By FITSNews || An alleged “pay to play” scandal involving numerous Grand Strand politicians is on the verge of being swept completely under the rug, sources close to the various inquiries tell FITS.
In fact, the only agency still actively investigating the scandal is the S.C. State Ethics Commission, which lacks the authority to file criminal charges.
For those of you unfamiliar with this “alleged” scam, it all started last May when the Horry County legislative delegation pushed through a one cent sales tax hike on local residents – the proceeds of which are being handed over directly to the Myrtle Beach Area Chamber of Commerce.
Yes, you read that right … a bunch of “Republican” lawmakers actually sponsored a tax increase that explicitly funnels money into the bank account of non-governmental entity.
Why did they do that?
Well, according to numerous taxpayer advocates on the coast (and frankly, anyone who isn’t blind), they were paid handsomely to do so.
Specifically, these coastal lawmakers – along with U.S. Rep. Gresham Barrett and several city council members – collectively received nearly $350,000 in campaign contributions from a shadowy network of “corporations.” Critics insist that these “corporations” were nothing more than cover for a slush fund administered by former Chamber Chairman, local attorney Shep Guyton.
It has also been alleged that the Chamber provided the funding for the donations, drawing against the estimated $18 million in tax revenue the scam is expected to generate.
Indeed, the Chamber had already begun to spend the revenue from this tax hike before it had even become law (guess that’s what happens when you know your votes are bought and paid for).
So … who are the lawmakers involved in this shadiness?
S.C. Reps. Thad Viers, Nelson Hardwick, George Hearn and Alan Clemmons.
Oh, and Sen. Ray Cleary.
Checks were sent to Rep. Tracy Edge, but he declined them.
Among the most damaging allegations against each of these lawmakers is that nearly all of the approximately $350,000 was drawn as cashiers checks from the same bank – on the same day. Sources tell FITS the checks were even delivered to each politician in the same envelope.
Obviously, using multiple corporations to make donations to political candidates isn’t against the law. However, the Chamber could be in hot water if it were ultimately revealed as the funding source for the donations. As it stands now, though, the Chamber is sticking to its original story – namely that its leaders simply called “like-minded businesses” and asked them to support the tax hike.
Mmmm-hmmm.
To look at a timeline of the reported events related to this scandal, check out the documents below, which were provided exclusively to FITS …
WEB EXTRAS
Scandal Timeline A
Scandal Timeline B
Scandal Timeline C
By WorkingTommyC March 3, 2010 at 11:38 am
Why do I have the gut feeling that this is just the tip of the iceberg?
By Ynotfirst March 3, 2010 at 12:37 pm
because it is a tip of one of many political iceburgs Tommy….
By Frank March 3, 2010 at 1:19 pm
Go get them Will!
By south mauldin March 3, 2010 at 1:29 pm
Thad Viers, eh? You’d better not piss him off, Willie. I hear he has quite a temper.
By jeffy March 3, 2010 at 2:39 pm
typical of a morman to take a bribe
By james March 3, 2010 at 3:37 pm
Isn’t registered lobbyist, fmr state rep and bar owner Mark Kelly the central figure in this corruption scam, conspiring to think up the plan?
By Boz Martin March 3, 2010 at 4:06 pm
Unfortunately, reporting on this scandal from the state “watchdog” types has generally been spotty at best. One of the main reasons for this is that the 3 inter-related PACs involved in raising the money to buy/reward the politicians involved are the same ones who financed the attack ads, dirty tricks and black ops against Mark McBride in the Myrtle Beach Mayoral race. The mostly progressive Democrat journalist on publications and sites similar to yours have focused on some particulars, but never put together the whole picture … and some actively supported the corrupt politicians who took the PAC money.
Will Mordock, for example, vocally took the side of the Republican John Rhodes, the MBACC and the PAC-Rats, apparently owing to his long-standing distaste for the Mayor’s challenger, Republican former Mayor McBride and (it would appear) bike rallys on the Grand Strand.
The Sun News in Myrtle Beach — who are only “watchdogs” when it comes to scandals outside of the MB city limits, making a total mockery of the McClatchy newspaper slogan “Truth To Power” — has consistently covered up all of this stinking mess. They are notoriously in the tank for John Rhodes, MBACC head honcho Brad Dean, and the elitist anti-rally & pro AdTax “PAC Rats” who paid Walter Whetsel’s Starboard Communications to savage McBride. They even refused to run the story of Whetsel’s boy Mike Green getting busted for trespassing at a McBride rally on the eve of the run-off elections.
This story is very deep, and it is extremely wide. It goes to the heart of power abuse and corruption in Myrtle Beach, Horry County and SC, and it has split the GOP in the Myrtle Beach area right down the middle — with the Katon Dawson establishment type “Good Old Boy Country Club Repubs” (along with a few rich, elitist Democrats) backing Rhodes and his gang, and the anti-tax “Tea Party” type GOPers and Libertarians joining most of the middle- and workinggDems in opposing them.
They also used deceptive, innacurate language lifted directly from the Starboard anti-McBride spots, flyers and web site to slam the former Mayor in their editorial endorsement of Rhodes for the run-off.
Thanks for sticking with this story. I hope you will do more. Maybe investigative journalism is not dead after all.
