Monday, May 20, 2013
Annual event for those who made the ultimate sacrifice
Sgt. John "J.D." Meador of Columbia was one of seven soldiers honored in Columbia on Monday at the Fallen Soldiers Ceremony. The annual event, held at the Palmetto Club in Columbia, recognizes those South Carolina service members who made the ultimate sacrifice in the past year. The other six South Carolina soldiers who lost their lives: Families of those who died were presented a framed certificate from both Houses of the General Assembly, the South Carolina Palmetto State Hero Commendation, and a South Carolina State Flag. The event was hosted by Sen. Katrina Shealy (R – Lexington) and attended by numerous state officials including State Adjutant General Robert Livingston, State Attorney General Alan Wilson and State Superintendent of …
Tuesday, February 19, 2013
Both approved easily and are expected to pass in the Senate.
The Senate Judiciary Committee approved two key measures on its docket in a Tuesday afternoon session, moving them both to a full senate vote. The first item was S.308, which would allow persons with a Concealed Weapons Permit to possess a firearm in establishments that sell alcohol, specifically bars and restaurants. See the full bill here. It passed 15-7. Sen. Shane Massey (R - Edgefield), one of the sponsors of the bill, said the biggest stumbling block was the gray area between what is considered a bar and what is considered a restaurant. Establishments such as Applebee's or Wild Wing Cafe were not cut and dry as either bars or restaurants. "The bill needs to have language that makes it clear to everyone," Massey said during the …
Tuesday, January 15, 2013
Geography appears to less of a barrier in getting things done.
In any state legislature there are competing factions. Often, those factions are based on party or ideology. Just as often, the factions are based on geography. This is especially true in large states like California, Pennsylvania and Texas. Even though South Carolina is one of the smaller states in the union, with its clearly defined regions, it has always had tensions in the legislature based on location. It wasn’t always the case that what’s good for the Lowcountry is good for the Upstate and vice versa. But that may be changing. Technology has made it easier to communicate with someone on the other side of the world, making communication within a state a comparative breeze. And improved highways have made it easier to transport goods …
Monday, January 14, 2013
Measure gets out of committee by 19-1 margin.
While 2012 was chock full of electoral intrigue in South Carolina, _the longest-running story was undoubtedly the controversy that led to hundreds of candidates being thrown off of ballots_. Lawsuits were filed throughout the year, from just after the Supreme Court’s ruling in May up to just weeks before Election Day in November_. Many of the candidates initially thrown off eventually made it back on to ballots via petition, but not after expending significant time and money. It’s believed that only two of the petition candidates ended up victorious. The controversy was another blow to South Carolina’s national reputation as a place where in politics “anything goes.” The magazine The Nation named the ballot mess one of the most …
Wednesday, November 14, 2012
The defeats of Rep. Joan Brady and Sen. Jake Knotts had a lot in common.
While headlines from last week’s election persist, both locally and nationally, it might have been easy to forget two races in the Midlands that resulted in two longtime members of the General Assembly being ousted from their seats. In Senate 23, Katrina Shealy easily defeated longtime Lexington County fixture Jake Knotts. In House 78, Beth Bernstein bested the popular Joan Brady. Shealy Leaves Knotts Shellshocked Shealy’s victory can only be described as historic. With her win, she becomes the only female in the Senate and she also replaces a lawmaker in Knotts who was both famous and infamous, with a knack for finding headlines in the worst possible way. But most notably, her victory came as a petition candidate. After being bounced from…
Tuesday, October 16, 2012
Hotly contested state house and senate races could boost turnout.
The conventional wisdom in politics is the top of the ticket is what drives people to the polls. The campaign of Barack Obama in 2008 is a case in point, when millions of new voters joined the electorate to elect the 44th President. Except 2012 has not been a year where conventional wisdom has held form in South Carolina. Just ask Mitt Romney, who is the first Republican nominee for president since 1976 not to have won the Palmetto State in the primaries. That was just the beginning. The state Supreme Court ruling in the summer that saw hundreds of candidates removed from ballots actually may have served as a catalyst in igniting the attention of voters who might not necessarily have been interested in state politics. Harry Kibler’s …
Tuesday, October 2, 2012
Looking to unseat controversial Jake Knotts.
Among the 153 petition candidates on the ballot on Nov. 6, there are more than a few long shots. There are also quite a few with a realistic chance to spring the upset. But among those who follow Palmetto State politics, one of the petition candidates most likely to emerge victorious is Katrina Shealy in Senate District 23. Shealy has several of the attributes USC Political Science Professor Mark Tompkins thinks are needed for a petition candidate to beat an incumbent. Within her district Shealy has name recognition. While being outraised more than three-to-one, Shealy has remained competitive in that area, gathering more than $70,000 in donations according to the most recent public reports. She also received the endorsement of the State …
Monday, October 1, 2012
The long journey to elected office has a few thinking of victory, but virtually all are hoping the effort will result in a change from business as usual.
Regardless of what happens Nov. 6, it seems certain that South Carolina political pundits will look at 2012 as exceptional. From the end of South Carolina's "We Pick Presidents" to the state Supreme Court deciding who should and shouldn't be on ballots to multiple lawsuits between parties and candidates themselves, this election season has been filled with turmoil. Ultimately, hundreds of candidates were tossed from ballots. Many incumbents who appeared to face a tough primary battle cruised to primary victories. But the challengers weren't done. A concerted effort by Operation Lost Vote — a group formed by political activists and led by Spartanburg Tea Party organizer Karen Martin — ultimately gathered 300,000 signatures across the state…
Monday, August 20, 2012
Race shaping up as a showdown.
On Saturday, the South Carolina GOP took the unusual step of endorsing a petition candidate over a registered Republican, when it endorsed Katrina Shealy over incumbent Jake Knotts in the race for Senate Seat 23. On Monday, Shealy accepted the endorsement: “When I am elected to the State Senate people will not have to lay awake at night wondering what deal Jake Knotts is cutting or what scheme he is entering into to benefit himself. “They will know that I am there hard at work improving our economy, promoting our true conservative values and ensuring our kids have a brighter future. The fun and games surrounding Jake Knotts has to end. Governing is serious business and Jake Knotts has failed and lost the confidence of the people,” said …
Sunday, August 19, 2012
Choice of Shealy over Knotts is a rare example of party showing preference.
Though they may have a preference, political parties typically do not endorse one member of their own party over another member. But on Saturday, the South Carolina Republican Party Executive Committee took the unusual step of endorsing a petition candidate, Katrina Shealy, over Jake Knotts, a long-time Republican, for Senate seat 23. To be sure, Shealy would have preferred to be on the ballot as a Republican and Knotts has been oft-criticized for being a RINO (Republican in Name Only). But the endorsement had little to do with adherence to Republican doctrine. What caused the SCGOP to act at this stage is not clear--the candidates had been certified and are set to be on the November ballot. But Knotts' ability to make headlines in …
Eric
1:33 pm on Wednesday, February 20, 2013
stanley seigler - always comments, all times, all days - always against conservative values - its like someone is paying him to do so more ›