Earlier this month, we conducted an investigation into all of the money that’s being poured into what was billed as an impassioned “conservative” defense of U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham – a defense waged by South Carolinians.

You can “bone up” on the details of our investigation by clicking here, here, here and here, but it’s safe to say that we exposed this “local” and “conservative” effort as nothing more than a carefully-crafted front for Graham to receive gobs and gobs of money from some of the nation’s most liberal special interest groups.

Graham’s people responded by accusing us of being in the pocket of “Big Oil,” a charge our founding editor addressed here.

Anyway, in addition to being picked up by dozens of different media outlets around the country, our reporting has also provided the inspiration for a rather creative political cartoon.

Here’s the cartoon, courtesy of The Chilling Effect …

Another day, another uber-liberal lawyer jumping into a political race in South Carolina.

And we wonder why nothing ever changes in this state?

This time the culprit … err, candidate … is longtime liberal activist Steve Morrison, a managing partner at Special Interest Central (a.k.a. Nelson, Mullins, Riley & Scarborough), who announced Thursday morning that he is running for mayor of Columbia, S.C.

Morrison – whose impending arrival in this (now three-way) race was recently feted by La Socialista’s Warren Bolton – is nothing but bad news.

He likes to cast himself as a champion of the downtrodden, but we hear he’s also championed some less-than-savory sorts as well, although it’s doubtful you’ll read about any of them in the paper’s glittering coverage of his triumphal entry.

Whatever the case, Morrison is nothing more than the latest in a long line of super rich white politicians whose heart is heavy-laden with a great moral and societal debt – one that he insists be paid off with other people’s tax dollars.

Namely, your tax dollars.

Anyway, Morrison no doubt heard that the “democrat” in this race, Columbia attorney Steve Benjamin, wasn’t towing the liberal line on the city’s latest money-wasting endeavor and decided to jump in to make sure the spigot stayed on.

Sheesh …

Morrison is running on a platform that aims to restore “integrity” to Columbia’s financial management, although we suspect that will be pretty hard to do if you’ve never met a spending increase you don’t like – no matter how ridiculous.

Seriously, that’s the kind of thinking that has made Columbia, S.C. the “Face of the Recession” in the first place …

Residents of Greenville, S.C. (a.k.a. G-Vegas) are up in arms this week – furious over the outcome of a high-profile trial involving a prominent local businessman who they thought was headed for the slammer.

They shouldn’t be …

For those of you unfamiliar with the case of John Ludwig, Jr., he’s the Greenville entrepreneur who earlier this year accidentally drove his Maserati into a house, killing a man inside.

Police say Ludwig – who had a history of speeding tickets – was showing off his hot car to a friend.

Originally charged with murder, Ludwig was sentenced on Monday by Circuit Judge James Williams Jr. to three years probation (well, and 500 hours of community service) after pleading guilty to reckless homicide in connection with Bardsley’s death.

Prosecutor Bob Ariail said he was “shocked” by the sentence Williams imposed, although Ariail himself authorized a plea agreement that did not mandate jail time.

The case has attracted all sorts of attention – and outrage -  in the Upstate.  Specifically, it’s prompted literally dozens of emails to FITS asking why it’s taken us so long to pick up on the story.

Well, we’re busy.

Anyway, as much as we’d love to hate on the rich white guy who went out and bought a high-powered lawyer (Billy Wilkins) to keep himself out of jail, this case strikes us as an example of misplaced frustration.

First of all, according to the Greenville News the family of the victim will be compensated to the tune of $3 million for their loss – which is probably why they declined to speak out against Ludwig at this week’s sentencing hearing.

Also, if Ariail was so adamant that Ludwig receive jail time, then he shouldn’t have accepted a plea deal that left open the possibility that the guy would walk.

Duh.

Also, Ariail made a major tactical error by pursuing a headline-grabbing murder charge in the first place.

Seriously … how exactly do you go about proving “malice aforethought” when the crime involves accidentally driving one’s car through the house of somebody they’ve never met before?

