Beaufort Senator Tom Davis probably isn’t on your 2010 gubernatorial short list just yet, but after less than a month in office the former Chief of Staff to S.C. Gov. Mark Sanford is already being invited to share the stage with some members of a pretty exclusive club.
Last week, Sen. Davis – along with former S.C. Governors Dick Riley and Jim Hodges – addressed a forum at the Charleston School of Law entitled “State Constitutional Reform in the New South.â€
Moderated by Columbia attorney and Republican activist Kevin Hall, the forum addressed the current structure of South Carolina state government, which is incomprehensibly still built around an 1895 Constitution crafted for the sole purpose of perpetuating post-Reconstruction Jim Crow (i.e. anti-black) laws.
And just as Davis did recently in standing up for his district against the State Ports Authority, he once again did not mince words in going after yet another linchpin of our state’s failed political establishment.
FITS spoke with Davis today as he elaborated on his comment that “(the 1895 Constitution) is a constitution born in sin,” alluding to the vestiges of Jim Crow.
“The saddest thing is that these vestiges hurt everybody in South Carolina today regardless of race, income, geography or ideology,” Davis told us. “Tens of millions of dollars go down the drain each year in waste and duplication, and yet we perpetuate this archaic system year-in, year-out. That is unacceptable in any budget environment, but it’s absolutely intolerable in this current economic crisis.”
The solution? A comprehensive government restructuring plan that streamlines and prioritizes agency functions, saves money, improves services and restores accountability to where it belongs, in the hands of the state’s chief executive.
“We have to change,” Davis said. “We have a State Constitution that’s not competitive for the 20th Century, to say nothing of the Century we’re in now. We have a structure so splintered and fragmented that no one is able to be held accountable – and frankly, that lack of accountability has had a profoundly negative impact on our state’s economic, education and social outcomes.”
Hodges, who was defeated in 2002 by a campaign that Davis co-managed, agreed with his former adversary.
“The reason to do it, I believe, it makes for a much more effective government,†Hodges said. “Legislators are generally well-intentioned, but we think incrementally. It’s maddening at times.”
Riley also agreed.
“(We) have a weak executive state,†Riley said. “I’m in direct agreement with the governor’s comment about the 1895 constitution.”
Yet while the former governors are all in agreement, what of the men who aspire to lead South Carolina once Sanford – a staunch restructuring advocate – has finished his second and final term?
None have uttered a word on the issue, and McMaster and Bauer, in particular, have fought at every turn to preserve the current system.
Given the lack of enthusiasm for the three institutional candidates currently vying for the GOP gubernatorial nod, could Davis be a Sanford-style maverick in 2010?
We shall see …
By Crooner January 20, 2009 at 3:14 pm
Any constitution that needs to be “amended” three times every election cycle is f-ed up.
By Toyota Kawaski January 20, 2009 at 4:52 pm
Gov.Moonbeam must have been in DC for THA EVENT so he sent his clone off the old libertarian block Sen.Davis esq.
By Gen. Longstreet January 20, 2009 at 5:24 pm
I was there when that piece of rubbish was ratified by South Carolina’s legislature in 1895. Haw! The mandarins in this fine Legislative State didn’t even have the decency to have that racist charter ratified by the people — they did it themselves. How can proud South Carolinians sit back and accept this affront?
By Hubert January 20, 2009 at 5:37 pm
I think Will is on to something here. Davis is one of the most articulate policy voices in this state. We don’t have a lowcountry or coastal candidate yet. We also don’t have a reform candidate yet. If he could raise the money, I think he instantly becomes a favorite to make the run-off. Money would be the big question, because his name ID is obviously pretty low. In this economy it may be hard for someone with such little ID to raise the big bucks from across the state. However if Marky Mark would step up and help raise it- then I don’t think money would be a problem.
By Chris January 20, 2009 at 7:38 pm
Davis is heads and shoulders above Bauer and McMaster. Thy are party hacks. Let us hope Davis runs. Or someone else, other than those three so often mentioned.
By Benson January 20, 2009 at 8:08 pm
Can you just imagine? Davis would probably sweep the editorial board endorsements, dominate the debates, get the support of the fiscally conservative wing of the party, AND pretty much have a lock on winning the lowcountry. If he jumps in, the current three better focus on eliminating each other and determining who the socially conservative, establishment (Bob Peeler) candidate will be in this race. Because the other two will just be Chucky Condon and Jim Miles, baby.
