SC House “Republicans” Fall Short On Fiscal Conservative Votes

FISCAL LIBERALS DOMINATE PALMETTO STATE’S “GOP-CONTROLLED” HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
Last week we took a look at the abysmal scores recorded by “Republican” members of the S.C. Senate on the S.C. Club for Growth’s 2012 legislative scorecards. This week we look at the scores put up by the S.C. House of Representatives – which is also controlled (in [...]

2012: The “Lost Cycle”

SC “REFORM” MOVEMENT ON ITS DEATHBED
For those of you who haven’t noticed, this website hasn’t exactly been chomping at the bit to endorse candidates in the 2012 legislative elections here in South Carolina.
Why not? Because this year’s election is a total farce … and that was true long before the S.C. Supreme Court tossed more [...]

Nelson Hardwick Asked To Return Questionable Contributions

SURFSIDE BEACH — Republican State House candidate Rod Smith Monday called on Rep. Nelson Hardwick to return campaign contributions from a PAC representing trucking interests that violate election contribution limits set by state law and $14,000 in 2010 contributions tied to ongoing FBI and IRS investigations as to the source.
“Nelson Hardwick cannot be above the [...]

SC House Bans Gubernatorial Lobbying

The S.C. House of Representatives voted on Tuesday to ban taxpayer-funded lobbying in the governor’s office – putting S.C. Gov. Nikki Haley in the awkward position of having to lobby the legislature to overturn the amendment.
First, here’s the text of the amendment (sponsored by S.C. Rep. Boyd Brown) that passed the House:
SECTION 1B, Amendment 95
Rep. [...]

SC 7: Mande Wilkes Is In

In her first-ever bid for political office last summer, Myrtle Beach newcomer Mande Wilkes came within 400 votes of knocking off an incumbent state lawmaker. Rather than challenging S.C. Rep. Nelson Hardwick again, however, she’s setting her sights higher in 2012 … on the U.S. Congress.
On Wednesday, Wilkes announced on her Facebook page that she [...]

SCGOP Flees “Exchange” Bill

“Run away! Run away!”
No, this isn’t a scene from Monty Python and the Holy Grail, it’s the scene that’s unfolding at the S.C. State House after several “Republican” lawmakers got their hands caught in Barack Obama’s cookie jar.
Several SCGOP lawmakers are now fleeing a bill they previously sponsored that would have established a government-run, Massachusetts-style [...]

“Coastal Kickback” Scam Update

Every time we think it couldn’t possibly get any more corrupt, the “Coastal Kickback” – a brazen pay-to-play scam involving numerous South Carolina politicians – finds a way to prove us wrong.
In case you’re new to FITS, this scam began last May when the city of Myrtle Beach, S.C. passed a one cent sales tax [...]

Sheheen Rolls Out Reforms

S.C. Senator Vincent Sheheen may have lost the Palmetto state’s governor’s race last month – but he’s still pushing ideas that he believes will make South Carolina’s state government more efficient and accountable to the taxpayers it’s supposed to serve.
Some of them actually will …
On Thursday, Sheheen rolled out a six-piece reform agenda that includes [...]

Another Harrell Challenger?

We take anything published on SC Hotline with the proverbial ocean of salt, but given the heat that’s on S.C. House Speaker Bobby Harrell following his recent botched robo-call (the latest skirmish in the South Carolina GOP’s ongoing civil war) … it’s possible that he could really be facing a new threat to his powerful [...]

Horry Corruption Expands (Again)

A major campaign finance scandal in Horry County, S.C. is expanding once again, this time to include politicians in yet another coastal municipality
According to an exclusive report by Tom O’Dare of The Myrtle Beach Herald, federal investigators are probing campaign contributions received by three politicians in Surfside Beach, S.C. These contributions were doled out by [...]

More On Coastal Campaign Finance Scandal

By FITSNews || Several of the “companies” involved in a major coastal campaign finance scandal are facing foreclosure lawsuits, raising fresh questions for IRS and FBI agents currently probing the scam.  A total of five foreclosure suits have been filed against companies with ties to the growing mess, according to a report published Thursday by [...]

Horry County Smackdown?

By FITSNews || In a state that continues to carve out a national reputation for its bizarre political soap operas, natives will tell you there’s one place where the drama reaches ridiculous levels – even by South Carolina standards. 
We’re referring, of course, to Horry County.
Seriously, people … they don’t call it the “Redneck Riviera” for nothing, and when competitive [...]