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THIS FIRST — ‘NEED SOME NEW REPUBLICANS’ — “Sen. Jim DeMint says that in order to rebuild the GOP, he needs to be able to work with some ‘new Republicans’ in the U.S. Senate. DeMint … said in an interview posted online Thursday with the Christian Broadcast Network’s David Brody that he is encouraging GOP candidates to run who would challenge the status quo and even the Republican Party. ‘I need some new Republicans, people who believe in constitutional government, a balanced budget and liberty,’ DeMint said. ‘I’m out across the country recruiting new Republicans who I think if they get here will not only challenge the institutions of government but be willing to even challenge the Republican Party and our leadership if they feel like we’re going in the wrong direction.’ DeMint said he intends to go outside the party structure because he is ‘no longer going to go along with this idea that we are going to keep spending and borrowing and taking over and raising taxes.’” (Politico)
HAPPY BIRTHDAY — Mos Def and Sens. John Kerry and Max Baucus
HANUKKAH begins at sundown tonight
WEATHER-REPORT — @wmbfweather: Brrr! It’s a cold start, and will stay chilly this afternoon with highs in the mid to upper 40s. Lows tonight – upper 20s
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NATIONAL LENS — GRAHAM OUTLINES CLIMATE CHANGE LEGISLATION — “A bipartisan covey of senators Thursday outlined for President Barack Obama a framework for climate change legislation that they say could pass the Senate early next year,” Politico reports. “In a letter to the president … Sens. John Kerry (D-Mass.), Joe Lieberman (I-Conn.) and Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) offered what Kerry called ‘a starting point for our work going forward.’ … Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) said in a press conference Wednesday that climate change legislation is one of several ‘jobs killing’ measures being considered in the Senate. But, Graham said proponents could build a compelling case to win over his GOP colleagues. ‘At the end of the day, if the environmental policies we’re seeking are not good for business, we’re not going to get 60 votes,’ Graham said. ‘What we have to prove to [McConnell] and others is that the emissions standards are going to be acceptable for business, for our utilities and our manufacturers. And I would argue to Senator McConnell and others, if you want this green economy that we all talk about, you have to tax carbon.’”
GRAHAM SAYS MCCAIN ‘DE FACTO’ GOP LEADER — Senator John McCain “has emerged as one of the leading critics of the new president. … Today, for reasons that friends and McCain observers say could range from unresolved anger to concern for his right flank as he seeks re-election to genuine dismay about Obama’s agenda, he is helping lead a fiery crusade of GOP loyalists against Democratic priorities – and irked some of his Democratic colleagues in the process. ‘The same ferocity he had about beating on Republicans … is now being focused on people on the other side whose agenda is really overreaching,’ said Sen. Graham, one of McCain’s closest friends in the Senate. ‘He has every reason to be upset. There’s no change there. What would have been a change was if he wasn’t pissed off. He is now the de facto leader of the Republican Party.’”
CELEBRATION-TWEET — @RepAlanClemmons Headed to Columbia to celebrate payment in full on SC GOP office building mortgage. Congrats state Republicans!
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LASTING IMPACT OF DECISIONS — On the heels of narrowly escaping an impeachment resolution, Governor Mark Sanford wasted no time jumping back into serious issues. He came out swinging, yesterday, urging the SC congressional delegation to oppose the “government takeover of health care.” In a release from the Governor’s office, Sanford said, “Our decisions today will have a lasting impact not only on future generations, but also on the delicate balance between government intervention on the one side, and individual liberty and opportunity on the other.”
HEADLINERS — Sanford gets back to business; Sanford enjoys backdoor support in South Carolina (The State; T&D)
GUARDING TESS — “After watching their House colleagues spend months wrestling with the issue of whether to impeach the governor, some senators are moving to prohibit governors from slipping their security details. They’re also moving to set down in law when a lieutenant governor can take over in the governor’s absence,” reports The Greenville News. “A bill sponsored by Senate President Pro Tem Glenn McConnell of Charleston and Sen. Jake Knotts of West Columbia would provide exclusive authority for protecting the governor and lieutenant governor to the State Law Enforcement Division. The measure also states that ‘this security and protection must not be declined.’ … The other bill, filed by McConnell, spells out under what situations the lieutenant governor can assume full powers of the governor in the event of an emergency. The bill would require that the governor be out of state and unreachable by phone or device for at least 12 hours.”