By liz January 20, 2009 at 8:19 pm
Trust no politician that wants to “restructure”. Let the people restructure.
By P Branton January 20, 2009 at 11:40 pm
BOB Peeler ….. LOL…LOL ????
This man can be tied directly back to …..WHAT ?!?!?!
As far a TOMMY BOY……the sheets look clean due to the Jasper deal but WHO has he called OUT in his OWN party ?? WHO? …Catherine CEIPS ???
I wonder where Tom’s trash is dumped…..AT ?? Beaufort County….or Jasper County ????
Did Tom stand up for Cherokee County?? …..Williamsburg County?? ……Parkers Ferry???
Did he receive FUNDS from Wildlife Habitat…??????
By Concerned January 21, 2009 at 2:14 am
Why wasn’t USC Law able to get this conference? Was there a choice in the matter between schools?
By Toyota Kawaski January 21, 2009 at 10:38 am
Gem this was all so you could become a turncoat later on.You sir need to return above the Mason Dixon line.
By Pat Hendrix January 21, 2009 at 12:11 pm
Let’s hope Davis, buddy of the fits crew, can run as the heir to Sanford. Then we can be assured SC remains firmly stuck in the mud as they push a ideologically driven, stillborn agenda.
Enjoy your time in the wilderness. You’ll be there for a decade or more.
By John Steinberger January 21, 2009 at 1:45 pm
This issue is related to another post Will had on our failure to land the IBM Service Center in Greenville and its 1300 high-paying jobs. We need an efficient, cost-effective government, lower taxes and less regulation to be competitive in the global economy. Any gubernatorial candidate who fails to grasp this will surely not get my vote or my support!
By Gen. Longstreet January 21, 2009 at 3:57 pm
Mr. or Mrs. Hendrix (whichever applies):
You don’t need Sanford or Davis or anyone else in the governor’s office to “be assured SC remains firmly stuck in the mud.” The racist constitution of 1895, courtesy of Mr. Pitchfork, provides that assurance. My compliments, sir or madam.
By YaYaSister January 21, 2009 at 8:37 pm
Maybe Pat Hendrix is a morphodite, General Longstreet. That’s what they told us Jamie Lee Curtis was — in the 8th grade, when we were learning about such things. I don’t think the teacher really said it. But Susie said she did.
By PalmettoPulse January 21, 2009 at 9:33 pm
The only people who think our Governor is doing a poor job running this State are the people who wish they were running this State. Outside of Columbia, Gov. Sanford’s approval rating is something some politicians never achieve. The prophecies the Governor spewed for years have finally come to fruition. If anyone had bothered listening to him, instead of fighting with him, we would be in a much better place. Why is it that we always blame the executive branch for our mandarins’ (hat tip to the General) failures? Sanford’s endorsement in this race will be coveted!
By BIN News Editorial Staff January 21, 2009 at 10:07 pm
Gee, we wonder who sic(k) willie is pimping for gub’ner? Just wondering. And who is paying him? And who is paying him under the table? Inquiring minds from Charlotte will want to know.
By Gen. Longstreet January 22, 2009 at 10:48 am
Mr. Bin,
I can tell you my love for you will still be strong after the boys of Charlotte have gone. And out on the road to today I saw a “Mark Sanford” sticker on a Cadillac. A little voice inside myself said, “Mr. Bin, go fornicate yourself.”
By Patricia L. Peters June 25, 2009 at 11:55 am
I cannot e-mail the Governor (“sight overloaded)so I am sending this to this site. Please tell your friend, Mark Stanford, to resign. What kind of person leaves his family and his responsibilities like a love sick teenager? His judgment is now in question. He has been judgmental about other people and let people think that his morals were above reproach–what a hypocrite!!
People can forgive him but I no longer trust or want his to represent the State of South Carolina. He can go off and find himself on his own time not on the State’s time. And, it is disgusting that he used God’s name in his press conference. What did God have to do with his bad judgment and choices? Even now he is looking for an excuse by evoking God. His problem is his bad character and bad choices.