Lawyers, Lobbyists, Lawmakers Try To Go Around Sanford
The former head of the South Carolina Democratic Party and a special interest lobbyist are hoping to keep the Palmetto State’s big government gravy train flowing.
And with considerable legislative support, they’ve jointly filed a lawsuit with the S.C. Supreme Court today that seeks to enjoin Gov. Mark Sanford from blocking $740 million in federal “stimulus” money.
Former S.C. Democratic Party Chairman Dick Harpootlian and lobbyist Dwight Drake filed their suit on behalf of some 18-year-old girl, you know, because it obviously wouldn’t do to have two of the state’s most liberal political insiders serving as the public “faces” for this lawsuit – particularly not when you can scrounge up some mall rat to read off cue cards.
Anyway, the suit seeks to go around Sanford by claiming that Congress clearly intended for either the state legislature or the governor to draw down Barack Obama’s bureaucratic bailout funds.
Which are actually your kids’ and grandkids’ bureaucratic bailout funds.
Harpootlian and Drake’s lawsuit doesn’t jive with a pro-Sanford opinion issued by S.C. Attorney General Henry McMaster last month, but it’s obvious that this is where things were headed.
Sure, the political establishment in Columbia would love to make the governor “eat it,” but they may be prepared to hand him a public relations victory (and tons of 2012 credibility) to get their grubby paws on all that money.
In fact, FITS readers will recall our confidential Democratic source telling us two weeks ago that “I suspect we’ll find a way to get those dollars to South Carolina … I think you’ll see the courts get involved.”
Yup … chalk up another one up for our sources.
Ironically, this lawsuit could serve to embolden Sanford, who in recent days has appeared to be looking for a way out of the “debt repayment” box that he put himself in at the outset of this debate.
If the Court rules that lawmakers have the ability to grab these funds, Sanford is off the hook.
Frankly, we prefer $ic’s $timulus $pending plan, but then again we are a little unfair … and a lot imbalanced.
Comments
By T4 on April 16th, 2009 at 4:33 pm
Two political insiders and an 18 year old? Haha! Come on Fits, give the citizens of SC some credit.
Sanford as president? Are you F*&Kin’ kiddin’ me?
By fitsnews on April 16th, 2009 at 5:17 pm
T4-
You should really call the Washington Post. They’ve written a helluva lot more about Sanford’s 2012 ambitions vis-a-vis the stimulus than we have.
In fact, while we prefer Sanford’s proposed use of these funds to Hugh Leatherman’s, we’ve been critical of the governor’s position on this from the beginning and we’ve been especially critical of his method of advancing it.
We would have made the receipt of ANY stimulus funds contingent on the implementation of a whole host of government reforms, particularly since this is one-time money that is going to set up a massive “shortfall” down the road.
Whatever, though. It is what it is.
Frankly, if Sanford had a set of balls, he would have refused to authorize ANY of the stimulus funding and told all the haters where they could stuff it.
That’s what Sic would’ve done.
We stand by our point, though. If a bunch of lawyers, lobbyists and lawmakers are successful in wrestling this $740 million away from Sanford, he wins politically because it takes him out of the box he’s currently in.
-FITS
By Cadetsuperintendent on April 16th, 2009 at 7:23 pm
I can’t make up my mind as to whether our legislature
is best described as stupid or just plain incompetent.
Sanford is dimestore Barry Goldwater willing to do
anything to this state so long as it furthers his personal
political ambition and our jackleg legislators are simply
too stupid (or perhaps merely too drunk) to realize how
well he plays them. They should simply let him block the portion
of the funds he controls and let the chips fall where they may.
He’ll take the heat if things fall apart and, if they don’t, maybe
he was right in the first place. This seems just logical, but hey
this is South Carolina.
By James the Foot Soldier on April 16th, 2009 at 10:21 pm
Does the term “separation of powers” mean anything to all the STUPID lawyers parading as legislators?