- Boz
By me March 3, 2010 at 4:29 pm
it would be the best thing in the WORLD if fits would push this issue, i doubt they will as it doesnt get as much coverage as gov sanford, but those asswipes destroyed myrtle beachs economy and with tax payer money to boot!
By Boz Martin March 3, 2010 at 4:42 pm
To “me”:
What you say is true … but calling them asswipes is an insult to asswipes.
By Tripp Williams March 3, 2010 at 4:57 pm
There once was a treasurer named Chellis,
Of whom many RINOs were jealous.
He works only three days
(And the taxpayer pays!)
But for bankers, he’s terribly zealous.
By Insider March 3, 2010 at 5:40 pm
You can definately include Mark Kelly and Brad Dean to the list. In fact, registered lobbyist Mark Kelly handed Gresham Barrett close to $100,000 in one envelope. FRAUD all the way around! Heard Thad Viers gave the money back though…gotta look into that one a little more.
By Boz Martin March 3, 2010 at 6:09 pm
BTW, I happen to like Will Mordock as a person, and we have a few friends in common from way back. I’m also a Democrat, perhaps tending more toward the center, or leaning Libertarian. It was not my intention to slam him, but to show how this story has slipped through the cracks due to pigeon-holing along partisan lines in the case of the more leftward media, and due to the vested commercial (advertising dollars) interest of papers like The Sun News, and also to people in general not really looking below the surface at the real issues involved.
The fact is that this whole thing was not about ideology at all, it was about abuse of power. No matter how much any liberal journalist disliked McBride for his conservative views or whatever, they should have realized that the Katon Dawsons, Gresham Barretts and Walter Whetsels of this state are incredibly corrupt, far too powerful, and highly to both individual liberty and social justice. Compared to them, McBride is a man of the people — the local equivalent of a populist candidate.
And of course, it was not all about him, either. He simply stood as the only viable alternative to Rhodes and the impossibly authoritarian and corrupt power structure of Myrtle Beach. That’s why they had to outspend him 20 to 1 and employ scumbags like Mike Green, in order to barely eke out a victory.
As the quote in the timeline from David Brittain shows, the real purpose of the “Take Back May” enactments was to squash Bikefest in Atlantic Beach (a.k.a. “Black Bike Week”), not end all rallys forever. Brittain thought he could fix everyting with his money. Such hubris is typical of these people.
Until we get their hired hands like Rhodes and Dean out of positions of power, Myrtle Beach will never proper again.
By Boz Martin March 3, 2010 at 7:28 pm
MEANT TO SAY: “… the Katon Dawsons, Gresham Barretts and Walter Whetsels of this state are incredibly corrupt, far too powerful, and highly THREATENING to both individual liberty and social justice.”
… and:
“Until we get their hired hands like Rhodes and Dean out of positions of power, Myrtle Beach will never PROSPER again.”
By Elliott March 3, 2010 at 9:22 pm
Thanks for letting us know. I think a free press is essential to good government. With newspapers unable to do the job, I am thankful for your blog. We need to make enough noise to get a law enforcement investigation into this and to demand justice even if that means white-collar criminals go to jail.
By Jeffy01 March 4, 2010 at 9:54 am
Gov Malloy has to be involved right?
By The Commentator March 5, 2010 at 12:55 am
Blowing Big Bucks with minus tourism numbers as their annual returns is the Myrtle Beach Chamber Mission. Evidence: The Chamber Federal Tax Returns: In 2005-2006 Chamber revenues were $6.2 M. They spent $1.4 M on salaries and benefits, and $2.6 M on marketing the area. In 2006-2007, thanks to the self-imposed $1 per rented room night fee from hoteliers, revenues almost doubled to $11.9 M, with salaries and benefits rising to $1.5 M They borrowed $5 M, at 8.25%, for advertising from BB&T and then spent $9.7 M on marketing – almost a 4-fold increase. Also, at the highest point in the area real estate boom, they lost $576.655.00 on the sale of the 501 Welcome Center. In 2007-2008 their revenues rose to $18 M, with salaries and benefits jumping by $1 M to $2.5 M. They spent $17.5 M on marketing. That’s almost a 6-fold increase in only 3-years. That’s more than all the NJ and MD beaches (excluding Atlantic City), Virginia Beach and the Outer Banks combined. $15 million ad dollars more per year, despite that MB tourism tanked 8-17% in 2009.
More amazing numbers from the Chamber Federal Tax returns: They took in $18 M in 2007-2008, and had a Net Loss of $1,017,000. 2008-2009 revenues dropped by $5.6 M to $12.4 M, giving them a Net Loss of $2,563,087. Marketing expenditures dropped by 52%, $7.84 M, to $9.66 M, while salaries and benefits only declined by a 8% to $2.23 M. Of that, the compensation for Brad Dean totaled $183,986 plus expenses and travel, which is more than $40,000 per year more than Tom Leath makes. In 2005-2006 the Chamber reported Net Assets of $4,606,010. As of June 30, 2009 they were in debt $2,563,087. Do you think the BrAD tax was passed to keep the Chamber from going bankrupt? Did we mention that, at the pinnacle of the real estate boom they lost $576,655 on the sale of the Chamber Hwy 501 Welcome Center?
Today a bunch 31 of the usual suspects, led by Brad Dean and Mayor Rhodes, took-off on a $65,000 junket to Canada and Germany!
Eat that cake lowly peones!