Thursday, May 2, 2013
Measure had bi-partisan support.
Rob Godfrey, the spokesman for Gov. Nikki Haley, told Patch on Thursday that she will sign the so-called "Boland Bill" that came out of the legislature. The bill was borne out of an incident at Charleston's Ashley Hall School in February when Alice Boland pointed a gun a school officials. The gun did not go off. It was later learned that Boland had been adjudicated as mentally ill and had threatened to kill George W. Bush. The legislation received bi-partisan support in both chambers. It passed the House 87-0 (with 34 members not voting) and the Senate 35-6. The only six votes against the bill were by Republicans: Lee Bright, Kevin Bryant, Tom Corbin, Larry Grooms, Shane Martin and Danny Verdin. Attorney General Alan Wilson was an early …
Tuesday, February 19, 2013
'Appearance does matter," Wilson says in statement.
Attorney General Alan Wilson said on Tuesday that he has returned $7,000 in contributions from embattled House Speaker Bobby Harrell. Harrell made a personal contribution of $3,500 to sponsor an inaugural ball for Wilson and a PAC with which he is connected, the Palmetto Leadership Council, gave $3,500 to Wilson campaign. Last week, Wilson's office announced that SLED is investigating Harrell on possible ethics violations. The violations stem from testimony by longtime Harrell nemesis Ashley Landess, Director of the South Carolina Leadership Council. Wilson's statement: "As to past contributions my campaign has received from the Palmetto Leadership Council and/or Bobby Harrell personally, the Attorney General's Office is in no way …
Democratic Lowcountry lawmaker calls for legislation requiring names of 'mentally disturbed' to be put in a national criminal database for gun dealers.
A Lowcountry legislator has co-sponsored a bill that would prevent mentally disturbed persons from purchasing weapons, Live 5 News reported. Rep. Leon Stavrinakis and other legislators have worked to create the bill, which is in response to the Feb. 4 attempted shooting by an allegedly mentally ill woman at Ashley Hall private school downtown Charleston. The bill would place the mentally disturbed on the national criminal database that gun dealers use for background checks. Live 5 reported: (Alice Boland) was able to legally buy the gun because her name and history of mental illness were not in the database. "We cannot afford to wait around for this to happen again and for us not to be so lucky next time," Stavrinakis said. Click here to …
Legislation co-sponsored by Leon Stavrinakis.
At a Tuesday press conference in the Statehouse lobby, Attorney General Alan Wilson joined legislators and businessmen in supporting legislation that would require the national criminal database to include the names of mentally disturbed people. The database is used by gun dealers to run background checks. The legislation, which has not yet been filed, was co-sponored Rep. Leon Stavrinakis (D-119) yesterday. Stavrinakis drew up the bill after an incident earlier this month where a woman with a long history of mental illness pointed a gun at a staff member of Ashley Hall school. "We are not trying to change laws. We are trying to enforce laws already in place," Stavrinakis said today. Wilson, who reminded the assembled media that he is a …
Tuesday, February 12, 2013
Most of the seats look safe, but a few others are all but certain to be challenged.
Much of the political media’s attention on 2014 has focused on Gov. Nikki Haley’s re-election prospects and on the two senate races that will feature Lindsey Graham and Tim Scott, who will both be heavily favored to get re-elected. But down the ticket, in the other statewide constitutional offices, chatter and positioning has already begun. Those offices are (with current occupant—all of whom are Republicans): Loftis and Wilson have been rumored to seek higher office from the time they were sworn in. But Loftis squelched such rumors when he announced last month he’ll run for re-election. Wilson has not disclosed his plans. Neither man should get much of a challenge in a primary or general election. But insiders on both sides of the …
Wednesday, January 30, 2013
Attorney General Alan Wilson says he supports the Second and Tenth amendments.
- GOVERNMENT
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Wednesday, January 30
By S.C. Attorney General Alan Wilson The Founding Fathers made it very clear: the ability to bear arms is a fundamental right of citizenship in these United States. The America they created is a place where ‘We the People’ are guaranteed the right to defend ourselves, our families and our property. We must not allow emotions to alter or abridge our fundamental constitutional rights. As your Attorney General, I have a sworn duty to uphold the Constitutions of South Carolina and the United States – including the Second Amendment. I am fully committed to doing just that. Like many South Carolinians, I am a gun owner. I am also the proud father of two toddlers. Many of us learned how to shoot and handle guns responsibly from our fathers…
Monday, January 7, 2013
Final bill more than three times initial estimate.
Last week it was announced that it will cost the state of South Carolina $3.5 million for its efforts to pass Voter ID laws. That’s more than three times the initial estimates made by S.C. Attorney General Alan Wilson. Some of the bill will be defrayed by the federal government, since South Carolina was the “prevailing party.” The exact amount will be determined by this Friday, the 11th. Last Friday state lawmakers approved an additional $2 million in budget adjustments for the bill to be paid. The Voter ID law was passed in 2011 and was subsequently challenged by numerous groups and the Department of Justice blocked the bill from becoming law. Wilson then sued on behalf of the state and a three-judge federal panel upheld the law. Keep …
Tuesday, December 11, 2012
Second public hearing and last this year.
Gov. Nikki Haley and Attorney General Alan Wilson before the South Carolina Ethics Reform Commission today as part of its last public session of the year. The session begins at 9 a.m. Haley and Wilson appeared together for a series of press conferences in August to promote ethics reform. The commission was created by Haley in October to investigate and make recommendations about ethics reform in South Carolina government. Other groups have been formed in the legislature to tackle the number one problem on voters' minds besides the economy. But the first public hearing of the commission, held at the end of last month, was sparsely attended. Given that Haley and Wilson will be appearing, that's less like likely this time around. Ashley …
Wednesday, October 10, 2012
Panel finds that no ethnic groups would be discriminated against.
A three-judge panel in Washington, D.C. agreed on Wednesday to let South Carolina's Voter ID law go into effect. (NOTE: A copy of the panel's ruling is attached to this story.) However, due to to logistical challenges the law will not go into effect until 2013. The law means that starting next year voters must present a picture I.D. in order to cast a vote. Those not in possession of picture identification can obtain one free of charge from the S.C. Department of Motor Vehicles. The law was passed by state legislators in early 2011, but was subsequently blocked by the Department of Justice in December of 2011. In February of this year, South Carolina Attorney General Alan Wilson announced he had filed suit against the DOJ. Wednesday's …
Monday, September 10, 2012
Six elected officials scheduled to speak.
On Friday several notable South Carolina Republicans will be speaking at the Take Our Country Back 2012 Rally at the BI-LO Center in Greenville. Sen. Jim DeMint, Reps. Trey Gowdy, Tim Scott, Mick Mulvaney and Jeff Duncan are joined by State Attorney General Alan Wilson as the speakers. According to the organizers' web page, there are three main purposes for the rally: 1. Energize conservative voters of the Upstate. Because South Carolina is a “Red State”, we have a lively primary season, but tend to get overlooked during November elections. There are many ways for voters to get involved and aid in promoting the conservative message. Our speakers will not only be rallying conservatives, but also sharing how each voter can help. 2. Unite …
George Grace
3:48 pm on Friday, May 3, 2013
Come on disrtrict 1 voters - don't let us down. Vote for Elizabeth Colbert Busch for Congress. SC is already a joke in congress with Joe "You Lie" Wilson. Please don't send another joke to Congress. It would be embarrassing. more ›