Yeah …

At the end of the day, a tragic accident occurred for which the victims have received what appears to be suitable compensation.

Should Ludwig have been thrown in jail for at least a few months to think about the error of his ways?

Sure, but point the finger at the solicitor in this case for trying to make a ridiculous charge stick …

WEB EXTRAS

John Ludwig Pleads Guilty, Gets No Jail Time (WYFF)
Solicitor’s Plea Deal In Ludwig Case (Greenville News)

Ever since FITS started exposing all the left wing environmentalist money that’s been spent on U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham and his controversial energy tax policy (see here, here and here), supporters of the RINO Senator have been doing everything they can to “turn the tables” on our founding editor.

Lately, Graham backers have accused Sic Willie (this handsome devil) of being on the receiving end of some hefty cash payments from “Big Oil.”

Who are they referring to when they say “Big Oil,” specifically?

They don’t say (”they” never do), but the conventional wisdom is that some individual or entity with ties to “Big Oil” has been greasing Sic’s pockets in exchange for the hit pieces on Graham.

Today, after several weeks of silence on the subject, Sic finally addressed the rumors.

“I’m not really in the pocket of ‘Big Oil’ so much as ‘Medium-sized Oil,’” he said.  “Of course with so many diverse interests now bribing me in exchange for my influence, it’s getting a lot harder to keep track.”

Wait … what?  What kind of comment is that?

Sic also revealed that his unrequited love for the petroleum industry dates back to the first time he saw lobbyist Kay Clamp stride into the S.C. State House in a pair of 5.5 inch Manolo slingbacks.

“Click-click, click-click,” he recalled.  “It was if her footsteps and my heartbeat had been synchronized by fate.”

Wax on, Sic.  Wax on.

In an unrelated note, less than a week after giving his most recent speech (to a group of communications students at the University of South Carolina), Sic was also accused of “taking 4-5000 bribes from political parties to bash other political people.”

Damn … that’s a lot of bribes!

A Clemson University (S.C.) political scientist is being accused of selling out his academic credentials to the highest bidder – according to a blog that itself shills for a variety of Palmetto State politicians.

James David “Dave” Woodard – who draws an $85,772 annual salary from the taxpayers of South Carolina – is nothing but “a scholar for sale … a quotable gun for hire” according to a prominent Palmetto political blog whose author incidentally receives his salary from a rival political consulting firm.

Nonetheless, from The Palmetto Scoop:

Time and time again, Woodard’s name pops up in news stories as a scholarly, objective analyst and observer of the political scene, with his opinions bolstered by Clemson’s prestigious brand. He will offer extravagant praise for some candidates and savage put downs for others.

And reputable news organizations — national and local reporters, both in print and broadcast media — continue to fall for his shtick. But he never discloses that he often has a financial relationship with the individuals he’s discussing. And as time goes by, he becomes more and more flagrant.

The Scoop story goes on to list several examples of Woodard’s bias on behalf of his clients, most of whom appear to be affiliated with veteran S.C. RINO political consultant J. Warren Tompkins.

Tompkins, FITS readers will recall, is the arch enemy of another S.C. RINO consultant, Richard Quinn – who employs the Palmetto Scoop’s author, Adam Fogle.

So yeah … this is basically another intramural spit ball fight between rival S.C. RINO factions, although the fact that a professor is selling his ostensibly “unbiased” academic opinion strikes us as an egregious ethical lapse.

Bottom line?  Clemson should terminate Woodard’s employment immediately – or require him to sever all of his political consulting contracts. In lieu of that, any news outlet that contacts this hack for his opinion should disclose whether or not Woodard is employed by any of the campaigns the paper is covering.

Because that does make a difference.

How do we know?  We’re on everybody’s payroll, remember?

S.C. House Speaker Bobby Harrell reportedly made the list … while S.C. Senate President Glenn McConnell and Senate Finance Chairman Hugh Leatherman checked it twice.

That was the big rumor circling inside (and outside) last night’s “Unleashing Capitalism” debut party in downtown Columbia, an event sponsored by the S.C. Policy Council.

