In most political spats, truth's in middle
By Brian Hicks
Most of the time when the governor gets into a spat with the Legislature or some state agency, the only casualties are a few egos and some trees — the ones sacrificed so newspapers around the state can print these epic Road Runner vs. Coyote battles.
But this week, a few innocent bystanders almost became collateral damage.
You know, the people who through no fault of their own lost work because their businesses became unprofitable and the owners closed the doors.
The ones who got the pink slip when the textile mills sent their work overseas because that $8 an hour they were paying South Carolinians was just way too expensive.
The folks who make up housekeeping staffs at hotels, until the tourists stop coming. Or the men and women at a steel mill in Georgetown, who get laid off for a month of more because the auto industry goes belly up.
These people didn't do anything wrong, except perhaps vote.
AP
Gov. Mark Sanford, in announcing Wednesday that he would request a federal unemployment-benefits loan, made New Year's Eve a little less frantic for the state's 77,000 jobless residents. Of course, he made them squirm for quite a while, and some in the General Assembly say the last-minute reprieve doesn't make up for the weeks of tension he caused.
For the moment, they won't have to suffer; on Wednesday Gov. Mark Sanford announced that he would apply for a federal unemployment-benefits loan so the checks will keep flowing.
For now.
It's a nice last-minute save, but folks in the General Assembly say that doesn't make up for the weeks of tension and worries inflicted on average folks.
Those people still spent most of the holidays wondering if they were going to have to end up in a shelter.
And even for a bunch of weathered politicians, that was too much.
"If we have a problem, we'll fix it," Senate President Pro Tem Glenn McConnell says. "Why make these people worry about whether or not they are going to get benefits?"
"I do believe it is totally, totally inappropriate to use the ESC (Employment Security Commission) as a wedge in these philosophical arguments," state Rep. Gilda Cobb-Hunter says. "It's unfair to the people."
Members of Sanford's party are grumbling, a few privately use the word "grand-standing."
Do you shut down the roads because there are problems at the highway department? Do you shut down the state Capitol because elected leaders fail to balance the budget?
Apparently not.
Are there problems at the Employment Security Commission? Maybe.
Folks have complained that the checks are late, and the governor says they don't spend their money the way he would.
But despite Sanford's charge of "mismanagement," the jury is out on that one.
The governor claims the Employment Security folks have an "utter disdain for accountability" because they won't go along with a Legislative Audit Council report. But the agency has said it would welcome a federal audit.
You say tomato, they say politics. Remember, when the two sides take such opposite tracks, the truth is usually somewhere in the middle.
Sanford says the "agency has watched this fund run out over six years and had done nothing to prevent it." Well, not exactly.
For the past six years, the ESC has warned lawmakers about this, but no one wanted to do anything about it.
Whether Sanford knew is open to debate. But you can put at least part of the blame on the Legislature.
Nobody wants to waste money on a "what if" — as in, "What if the economy collapses and we run out of unemployment money?"
That's the way it works at the Statehouse: Put out fires and ignore all the hard decisions. Special-needs kids, education; nothing is ever a priority until the end is nigh.
Now they've got this to wrestle with. At this point, an investigation by the Legislative Audit Council is inevitable. For more than two decades, an LAC report has been the Holy Grail in state government, the watchdog agency that lawmakers sic on all their favorite targets.
Those guys are good, but good work takes time. That was another thing that hacked off some lawmakers: What were the unemployed supposed to do for four or five months while LAC investigated?
As usual, there is more than meets the eye here. Lawmakers say Sanford has had it in for the ESC for years, vetoing its capital projects and taking the Workforce Investment Act programs from ESC and giving them to his favorite son, the Department of Commerce.
Maybe he has, and maybe he's had good reason. An audit will tell the tale, because the LAC is pretty thorough.
But as a result of all of this, Sanford may get a two-for-one special on Legislative Audit Council reports. Lawmakers may ask for a review of Commerce's books too, just so they can find out where all the new jobs are.
Reach Brian Hicks at 937-5561 or bhicks@postandcourier.com.
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sig (anonymous) says...
The ESC and all government agencies should welcome an outside audit. They must have something to hide.
Where did all the funds go when the employement picture was good. My employer has sent them over $100K the last 8 years. Thank god I still have a job. Let's say there are 2.5. million working in South Carolina that is appx $31 billion received from the employes over the last 8 years. Remember the federal government gives them more than what the employer sends.
They should start a no-notice audit of DSS and DHHS NOW!. There at least $100 million in fraud a year with those 2 agencies. Did you know that welfare folks have received a $60 gas card or a CARTA bus pass the last 6 months? What a deal. Did anyone help the taxpayer when gas was at $4.00 per gallon? Since a lot of welfare folks do not work I guess it was to ride around in their new car. I know there are plenty of folks out there that deserve and should receive help, but there are thousand who are receiving help and shoud not.
I proved Fraud to DHHS and their response to me was if I think Fraud was committed get a lawyer.
January 2, 2009 at 6:47 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
majorjohnson (anonymous) says...
If the legislature had done its job the Governor wouldn't have had to do this to get it done. ESC is not a cabinet position and the Governor has to go to the legislature to get anything done over there. When they refuse to attend to their duties because they have more important things like giving ex-senators gravy train jobs and naming culverts and ditches, he has to take his advantage of any opportunity he gets to prod them.
January 2, 2009 at 8 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
firemike (anonymous) says...
