COLUMBIA — South Carolina House Republicans on Wednesday pushed through a measure requiring voters to show photo identification at the polls, as Democrats blasted them for spending money on what they called voter suppression while the state faces a deficit. Currently, voters can show their voter registration cards, which lack pictures, or driver’s licenses. Under the measure, they must show either driver’s licenses, photo IDs issued by the Department of Motor Vehicles, passports, military IDs, or new voter registration cards that include photos. The House voted 74-45 to advance the bill. No Democrat voted in favor. The measure
FORT MILL TOWNSHIP — Freshman Congressman Mick Mulvaney (R-Indian Land) was one of the first Republicans to speak in support of the bill officially called “Repealing the Job Killing health care law Act” on the House floor last week. Mulvaney, along with 244 others in the House, voted to repeal the health care act last week, with 189 House members voting against the repeal. Repealing the health care act was a key issue for Mulvaney on the campaign trail last fall. The bill is expected to die in the Senate, which still has a Democratic majority, albeit a smaller one
The following is an oped placed in statewide papers from Speaker Bobby Harrell: A new state constitutional amendment – approved by 86% of South Carolinians this past November – that guarantees workers their right to a secret ballot in union organization elections has recently drawn the threat of a lawsuit by the federal government. Referred to as the “Card Check” amendment, the law’s purpose is to prevent coercion and intimidation – by unions or employers – from influencing labor elections. It also reaffirmed our commitment to remain a Right-to-Work state, and therefore more competitive. South Carolina, along with Arizona, South
“Tonight’s speech should have been called a State of the Stimulus, and the president should have admitted that it failed. Two years after the president’s nearly trillion dollar government stimulus, unemployment has increased and remains high, families and businesses are still struggling, and our national debt continues to skyrocket. “When the president says ‘investment’ he means bigger federal government and higher taxes. Americans sent a clear message in the 2010 elections. They no longer wish to ‘invest’ in President Obama’s big-spending plans…. “Our nation is still the best and most exceptional on Earth. But America’s greatness is in our freedom
Mississippi Gov. Haley Barbour, a possible 2012 presidential contender, is holding private meetings with Republican activists and donors in Greenville and Spartanburg today — traditionally, part of the process of considering a run for the nation’s top office. “He’s just coming through town to meet with a few people to test the waters, like a lot of other people are preparing to do,” said Barry Wynn, a former state Republican Party chairman. “It’s very preliminary. He knows a lot of folks, and I think he’s trying to touch base with the people he knows and meet some new people. It’s
COLUMBIA — South Carolina schools chief Mick Zais says the results of a national science test show students’ performance must improve if they hope to compete for science and technology careers. Scores released Tuesday from the 2009 National Assessment of Educational Progress show that 33 percent of South Carolina’s fourth-graders and 23 percent of eighth graders were proficient in science. Just 1 percent in both grades received advanced scores. The fourth-grade scores mirrored the national average, while eighth graders fell slightly below the national average. The NAEP tests are the only ones taken nationwide, allowing for state-by-state comparisons. The science
South Carolina Republican Party Chairman Karen Floyd today announced that she will not seek a second term as state Party Chairman. Floyd, 48, of Spartanburg, won the Chairmanship by acclamation in May of 2009. She will serve out the rest of her term, which ends in May of next year at the state convention. Floyd said that she has accomplished the goals she set forth during her original campaign for Chairmanship, and is now ready to pass the reins to the next Chairman. “We have accomplished some extraordinary things during the last two years, not the least of which are
A special election is being held Tuesday to fill a South Carolina House of Representatives seat in Greenville County. The Republican primary for House District 21 is being held to fill the seat which became vacant following the death of State Representative Bill Wylie of Simpsonville on September 11. There are five Republican candidates running for the seat: Samuel Harms, Phyllis Henderson, Keith Smith, John Symons and Stephen Dowd. Greenville County polls will be open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. The runoff election, if needed, will be October 26. The lone Democrat in the race is Susan Scarborough Smith,
