Lee Corso Calls USC his “Dark Horse”

According to The State newspaper, Lee Corso, ESPN analyst told Gamecocks coach Steve Spurrier that USC was his “dark horse”. This is interesting because of some of Corso’s earlier statements about the university’s football program.

Corso had said that Spurrier could not have any big wins at USC. This triggered USC fans to despise Corso. In fact, when ESPN’s College Gameday came to USC, I was there and the fans were in perfect form. They absolutely despised Corso. And he knew it. So, maybe this will lead to a few more good recruits coming to USC. Only time will tell.

SC House of Representatives Decides to Create Dept. of Administration

According to SC Politics Today (part of The State newspaper) the SC House has passed a bill that would remove some of the duties of the Budget and Control Board. To truly understand the magnitude of this bill one would have to understand what the Budget and Control Board does.

Governor Mark Sanford has been pushing, at least generally, for more of the duties of this board to be placed in a Department of Administration that the governor of the state would command. He believes that would make key state government functions much more accountable and able to act quickly should they need to.

First, let’s look at the Budget and Control Board. The board is made up of the following individuals: the Governor, the Treasurer, the Comptroller General, the Chairman of the Senate Finance Committee, and the Chairman of the House Ways & Means Committee. From looking at this information one can see that the board is managed by different folks across the political spectrum in South Carolina.

Next, let’s look at what exactly it is that the board controls. First, is the Budget and Analysis Division. This Division oversees: The Office of the State Budget, Board of Economic Advisers, Office of Human Resources, Office of Research and Statistics, and the Confederate Relic Room.

Second, is the General Services Division. This division oversees: Agency Services, Business Services, Facilities Management, and Real Property Services.

Third, is the Retirement Systems Division. It only controls retirement systems.

Fourth, is the Insurance and Grant Services. This division oversees: the Employee Insurance Program, Insurance Reserve Fund, Office of Local Government, and the State Energy Office.

Fifth, is the Procurement Services Division which only controls procurement services.

Sixth, is the State CIO’s Office. This division controls: Customer Services, Products and Services, IT Procurement, the SC Enterprise Architecture.

Seventh, is the Office of the Executive Director. It mainly controls internal functions of the Budget and Control Board.

Just from taking a glance at what the Budget and Control Board controls one can see that it has an overarching reach into State Government. For the House to decide to pass this bill is a milestone in SC politics. Now, we will all have to wait and see what the Senate will do with this bill. It could stall and fall apart or progress into shaping the future of SC State Government for generations to come.

To read more about this story visit:

SC Politics Today

Attorney Generals Attempt to Stop Pee Dee from Obtaining Coal-Fired Plant

Santee Cooper is trying to build a new coal-fired plant in lower Florence County. The state owned utility believes that the plant. is needed in the area to reduce a power shortage.

Several Attorney Generals from around the country and weighing in on the proposed plant. Most of the objections center around the affect the plant will have on the environment. Santee Cooper believes that they are meeting or exceeding EPA standards.

The SC Dept of Health and Environmental Services (DHEC) is accepting comments from all over the country.  To read more about this story, visit:

Florence Morning News 

Upstate Legislator Looking at Lowering Drinking Age

Representative Fletcher Smith is looking at introducing legislation that would lower the drinking age for service members from 21 to 18. According to The State newspaper Rep. Smith believes that if you are old enough to fight, then you should be old enough to drink. The State newspaper is also running an online poll asking readers what they think. As of about 8 AM this morning, most readers agreed with Rep. Smith.

To read more about this story, visit:

The State

Dorchester County Sheriff Plans to Retire

The Post and Courier is reporting that Dorchester County Sheriff Ray Nash does not plan to seek re-election this year. Nash cites one of the reasons for not seeking re-election is the financial audit of his office. The audit of the Sheriff’s office is being conducted due to questionable spending practices.

It will be interesting to see who decides to file for this office.

South Carolina Digital Billboards to Display Election Results Tomorrow

According to a source, scvotes.org, the State Election Commission’s website, will be displaying election results from tomorrow’s Republican Presidential Preference Primary on several digital billboards across the state. This will be just another way that the State Election Commission has continued to operate in an open and transparent manner.

This source also tells me that the State Election Commission may be using Google Maps to display elections results by congressional district as well. Stay tuned to this website for more information regarding that.

Enoree Passage of Palmetto Trail Opens

The Palmetto Trail, which crosses the state from Bull’s Bay to Oconee County, has just opened a new section of trail in Enoree. The Enoree Passage crosses Newberry, Union, and Laurens counties. The trail is 36 miles long and cuts through the hills of the Piedmont.

To read more about this passage and the entire Palmetto Trail, visit:

Palmetto Conservation

Registering to Vote in the Upcoming Presidential Preference Primaries

The State Election Commission and county election commissions are urging citizens to register to vote for the upcoming Presidential Preference Primaries (PPPs). These primaries will be historic in South Carolina in that this is first time that the government of South Carolina will be conducting them.

Traditionally, these primaries have been conducted by the Democratic and Republican parties. Not much emphasis has been given to how these primaries differ from the statewide primaries in June. South Carolinians will still have three sets of elections in 2008. First, the two Presidential Preference Primaries in January. Second, the June statewide primary. And finally, the November General Election.

The PPPs are purely party primaries and do not take the place of the June primary or November General Election. If you decide to vote in one of the PPPs this coming January, then you are electing a delegate to represent your particular candidate at their party’s political convention later in the year. In essence, this is a statewide straw poll.

It is important to note a few things about registering and voting in the PPPs. 17 year olds may register 30 days before the PPPs and vote in one of the PPPs, the June Primary, and November General Election if their 18th birthday will be before the November General Election. Also, South Carolina does not register voters by party. This is a huge misconception since other neighboring states conduct this practice. Any voter may vote in any party’s primary in January.

To learn more about the PPPs and other elections in 2008, visit:

SCVotes.org 

USC President Stepping Down

According to several South Carolina news outlets, USC President Andrew Sorensen will be stepping down at the end of July in 2008.

Sorensen came to USC in 2002 and led the university to reach out to the technology community. President Sorensen also helped bring Steve Spurrier to the Gamecock Nation and increased the SAT scores for incoming freshmen.

Although these are just a few of things that President Sorensen accomplished during his short tenure, we’re sure that he will continue to work with the university in the future.

We wish President Sorensen the best.

To read more about this story, visit:

University of South Carolina 

Bowden Remains at Clemson

Yesterday several blogs (Fitsnews.com) and newspapers were reporting that rumors were circulating that Tommy Bowden might be heading out to Arkansas. Then, later in the day, the story broke that Bowden will remain at Clemson.

The State newspaper is running a front page story featuring the Upstate Ball Coach. To view that story visit:

The State 

While I am not a Clemson fan when they are playing my Gamecocks, I do support those Orange Farmers from the Upstate when they face an out of state team. Because, by God, they are still a South Carolina team. Congrats, Coach Bowden on negotiating to stay in the Palmetto State.