SC

Trey Gowdy: Back In The SC Supreme Court Mix

CONGRESSMAN ONCE AGAIN FINDS HIS NAME ON THE SHORT LIST FOR A SEAT ON THE PALMETTO STATE’S HIGH COURT He was the man to beat … then he was browbeaten out of contention (and rightfully so). Now U.S. Rep. Trey Gowdy is once again back in the conversation for a seat…

CONGRESSMAN ONCE AGAIN FINDS HIS NAME ON THE SHORT LIST FOR A SEAT ON THE PALMETTO STATE’S HIGH COURT

He was the man to beat … then he was browbeaten out of contention (and rightfully so).

Now U.S. Rep. Trey Gowdy is once again back in the conversation for a seat on the S.C. Supreme Court.  In fact “Republican” leaders in the state’s General Assembly find themselves working overtime (for a second time) to convince Gowdy to run for chief justice – a position that wields near dictatorial powers over the Palmetto State’s judicial branch of government.

Judges and justices in South Carolina are elected by lawmakers – an infinitely corrupt process.  The seat some want Gowdy to fill will be voted on in May of this year.

Gowdy’s name was floated by legislative leaders last year – part of a “judicial branch reform” proposal – but his surprise endorsement of status quo “Republican” presidential candidate Marco Rubio of Florida enraged many lawmakers (especially after Gowdy had made his view on endorsements perfectly clear).

So the idea was nixed …

What got him back in the game?

Well, while the rest of the state was completely absorbed by the “First in the South” presidential primary – and while this website was getting hacked to pieces by cyberterrorists – S.C. Supreme court justice John Kittredge quietly announced that he would not challenge fellow justice Donald Beatty for the top spot on the court.

Yeah … talk about some suspicious timing, huh?

Anyway, we broke the story late Friday … but due to the cyberattack against us, hardly anybody saw it.

Certainly nobody saw it coming …

Why did Kittredge decide against running?  According to our sources, he feared that a head-to-head battle against Beatty for the chief justice’s seat would result in him being labeled a “bigot.”  Specifically, he was said to be extremely worried about inquiries being made by liberal “news columnist” John Monk of The (Columbia, S.C.) State newspaper.

“So he surrendered to political correctness,” one disappointed lawmaker told us.

Beatty – a black liberal Democrat elected in 2007 – has one year of seniority on Kittredge, a white “Republican” who is viewed as the most conservative member of the court.  Lawmakers typically give the chief justice position to the most senior member of the court, but they are under immense pressured during an election year to name a conservative to the post.

Why did a “Republican-controlled” General Assembly put a liberal Democrat on the bench in the first place?

Good question … they’ve done it several times in recent years, though.

Ironically, Beatty’s tenure on the court should have ended in 2015 with an appointment to the federal bench.  In fact he was being vetted by the White House for just such a post, but as we reported last summer his nomination was blocked by U.S. Senator Tim Scott.

Earlier this year, the administration of Barack Obama pulled its “compromise candidate” for the seat – signaling that Beatty’s name might be back in play.  But then U.S. chief justice Antonin Scalia died, setting off a stalemate over judicial appointments that appears to have scuttled any chance of his nomination (or any nomination) being approved.

With no way to pawn Beatty off on the federal courts, lawmakers were faced with a difficult political decision: Give him the chief justice seat and face the ire of GOP voters?  Or elect Kittredge to the position and face allegations of discriminating against a black judge?

The decision was made to go with Kittredge … until he punked out last Friday.

Now lawmakers are scrambling to find a candidate they can put up for the seat, which is being vacated by current chief justice Costa Pleicones at the end of the year.

Will Gowdy be their candidate?

Several lawmakers remain livid at Gowdy over his endorsement of Rubio, but they also find themselves in a bind.  They need a big name to offer up as an excuse for scrapping seniority in naming the next chief justice.

“I think defeating Beatty trumps the Rubio endorsement,” one legislative leader told us.

Awarding the position to Gowdy provides them with a big name – and lets them make the argument that they bypassed the entire court (not just Beatty) in order to appoint a fresh faced “outsider,” one capable of cleaning up the corrupt judicial branch.

***

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11 comments

jimlewisowb February 24, 2016 at 9:01 pm

First, he had to eat Rubio Crow

It would be fitting to see him run against Beatty, lose and end up with a plate full of Beatty Crow

Fuckin’ Cockroach looks like he got stuck in the birth canal and never grew out of it

Reply
Scooter February 24, 2016 at 9:20 pm

Bull, the sorry rascal endorsed Rubio

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southmauldin February 24, 2016 at 10:13 pm

I wish Gowdy would stick with a hairstyle. He makes Trump look like Vidal fucking Sassoon.

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Bible Thumper February 25, 2016 at 12:29 am

At least Gowdy’s hair doesn’t own in the dark, like Trump’s.

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Country Lawyer February 25, 2016 at 8:46 am

They aren’t that different really:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vidal_Sassoon#/media/File:6.6.06VidalSassoon.jpg

It’ll be interesting if he makes judge-

Lawyer: “Your Hair, may I approach the bench? Ohhh, I mean your Honor, your Honor! My apologies!”
Judge Wigger Trey(Trey is a wigger name): “Very funny counsel. I feel an over ruling coming on.”

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vicupstate February 25, 2016 at 6:12 am

I don’t care for Rubio or Gowdy but if endorsing a candidate in your own party, gets you blacklisted, maybe you ought to ask yourself why you are in that party.

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Ed February 25, 2016 at 7:14 am

Good people who fear being listed as “bigoted”, “racist”, “sexist”, “homophobic”, etc., etc., are the real problems with our country currently. In this case, why should a white, black, purple, orange, or polka dotted person – regardless of seniority – expect to be the chief justice of a conservative state when they are in fact liberal? IMHO, the great thing about Trump’s campaign is that it is reawakening a sleeping nation by shifting the Right’s paradigm to a “go f&ck yourself” approach to the Left which has for 50 years hurled mostly false epithets at good (and mostly, better accomplished) people in a calculated effort to derive financial gain.

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Reese Bobby February 25, 2016 at 12:50 pm

He is the epitome of “tonsorial fluidity”…

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Lone Ranger February 25, 2016 at 5:16 pm

O Lawd please cut us RINO flag-ripping SC “Senators” a slice of Boehner/Ryan-kissing Trey Gowdy and surely we

Will forget how he was and IS in the gang of eight trying to ram 50 million ILLEGALS down our throats with amnesty

We’ll even forget how Sleazeball Rubio missed more votes than any other U.S. Senator and of course give him a pass

Because we KNOW that Tea Train WILL remember our ripping patriots’ flag WITHOUT voters and WILL hand us our… !!!

Reply

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