Senator wants speaker fee returned
Says USC should use money on classes
COLUMBIA — While other lawmakers worked to cut $500 million from the state budget, Sen. Chip Campsen was worried about folks at USC palling around with terrorists.
Campsen on Thursday called for the University of South Carolina to give back the money it paid to '60s-era radical Bill Ayers for speaking engagements he has made on the Columbia campus over the years. Campsen suggested the money be used to teach more classes on the Constitution.
The Isle of Palms Republican offered the proposal as a budget amendment during Thursday's debate before withdrawing it.
"It's very important we do something about this and send a message to USC," Campsen said.
University President Harris Pastides in a pre-released statement said that USC paid Ayers travel expenses and a small stipend, like any guest speaker, totaling $2,656 in state funds for eight lectures in 13 years.
"His occasional lectures here have always been focused solely on education, his professional expertise area," Pastides said of Ayers. "He has never been invited to our campus to espouse any political beliefs nor to discuss any of his past behaviors in support of those beliefs."
Earlier this month, Ayers made headlines when Republican Vice Presidential nominee Gov. Sarah Palin said Democratic President nominee Sen. Barack Obama had been "palling around with terrorists" by serving on boards with Ayers.
Ayers co-founded the Weather Underground, an anti-war group. He is now an education professor at the University of Illinois-Chicago.
Sen. Darrell Jackson, D-Hopkins, asked Campsen if he approves of every speaker whose stood before students at the College of Charleston and if it was his intent to censor them too.
"I am no fan of William Ayers," Jackson said. "But I am a fan of open education."
Campsen said he was not censoring Ayers and that he supports free speech. He said he just doesn't want state money to go toward paying for someone like Ayers to influence the state's future educators.
After occupying the Senate's attention for 30 minutes, Campsen withdrew the amendment saying he didn't want to hinder the special session. But, he said, he will consider introducing legislation on the matter in January.
Given Palin's heavily criticized statements recently on the job of a vice president, when asked if the VP nominee could benefit from such a crash course on the Constitution, Campsen said "no."
"I think she has a very good understanding of the Constitution and federalism," Campsen said.
Reach Yvonne Wenger at 803-799-9051 or ywenger@postandcourier.com.
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Comments
Riptide (anonymous) says...
Bill Ayers the unrepentant terrorist of the weather underground and also from a recent taped interview a self-styled Marxist and anarchist still. What a shock. I wonder what position he will get within the possible Obama administration? Director of the Department of Re-Education maybe?
"We can't expect the American people to jump from capitalism to communism but we can assist their elected leaders in giving them small doses of socialism until they awaken one day to find they have communism". Nikita Khrushchev
October 24, 2008 at 5:46 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
Tides (anonymous) says...
Other colleges across the nation are canceling this sick man's engagements.
October 24, 2008 at 6:17 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
Tides (anonymous) says...
Ayers was on the FBI 10 Most Wanted List for years. He went into hiding but got tired of running. The charges against him were thrown out of court because the FBI was so desperate to stop all the frequent bombings, they avoided search warrants and just broke into homes and tapped phones of anyone they suspected. Ayers was trying to murder people.
I think the case needs to be re-opened and Ayers prosecuted.
October 24, 2008 at 6:21 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
Riptide (anonymous) says...
Tides....
Under the doctrine of double standards, liberalism will protect these people.
Liberals are very good at corrupting our legal system. Did you hear anything from the liberals when they hack into Sarah Palin email account. Not a peep and they wonder why I left the democrat party.
October 24, 2008 at 7:22 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
Tulane75 (anonymous) says...
Chip Campsen should chair the committee that makes certain that the state colleges do no business with "PEOPLE LIKE AYERS." I am not exactly sure what that term means, but as long as Chip does, I guess it is OK.
"PEOPLE LIKE AYERS" should be censored. Also, anyone who has smoked pot, protested for civil rights or is anti-America as defined by Sarah Palin and Michelle Bachman should also be censored.
Therefore, any people who live in non-rural areas or who disagree with Bachman, Palin or Campsen should be censored.
I also agree with Tides that search warrants and other constitutional protections should not be necessary. President Bush, in tapping the calls of service men and women, has shown that probable cause and warrants are not nearly as important as eavesdropping to prevent "private" talk.
I can't wait until Sarah Palin straightens out those senators. Isn't the Vice-President "in charge" of the United States Senate?
October 24, 2008 at 8:39 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
tc1 (anonymous) says...
Well I think Bachman, Palin and Campsen should be censored because they don't support diversity and tolerance like I do.
October 24, 2008 at 9:27 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
Riptide (anonymous) says...
