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?

Time has come on cigarette tax

Dear Governor Sanford …. About the only thing we’ve agreed on in the political arena is that you shouldn’t have to resign because of a marital infidelity. We both agreed that it was a personal mistake that essentially didn’t impact on the job of being governor. We both caught a lot of flak for that position. But you’re still governor. I still write.

So while we look at the world differently, please bear with me as I make a case for why you should sign a bill to raise the cigarette tax by a half dollar per pack.

Brack in The State on Sanford book

From a Feb. 13, 2010, story in The State on Jenny Sanford’s book, Staying True: Democrat and publisher of Statehouse Report Andy Brack got a dose of the gender gap at a recent dinner party of Democrats, Republicans and independents when he called the first lady a hypocrite. “We men tended to be a little [...]

The 2000s: South Carolina’s lost decade

JAN. 1, 2010 – Looking back over the last decade in South Carolina, there’s not a lot to be proud of. As it did in previous decades, South Carolina struggled with being at or below average in many areas. Sure, there were some accomplishments. Compared to 2000, the state now has a lottery that pumps [...]

Praying for an end to the Sanford mess

DEC. 18, 2009 — Two things surprised me about a new poll on what South Carolinians think should be done about our philandering governor, Mark Sanford. First, only 1 percent of the 770 registered voters who responded to our InsiderAdvantage/Statehouse Report poll had no opinion of what should be done about the governor’s behavior, which [...]