I'm tired of Mark Sanford trying to set himself up for the nominee position. Wouldn't it be hilarious if he actually got his nomination and he didn't win his own state during the election.
I don't understand why an audit is a problem. Let's get the federal money and then do the audit. All this grandstanding should produce a result. If the there is no fraud than Sanford should have to answer to a comittie of some sorts. Of course the comittie could not do any thing to him but it would be interesting to find out why he made the disitions he did.
As far as sig's answer of people getting money from our state who don't need it he is partially correct. Not all people need what they get from our state and some actually need more. It used to be when someone got in financial trouble his neighbors and family helped out. Unfortunately we no long live in a society that does that.
As far as lawyers go, don't get me started. One of the biggest drains on our society is lawyers. I'm sure there are honest and truly good lawyer out there but I've never met one. The bad thing is our own human greed fuels most lawyers.
January 2, 2009 at 8:24 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
theronce (anonymous) says...
Periodic outside audits should be legislated for at least some state agencies; let's start with the state legislature and governor's office, then move on to others in successive years. Private businesses that do this keep on rocking and never make the news.
January 2, 2009 at 8:36 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
spengler (anonymous) says...
obviously there has been no audit at all in the recent years or this would not have come up, regardless of the politics. something is very fishy here, the taxes have been rolling in, but the ESC suddenly goes broke. audit 'em all, let God sort 'em out.
January 2, 2009 at 8:41 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
dawhetsell (anonymous) says...
What are the people going to do when the FEDS quit giving States money or keeps printing money until the dollars collapses, it will collapse. I say this because this economy was funded the last 20 years by the world oil exporters and China buying our bonds. They now are getting a lot less money. The oil countries are receiving 66% less for their oil, the Chinese are exporting 50% less to the USA, they are shuting dowm thousands of factories and laying off millions of people. They will ,if not already quit buying Treasurey bonds and the Feds have already startrd printing money, backed by the faith in the goverment. The dollar will collapse and HE WHO HAS THE GOLD WILL CONTROL THE REST.
January 2, 2009 at 9:43 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
yird (anonymous) says...
firemike;Your disdain for a governor that tries to hold spending levels within the parameters ordained by the amount of funds available despite a spend crazy legislature is unwarranted.
Oh,while your alluding to how incompetent our governor is could you also tell us what a "comittie" is. Can't be a typo cause you used it twice. What are disitions?
Please don't take offense,I'm just trying to broaden my vocabulary.
January 2, 2009 at 10:36 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
republicansuck (anonymous) says...
Increase the amount of money the employers pay for this benefit, until the books balance out. If they opt out the employees get nothing. Wake up South Carolina, Mark Sanford wants you to think he is looking out for your best interest. And for any fool who thinks your employer is looking out for you is as stupid as Mark Sanford and will vote for this crazy fool again.
January 2, 2009 at 11:50 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
yird (anonymous) says...
republicansuck; So all employers are evil heartless exploiters of the poor workers that slave for them?
Apparently you've never held a job or if you did it was a position where the employee gives a minimum amout of work in return for the minimum wage.
A good employee is an asset that most employers value and do not care to lose. With your attitude it's a sfe bet you have never experienced that sort of relationship yourself.
January 2, 2009 at 12:22 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
theronce (anonymous) says...
Dead on, yird, r...k's comments exposes either a disconnect with reality or a deliberate attempt to decieve.
January 2, 2009 at 12:58 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
Tides (anonymous) says...
Ya know, all the wasted money McConnell has voted on to spend on needless things clearly substantiates he is nothing more than a hypocrite. Put McConnell under a microscope and you will see what I am talking about.
Never through rocks like McConnell does if you live in a glass house.
January 2, 2009 at 1:03 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
Tides (anonymous) says...
sig,
They are all involved in criminal activity and behavior. When you have SLED tipping off Arthur Ravenel that his son is being watched in a drug investigation, you have corruption. We can't depend on these crooked legislatures to do anything about it because they are criminals themselves. They don't want to get mixed up in a mud slinging contest. All of them have dirt on each other that is held like ACE cards. Even I have a few ACE cards of my own that would open a can of worms for some of them. I hold them close to my chest should I need to use them. They can spy on my, hack me, check my internet surfing habits, search my home,but they will not find out what I do have.
Use the media, Sig. Call into local and state talk radio shows when the topic is about government corruption (which is everyday anymore). And make a website, if you have too.
Sanford knows what is going on with the legislatures. Sanford has McConnell and others like him pegged. And they will fire shots across each others bows, like McConnell likes to sometimes do. But Sanford's guns are much bigger and more plentiful than his. Yet McConnell takes his chances.
The entire General Assembly needs to be independently audited. But that is wishful thinking inasmuch they would oppose and fight to block it till their death. They don't want that. They don't want to lose it all.
January 2, 2009 at 1:16 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
scottmcx (anonymous) says...
RS & YB FYI
As a wicked employer. When the State increases the total withholding from $300mil a year to $600mil a year, as proposed, it is going to come out of any pay increases that my employees would have received and/or passed on to the customer. I ran a small corporation years back and paid into the unemployment fund here in SC for about 7 years. Due to the Navy Base closure and other issues I closed it and became unemployed. All my employees got their money and I was denied because I was the majority owner and operator. I said OK then why did I have to pay in if I don't get it back? The ESC said, beacuse that's the law. I think it is employees that are wicked. They haqve more votes than owners and passed this completely unfair law. I pay but I don't get.
January 2, 2009 at 3:16 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
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