LAWMAKER STRUGGLES WITH SUPPORT FOR LEGISLATIVE PAY HIKE …
S.C. Rep. Stephen Goldfinch – one of the most ethically challenged politicians in South Carolina – has a fight on his hands if he wants to win another term in the S.C. House of Representatives in 2014.
And that’s as it should be …
In addition to being one of the most fiscally liberal “Republicans” in Columbia, Goldfinch (RINO-Georgetown) has been at the center of two major controversies in recent months – both of which have exposed him as a fundamentally dishonest person.
He deserves to be challenged …
In response to Goldfinch’s problems, Vida Miller – the Democrat who held this seat from 1997-2011 – is mounting an aggressive campaign against him. And this week she busted Goldfinch stretching the truth regarding his recent efforts to give state lawmakers what amounts to a 53 percent raise.
Missed that story? Click here …
“It would never have occurred to me to support a $12,000-a-year pay raise, especially at a time when so many of our fellow South Carolinians are still struggling to recover from the economic collapse of 2008.” Miller recently told reporter Jason Lesley of The Coastal Observer . “That’s just wrong, and it makes you wonder whose interests Rep. Goldfinch was really thinking about when he cast that vote.”
Goldfinch’s response?
“There was no pay raise bill,” he told Lesley. “There was no pay raise vote.”
Um … really?
Goldfinch is lying through his teeth.
As our reporting has documented, there were multiple votes on the legislative pay raise … which cleared the S.C. House of Representatives (thanks to the support of liberal “Republicans” like Goldfinch) but was shot down by the State Senate.
Seriously … does this guy think he can just coast through life saying whatever he wants? And have everyone believe him?
Oh right … he’s a South Carolina “Republican.” Of course that’s what he thinks.
18 comments
There are state retirees in the House now double dipping and voting for a pay raise. They need competition and a little background done that what show some real engineering.
This guy is a fraud and everyone in the district knows it. He’s got a real fight on his hands.
He insists he represents conservative values. Wonder how he reconciles that understanding with his federal criminal case, his civil ‘other fraud’ case and his recent CofC ‘Fun Home’ outbursts. Wonder what else is out there that we don’t know yet, and waiting to blow up as election date approaches, to cement his understanding of conservative values.
“Seriously … does this guy think he can just coast through life saying whatever he wants? And have everyone believe him?”
Uhhhh, yes, he obviously does. He should be nervous, too, after “his wing” of the G’Town County GOP got beaten in the primary a few weeks ago. His race may actually turn interesting for him…
Apart from being a pathological liar, this clown lives in a parallel universe. Nikki Haley, about a week ago, publicly scolded a handful of legislators who were at the forefront of pushing the ‘pay rise’– at a Mount Pleasant business association meeting (Post & Courier reported it). Harrell and Goldfinch were among those mentioned.
Like it or not the Brass-parakeet will win
If there is one area of the State that loves scoundrels more than Charleston, it is Horry-Georgetown
District 108 is Horry-free.
OK Stickler
I didn’t write District 108 likes scoundrels
I am sure there are many voters in District 108 proper who work, travel and have family who live in Horry County. These voters are aware of the Brass-parakeet’s family roots which run deep in the Pee Dee region and particularly in Horry County
When District 108 voters go to the polls it is my belief they are influenced by the peccadilloes of the area around their District which is in this case the Horry-Georgetown Area likes scoundrels
Oh, when you have a few seconds, go fuck yourself
He is trying to pull a Clinton. “depends on what it means”.
Goldfinch says “depends on what pay raise means”.
The $12,000 was for local expenses not a pay raise, but they could use it as they wished.
If the legislature wanted this money to be something other than a de facto pay raise, it could have funded an account, established parameters and conditions for reimbursement, and required submission of receipts for reimbursement of actual expenses incurred in the performance of legislative duties. Absent that, it’s a pay raise. That’s why the IRS treats it as ordinary income.
Actually, I think SC Representatives and Senators should be paid minimum wage and no benefits. They are part time after all. Seems about right to me. So long as we get ethics reform so they have to stop taking bribes. I.E no more car lots that miraculously manage to sell cars to company executives all over the state. No more insurance small town insurance brokerages that somehow manage to sell policies to large corporations. No more small law firms that routinely get hired by large banks, insurance companies, utilities, etc. But that will not happen until every politician has to disclose all of his sources of income and who is giving him money. i.e. never.
There’s no perfect formula for getting the best, most honest people to serve. Your suggestion would, however, be a disaster.
Of course I was being sarcastic about the minimum wage. But I don’t think we should provide retirement and free health care for politicians; and I do think that if you want to serve you should have to disclose who is paying you money. I also believe in term limits.
“There’s no perfect formula for getting the best, most honest people to serve.”
The current formula gets us the worst in society. All someone has to do is lie about everything, promise everything, etc.
It’s why the worst get into office, Well over 90% of those in office are pathological liars and megalomaniacs.
We’d do better to have a lottery system, like a jury, to put people in office.
Is that FITS in the photo?
But he needs that extra Grand a month – the chick on the side that lives in Cayce says she needs a bigger apartment and a new car.
Owww…
Note to Stephen:
Growing a beard doesn’t make you look like you have a chin.