. But without the trappings of an election, the book gives Sheheen a way to give voters an idea of the priorities he would have as governor. “Too many politicians talk in sound bites and not about substantive issues, so I wanted to write about policies I’ve talked about in the Senate as well as some new …
Saturday, March 23, 2013
After slamming Gov. Nikki Haley, O'Malley touts likely Democratic frontrunner.
Saturday was not Maryland Gov. Martin O”Malley’s first trip to South Carolina. His daughter is a student at the College of Charleston and during his Keynote Address at the 2nd Annual Democratic Party Issues Conference, he also talked about visits to Fort Moultrie with his sons. The theme of O’Malley’s speech was results in place of ideology. Re-elected in 2010 with 56 percent of the vote, O’Malley blasted the record of Nikki Haley on several fronts. He noted the Department of Revenue cybersecurity breach, the state’s continued struggles to improve public education and Haley’s rejection of hundreds of millions of dollars in Medicaid expansion. He also noted that even with the addition of thousands of jobs, South Carolina still has one of …
Friday, March 22, 2013
Previous laws were vague about what was legal and what was not and where.
Gov. Nikki Haley signed a bill on Friday that banned sweepstakes cafes in South Carolina. "The governor has always said she doesn’t believe South Carolina needs to settle for gambling, that our great state has too much going for us to sink to that level, and so she happily signed the sweepstakes bill and will continue her focus on bringing good jobs to every corner of this state in a way we can all be proud of." Previous laws allowed some businesses to operate sweepstakes machines on their premises. The law is aimed to close those loopholes. Sen. Larry Martin (R - Pickens) and Chair of the Judiciary Committee, Sens. Mike Fair (R- Greenville) and Chip Campsen (R - Charleston) were sponsors in the Senate. It passed there 40-2, with only …
Wednesday, March 20, 2013
S.C. Supreme Court will decide whether or not a case brought by John Rainey against Gov. Nikki Haley will go to civil court.
The ethics charges against Gov. Nikki Haley were heard by the state's Supreme Court Wednesday as the court decides whether or not to allow the lawsuit to continue to civil court. The lawsuit by GOP activist John Rainey claims the governor failed to disclose conflicts of "interest and lobbied on behalf of her employer while was a state representative from Lexington County could be heard in state court," The State reported. The House ethics committee has cleared Haley of the charges in 2012. Click here to read more on The State. Haley's spokesman Rob Godfrey released this statement Wednesday: “John Rainey is unserious and unstable, and he should go back to his plantation and stop wasting the time of the taxpayers. Mr. Rainey’s political …
New $80 million site in Fountain Inn doubles plant's production capabilities and will bring 160 jobs.
Calling it an "historic day," company officials along with Gov. Nikki Haley officially christened the newest addition to the growing Bosch Rexroth manufacturing campus in Fountain Inn on Wednesday. With around 200 people looking on, Haley and Bosch executives held a ceremonial ribbon cutting to mark the start of production in Building 103 — a former 260,000 square-foot industrial warehouse on the site that has been remodeled into a state-of-the-art production facility that will initially produce hydraulic pumps used in a variety of industries. The $80 million investment by the German-based company, which will double the plant's current production capacity, is expected to add 160 jobs over the next few years, company officials said. Noting…
Monday, March 18, 2013
Palmetto State had a prominent seat at the table.
After every presidential year, the losing party retreats into conference to plot a path towards winning the races it just lost. 2012 was no different. What was different was the way in which Democrats defeated Republicans at the polls. Despite high unemployment and economic sluggishness, Barack Obama was easily re-elected, winning by five million votes over Mitt Romney. At the start of 2012, the GOP thought it could win a majority in the Senate. It ended up losing seats. In the House, the Republicans kept the majority, but a few of the most extreme members, such as Allen West of Florida and Joe Walsh of Illinois were bounced from office. The closer the numbers were looked at, the worse the picture became. Republicans have a serious problem…
Thursday, March 14, 2013
SC Dems slam Haley as 'fame-seeking.'
UPDATED: The South Carolina Democratic Party and its chair Dick Harpootlian responded to Haley's appearance at CPACon the SCDP's Facebook page: “South Carolina needs a governor to put people before politics, tackle our high unemployment, failing schools, crumbling roads, and fight to protect the 3.7 million taxpayers that the Haley administration exposed to identity theft. Instead what we’ve got is a fame-seeking, ideology-loving, Tea Party loyalist who’s more interested in rubbing elbows with rich celebrities who are so extreme that they render themselves irrelevant. It’s time for Governor Haley to start putting politics aside and paying attention to cleaning up the mess that she has perpetuated here in her home state.” – SCDP Chairman …
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11:52 am on Thursday, April 25, 2013
All I can say is, after this debacle: http://www.postandcourier.com/article/20121107/PC16/121109385, I don't understand how anyone can vote for Nikki Haley ever again. This was a total failure on behalf of her administration and they passed the buck around on this one for quite some time before letting those affected know what to do. I have friends that got letters in the mail 4 MONTHS later … more ›