Oh, and according to Harrell, McConnell and Leatherman, whoever attended the event was “naughty,” whoever stayed home was “nice.”

Already in hot water with Speaker Harrell (RINO-Charleston) and the “Rockefeller Caucus” of the S.C. General Assembly, Landess and the Policy Council stepped in it (and good) two weeks ago when they aggressively (and we mean aggressively) opposed an incentive package for aircraft manufacturer Boeing, which announced that it was bringing 3,800 new jobs in the S.C. Lowcountry.

Yeah … not smart.  Particularly when the correct position can be so easily nuanced.

Here’s the tit and tat, in case you’re interested – but the long and short of it is that the Policy Council took it on the chin and as a result has lost some credibility among the powers that be.  Not to mention that, they’ve given lawmakers who already hate the organization a perfect opportunity to beat them about the head.

Not quite as perfect as, say, hiking the Appalachian Trail, but pretty close.

Anyway, as a result of the back-and-forth over Boeing, Policy Council President Ashley Landess was shocked to hear reports that her event was being staked out by Harrell’s minions – who sources tell FITS were on a mission to compile a list of every individual who walked in the door of the event.

Donors, politicians, press … you name it.

It’s an “enemies list” pure and simple … sort of like the old House Committee on Un-American Activities.  You know, the whole “are you or have you ever been a member of the S.C. Policy Council?”  That sort of thing …

Here’s the problem, though.

As far as elected officials were concerned, the scare tactics worked.  Or maybe it was the $500 a head that the Policy Council charged non-member lawmakers.

Either way, they stayed home.  In droves.  Even the Policy Council’s ideological allies.

One rumor we heard was that S.C. Rep. Nikki Haley was miffed over receiving a belated invite to the get-together, although her campaign says that she was previously committed to an event at Lexington Medical Center, which she was in charge of organizing.

Another rumor we heard was that Haley didn’t want to be seen at the event with S.C. Gov. Mark Sanford, who appeared but was not recognized by Landess from the podium.

Yeah … the governor was there, but didn’t get a shout out.

Reduced to little more than a recognizable object of pity, Sanford spent most of his time at the event standing next to his former spokesman Joel Sawyer, who from what we could tell was more popular at the event than his old boss.

Sure, he got his share of obligatory handshakes, but no more or less than anyone else in attendance.

Bottom line?  Thanks to setbacks like Sanford’s prolonged implosion and the Policy Council’s short-term misfire on Boeing, the fiscal conservative cause in South Carolina is reeling.

And Harrell, McConnell, Leatherman and all the big government RINO’s who worship the ground the walk on know it …

It’s no secret that S.C. Attorney General Henry McMaster is among the dirt dumbest politicians you’re ever going to meet, but his latest attempt at courting supporters via the popular social networking website Facebook takes stoopid to a new level.

Here’s a screen shot of McMaster’s invitation …

In addition to this being another one of those annoying “POLITICIAN D-BAG invited you to become a fan of POLITICIAN D-BAG” messages, are we reading the choices correctly?

“No” or “Maybe.”  That’s it?

Is this a joke?

UPDATE: Wow … that didn’t take long. McMaster’s online campaign headquarters – PalmettoScoop.com – has just responded with a whole article (like, a real one) about how writing this article somehow makes us gullible.  They even found an old pic of Sic with underwear on his head making silly faces!!!

UPDATE II: Yawn. Is Glee on yet?

Former S.C. Majority Leader Rick Quinn made it official this week, sending a letter to constituents in Lexington County announcing his candidacy for the S.C. House of Representatives.

Quinn previously served sixteen years in the House from 1989-2005, including a six-year stint as Majority Leader.

“I feel like I can make an impact,” Quinn told FITS, “especially on the issue of comprehensive tax reform.”

Quinn says South Carolina has “unfinished business” on the tax front, citing a disastrous 2006 bill that has resulted a rash of unintended consequences for local businesses.

In his final two years in office, Quinn pushed for a major overhaul of the tax code – including sizable an income tax cut.

