Budget board may not be broken

JULY 1, 2011 — Now that action on whether the state will create a new Department of Administration to replace the Budget and Control Board can’t happen until next year, maybe it’s a good time to ask these questions: Is such a change even needed? What’s so wrong with the hybrid budget board and its three constitutional officers and two legislators that it needs to become a cabinet agency overseen by the governor?

Haley wins award as state’s new drama queen

Boy, talk about a drama queen. Gov. Nikki Haley wins the award for her performances this week.

When Mark Sanford was governor, he pulled two big stunts in his first term that set the legislature, run by his own Republican Party, against him

Not much of a “new era” for SC

NOV. 5, 2010 — The headline in a local newspaper Wednesday after the GOP sweep in South Carolina was, “A New Era.”

Really?

Sheheen answers 10 questions

Questions, I’ve learned in more than 20 years of writing, never hurt anyone. It’s the pesky answers that cause problems for politicians.

Last week, we asked 10 questions of GOP gubernatorial candidate Nikki Haley, whose campaign did not answer. This week, we asked 10 questions of her Democratic challenger, Sen. Vincent Sheheen. His campaign responded within 24 hours. You be the judge whether he answered questions fully.

To be transparent, you have to be seen

JULY 23, 2010 — South Carolina’s Queen of Transparency, GOP gubernatorial hopeful Nikki Haley, hasn’t been in the local media much lately.

For South Carolina Democrats, that’s because she’s caught in a media bubble by her campaign handlers in an attempt to bypass serious scrutiny for as long as possible.