Tulane75...
I wonder what Barack has in store for the American people? Legislating the Fairness Doctrine, more gun control, redistributing the wealth? Possibly more ACLU members to the appellate courts and also the supreme court? I can't wait for these little doses of socialism.
October 24, 2008 at 9:30 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
commonsence (anonymous) says...
30 minutes of legislator's time to discuss $2,656 of state expenditures? Campsen should have been censured by his colleagues for HIS waste of tax dollars.
October 24, 2008 at 9:33 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
tc1 (anonymous) says...
commonsence,
On the surface yes. But I believe that 99% of the floor speaking is grandstanding for constitutents. The other legislators votes are already decided by deals made off the floor. This does not make light of your point in principle.
October 24, 2008 at 9:58 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
Hbaker (anonymous) says...
Chip-If you keep looking long enough,and I can tell this ayers guy has gotten under your skin,you'll also find out that economic development is at an all time low.Our children in most schools are getting a sub-standard education.If you asked the students what they thought about Ayers speeches,the majority of them would tell you they enjoyed him as much as anyone the school had brought in.
October 24, 2008 at 10:27 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
SC_Leigh (anonymous) says...
When is Campsen up for reelection? he will NOT get my vote. There are probably 10,000 more important things he should be doing for the state of S.C.Campsen needs to focus his energies on issues the people of S.C care about, not about getting 2K back from speaking fees from a man many people in S.C didnt even know exsisted six months ago.
October 24, 2008 at 10:55 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
CedarPosts (anonymous) says...
I think the tone of the PnC story is pretty slanted.
Report the news, the facts the who what where why when and if you cab the how.
But leave the editorial stuff off the front page. I know, CNN, FOX and everyone else in the NEWS biz is offering an opinion but like they always say opinions are like mother in laws everyone has one!
http://cedarposts.blogspot.com
October 24, 2008 at 4:03 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
coolfreaknbeans (anonymous) says...
I'm sure it would be interesting to hear what Bin Laden has to say too. That doesn't mean I would open up platforms all over the US for him. Just because this man isnt a muslim or doesnt "look different" than us-doesnt mean he's not a terrorist. No terrorist should be teaching in our colleges.
October 24, 2008 at 4:10 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
mkris (anonymous) says...
Why are south Carolina politicians so damn stupid?
Why are South Carolina voters so willing to allow such pandering?
October 24, 2008 at 5:05 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
lillycollette (anonymous) says...
*
October 24, 2008 at 6:38 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
diablo_tonto (anonymous) says...
The real waste of taxpayers money?? Campsen and his "boogieman" terrorist rants for 30 mins on the Statehouse floor?? Focus on things that people of this state "should" care about, jobs(unemployment@7.3% here),education,and healthcare! Let's work on those 3 things first and foremost, and not worry about a guy that had his 15 mins of shame almost 40 years ago?? Red state(dumbed down) politics on display as usual.....
October 24, 2008 at 7 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
ballachulish (anonymous) says...
Palin's husband was a member of the AIP for how many years?
The AIP is partially funded by Chechen separatists who receive funding from Al Qaeda.
Sarah Palin spoke at the AIP covention in June, and has been closely associated with the group for years.
I think the AIP, Palin & al Qaeda are a lot scarier than a 60 year old ex-hippy college professor.
October 25, 2008 at 10:15 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
charlestonhome (anonymous) says...
What does Sarah Palin have to do with this story and why was she even brought up by the writer? Ayers was in the headlines long before she came along. Campsen is right - NO STATE MONEY SHOULD BE SPENT ON ANY SUSPECTED TERRORIST. It is a free country and if the University (my alma mater) is so hard up to bring in an anti-American hippy from the 60's, it has the right to do so. But it shouldn't have the right to spend any of my hard earned money that was taxed and sent to the school.
October 25, 2008 at 12:58 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
preachlove (anonymous) says...
mkris - Ditto!
October 25, 2008 at 4:57 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
feb251939 (anonymous) says...
If you asked anyone who Bill Ayers was prior to the emergence of obama on the political scene, they wouldn't have known who he was.
The people in academia are perhaps the only people who DID know about his activities and yet he was allowed on their campuses to spread his communist views. Adding insult to injury, our tax money was used to pay for his lectures.
Now that the history of this communist is known to everyone, it is tantamount to having O.J. Simpson on the lecture circuit talking about the many uses of knives in today's society.
ANY college or university who hires this terrorist to speak on their campuses should not only have to return any speaking fees but have any state grants they receive be returned and further grants denied.
There should be limits on 'diversity' and they have crossed the lines on this one.
October 26, 2008 at 6:39 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
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