Getting aggressive on reform

Time is beginning to run out if Gov. Mark Sanford is to leave office after 2010 with his major goals accomplished. The most obvious roadblock is the General Assembly. That's why there is a needed intensification of efforts by Sanford supporters through a variety of citizens groups to either force change at the ballot box or through the courts.

Reality says that the discord between the governor and many members of the Legislature on both sides of the aisle is too deep to be resolved by such social niceties as unity breakfasts or even more hard-nosed political caucuses. Regardless of where the most fault lies, the legislative anger directed toward this governor has gotten in the way of important reforms.

We did hope that those who simply don't want to relinquish an ounce of their power would get the message of change from the governor's overwhelming re-election in 2006. But many apparently feel insulated by the way their election districts are configured in their favor and the fact that the majority are never opposed in either the primaries or general election.

The majority may still get a free ride next year. But those who have dug in their heels the hardest against the governor or are trying to further diminish his power may well have reason to be nervous before the November 2008 election rolls around. It should be remembered that all members of the House and Senate are up for election next year.

The governor first announced the efforts of a non-profit group called "ReformSC" in a May letter to supporters asking for contributions. It is time, the governor said then, that "we try something new in dislodging the interests that fight change and hold onto 'the ways things have always been done' in our state."

According to our report Friday, that effort will be assuming a higher profile this fall. On Oct. 16, the governor, accompanied by former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush, will take fund-raising efforts on behalf of the group to Greenville, Columbia and Charleston.

The money won't be used to actually recruit candidates, according to the governor's former deputy chief of staff, Charleston businessman Chad Walldorf, a member of the ReformSC board. While the group's non-profit status requires it to focus on issues, it most assuredly will detail where the governor's chief opponents stand on those issues.

The reasons cited for the "grass roots campaign" in the latest fund-raising letter included failure to limit the growth of state government, failure to reduce the fifth highest state income tax rate in the Southeast, failure to provide "school choice" and the spending of millions on pork-barrel projects.

One of the most critical failures is in the area of government restructuring, despite legislative reassurances after the governor's re-election that it would be a priority. The only concession to date has been a partial restructuring of the Department of Transportation, forced by a devastating report by the Legislative Audit Council.

A look at the ReformSC Web site also leaves no doubt that the group won't be shy about naming names of those who stand most squarely in the way. But while ReformSC won't actually be beating the bushes for candidates, another non-profit group will. Mr. Walldorf tells us that's the role of the Club for Growth, which he heads. The club has a political action committee.

Further, another citizens' group centered in the Upstate, ChangeSCNow, has filed a lawsuit challenging the Legislature's appointment of one of its members to replace Treasurer Thomas Ravenel, who resigned before pleading guilty to a drug charge. Basically, that move is viewed as a way to give lawmakers a three-member edge on the five-member executive branch board, chaired by the governor. The lawsuit contends the appointment upsets the constitutional balance of power.

The get-tough approach clearly reflects the governor's frustration and a general recognition by the governor's supporters, expressed by Mr. Walldorf, that "after five years of trying to work very largely within the system" it would be foolish to follow that same strategy and expect a different result.

There's still time for lawmakers to prove him wrong. They can start by passing major restructuring legislation early next year or at least putting some of those issues on the 2008 ballot.

Wouldn't that be a pleasant surprise?