South Carolina would LEAP forward by a century if it were to prohibit lawyers from holding ANY elected office.
By Calhoun Fawls on April 17th, 2009 at 6:02 am
Oh, where to begin. I disagree with Sanford’s stand on the stimulus money because we have to pay it back anyway. The argument against it was lost back in early February. That said, I do not agree with this lawsuit. I think we have some wannabe national players trying to score points for the Obama re-election campaign and some kid being used as a pawn. When the kid mentioned the schools in Dillon, I knew this was not some random event. Remember how Obama referenced that in his Congressional address?
I don’t know why the Dems see Sanford as a threat, but they do. And, they are coming after him hard. I don’t see the “off the hook” situation if this lawsuit prevails. I see something more along the lines of “South Carolina Governor held accountable by the courts.”
Whether he wanted to be there or not, Governor Sanford is playing the “executive poker game,” now. The players are cutthroat and the stakes are high. Just ask Bill and Hillary how good the Obama crowd are.
By TODD on April 17th, 2009 at 6:16 am
JTFS:
Your suggestion is not as silly as some may believe on first review. Under the present system, all lawyers practice law only at the pleasure of Queen Jean. Only she decides who keeps a license and who does not. Since all lawyers are required to be her loyal subjects, to work in the legislature does indeed create a conflict of interest for lawyers to be in the legislature.
By Toyota Kawaski on April 17th, 2009 at 8:41 am
yes Gov.Moonbeam we will suck eggs for you
By Jeremy Johnson on April 17th, 2009 at 8:41 am
Right on SIc, the whole thing is unconstitutional and we shouldn’t have any part of it. Rick Perry has the right idea.
By JC on April 17th, 2009 at 11:24 am
Silly fitsboy. You should really look into what’s known as r e s e a r c h. That means you actually find out the facts of something before attempting to write about it. Perhaps if you’d done a little of this, you could have expressed your views of this lawsuit without spewing and ranting. If your point is valid, in what you write, it will stand alone. You won’t need to stoop to name-calling and guessing. It’s obvious you know nothing about Ms. Edwards, her backgroud or how she came to initiate this suit, all by herself. BTW, I don’t know too many mall rats that have full academic scholarships to some of the most prestigious schools in the country. And certainly she doesn’t need the first cue card to out-think the likes of you.
By fitsnews on April 17th, 2009 at 11:31 am
JC-
If she “doesn’t need the first cue card to out-think the likes of Sic,” then tell her (whatever her name is) that Sic Willie will debate her on “stimulus” funding or any topic she wants to discuss at a time and place of her choosing.
Name the time and place, he’ll be there.
She can even bring Harpootlian and Drake with her if she wants.
We recommend Gatsby’s soda fountain in Irmo on a non-school night, but that’s just us.
-FITS
By Shark on April 17th, 2009 at 3:16 pm
lol
By Mab on April 17th, 2009 at 5:51 pm
Yeah, ~lol~
HarPoutlian’s newest masterpiece: whining mall rat. Brilliant.
By Wes Wolfe on April 17th, 2009 at 9:23 pm
Your sources? God, you are obsessed with yourself. You can ask a State House guard, and they could tell you that. Hell, you probably made up the quote yourself, considering that over half of what you post concerning state politics is pure fiction. It must be so much easier to create stories out of whole cloth, eh?
By fitsnews on April 17th, 2009 at 10:25 pm
Wes,
Sic Willie IS obsessed with himself.
What’s your point?
You keep coming back for more, don’t you?
-FITS
By Bombthrower on April 18th, 2009 at 7:32 pm
Sanford has shit and fallen’ back in it. Let him get himself out of this box he put himself in. He is such an idiot – Sanford will be gone in two years! I will have a party when he leaves. He will make the next governor look great no matter how bad he is. Sanford was a waste of eight good years. We got nothing out of him but a governor who realized too late that this is a legislative state and not a gubanatorial state.