Quinn’s provisions, had they been adopted, would have alleviated many of the issues currently facing the state in the wake of the ill-conceived 2006 measure, which did nothing but implement a sales tax for property tax “swap.”

We’ve butted heads with Quinn on numerous occasions in the past – particularly during our founding editor’s time in the governor’s office – and it goes without saying that there are issues where we are not in complete agreement.

Of course, there is absolutely no denying that the S.C. House of Representatives under the leadership of Quinn and Speaker David Wilkins was a dramatically more conservative place that it is now – with RINOs like Bobby Harrell, Danny Cooper and Jimmy Merrill running the show.

Plus, Quinn’s opponent in this race – a local Gomer by the name of Danny Frazier – is a tax-and-spend RINO to the core, making our endorsement of Quinn a no-brainer.

S.C. Rep. Lanny Littlejohn (RINO – Spartanburg) – a reliable supporter of the big government machinations of S.C. House Speaker Bobby Harrell (RINO – Charleston) – will not seek reelection in 2010.

Littlejohn,67, made the announcement Monday night following a meeting of the Spartanburg County legislative delegation – an assemblage he took control of five months ago thanks to a flip-flop from conservative sellout Sen. Shane Martin (who flip-flops like it’s going out of style, people).

First elected in 1989, Littlejohn has held a seat on the powerful House Ways & Means committee since 2001 – where he has done the bidding of former chairman Harrell and current chairman Danny Cooper, two of South Carolina’s most liberal big government backers.

In fact, Littlejohn has played a lead role in approving several of the largest government spending increases in South Carolina history.

With RINOs on the run throughout South Carolina, however, Littlejohn is the latest big spender to see the writing on the wall – particularly in Spartanburg, once a haven for fiscally liberal Republicans.

For example, the 2008 elections in Spartanburg saw an influx of fiscal conservative lawmakers like Rep. Joey Millwood and State Sen. Lee Bright, both of whom are taxpayer advocates who actually walk the walk.

Of course two Republicans who ran on a fiscally conservative agenda – Sen. Shane Martin and Rep. Rita Allison – have been real let-downs.

Ironically, Littlejohn’s announcement came just hours after the S.C. Supreme Court ruled in his favor with respect to the county’s disputed delegation election.

A spat between two of the more conservative S.C. Republican candidates for governor intensified over the weekend, with sources close to S.C. Rep. Nikki Haley (R-Lexington) accusing a consultant for State Sen. Larry Grooms (R-Berkeley) of orchestrating an attack on one of Haley’s female counterparts in the S.C. General Assembly.

Neither Haley nor Grooms has made significant inroads in the GOP gubernatorial contest, which has been dominated by three establishment Republican candidates – U.S. Rep. Gresham Barrett, Lt. Gov. Andre Bauer and S.C. Attorney General Henry McMaster.

Still, that hasn’t stopped the two campaigns from sniping back and forth at one another.

For example, sources with ties to the Haley campaign tell FITS that a bizarre political attack mailing sent to Spartanburg County voters two months ago – a mailing detailed here – was orchestrated by Grooms’ top campaign consultant, Chris Sullivan.

Among other curious accusations, the mailing alleged that S.C. Rep. Rita Allison – rumored as a potential candidate for Lt. Governor – had been given a high-paying job from Gov. Mark Sanford in exchange for “sexual favors.”  Allison – who is old enough to be the governor’s mother – held a press conference days later, which only served to amplify the accusations.

Most Palmetto politicos simply laughed at the rumors, although the State Law Enforcement Division (SLED) was called into investigate.

Additionally, these pro-Haley sources alleged that Sullivan had been dismissed from the Grooms campaign as a result of the dust-up.

These reports were first published Sunday by The Garnet Spy, one of the Palmetto State’s emerging political websites.

Sullivan flatly denied the rumors to FITS, stating definitively on the record that he had nothing to do with the Allison attack mailing and that he had not been contacted regarding any investigation of the incident.

Both Sullivan and Grooms also confirmed to FITS that Sullivan is still affiliated with the Grooms campaign.