THROWING DOWN — “State and federal authorities Thursday announced the result of a yearlong investigation into cockfighting in South Carolina. Nearly 60 people were indicted in connection to two organized cockfights … ‘This is a crime, this is an activity that the people of this state, speaking through their elected representatives, have said is something we don’t want in South Carolina,’ said state Attorney General Henry McMaster. … ‘I’m not talking about a couple of guys in the backyard throwing a couple of chickens down and letting them go at it. We’re talking about organized groups who engaged in an organized illegal activity connecting gaffes to the back of their legs and having them kill each other,’ said U.S. Attorney Walt Wilkins.”
FOND FAREWELL — “State Treasurer Grady L. Patterson Jr. was celebrated Thursday as a dedicated public servant of impeccable integrity, who for more than 35 years fiercely guarded South Carolina’s financial reputation,” The State reports. “Patterson also was saluted as a steadfast witness of his Christian faith, whose example guided the lives of his children, grandchildren and others. Three governors – Republicans James Edwards and Mark Sanford and Democrat Jim Hodges – attended Thursday’s services, seated across the aisle from the family along with a string of other dignitaries, including state representatives and constitutional officers. Hodges, governor from 1999 to 2003, brought a little levity to the services when he told the congregation, ‘Grady’s being called home is proof that even God needs (good) financial advice once in a while.’”
GRADY-TWEET @PhilBaileySC http://twitpic.com/t0vmp – Greenville News’ Roger Harvell on Treasurer Patterson. Classy.
DNA — Boeing held an information session at the Charleston Area Convention Center that drew nearly 3,000 construction industry workers, while executives spoke in North Charleston to about 80 business leaders at the Carolinas Minority Supplier Development Council. “State Sen. Robert Ford … has urged state legislators who were involved in recruiting Boeing to do all they could to make sure South Carolina minorities have a fair shot at the jobs and contracting opportunities the aeronautics giant will create,” according to the Post & Courier. “Boeing officials wouldn’t provide a breakdown of its employee makeup at its existing North Charleston factory, where it makes fuselage sections for the 787. But Robinson-Berry said the company has a history of working with historically disadvantaged businesses and workers. Robinson-Berry said she’s sure Ford is ‘a wonderful individual, but this isn’t something that Boeing has to start doing. It’s in our DNA.’ Boeing’s fuselage plant already works with roughly 175 Charleston area suppliers, said Janice Greene, senior manager of supplier diversity for Boeing Commercial Airplanes. About 35 of those are minority-owned, women-owned or classified as small businesses.”
SPARTANBURG — $1 Million Lotto Ticket Sold
GREENVILLE — Youth Named Finalist In Farm Bureau Ambassador Contest
FLORENCE — County passes ordinances to help the local economy
CHARLESTON — Study: Manufacturing remains a mainstay of S.C. economy
COLUMBIA — Verizon Wireless to invest $40M in SC facility
ORANGEBURG — U.S. News: 3 area schools in ‘America’s Best’
MAKING A DIFFERENCE — “When Ethan Cantori was told he might have to be home bound for a while, he cried. He wanted to go to school. Ethan, a 9-year-old third-grader at Starr Elementary, was injured when a car ran over his foot after the Anderson County Toy Parade. Principal Melissa Davis said doctors told Ethan’s mother and grandmother he would have to be home-schooled. ‘He said he didn’t want to stay home, he wanted to come to school and be with Mr. Charlie,’ Davis said. ‘That’s just the way Charlie Howell is and the kind of impact he has on kids. He’s just a really special guy.’ Charlie Howell is the elementary school’s custodian, and so much more.” The Anderson Independent-Mail tells the story of Howell, “who is 46, has spent 20 years at the school, helping out wherever he is needed, and working to make a difference in the lives of the children around him. ‘I guess I could get a job that pays more money, but what would I get out of it?’ Howell said. ‘Here I can help a kid out. Sometimes, you know, I will tell them, “If you have a good week, I will buy you ice cream on Friday,” or I will give them money for the book fair if they don’t have any. It’s a way to just give back. I’m not a rich man, but I’m rich in other ways.’ For Howell, that’s what life is about — making a difference in a child’s life.”
FINALLY THIS — ‘HEY BABY, YOU REMEMBER MY BLUE DRESS?’ — WYFF is reporting “A Greenville man traded in his high heels and dress for a prison jump suit Wednesday morning after being arrested for impersonating a police officer at Haywood Mall. … [a] woman said Burton asked her is she remembered him from last week when he was wearing a blue dress at the mall. She said Burton then told her his name and said he was undercover police officer with the Greenville County Sheriff’s Office assigned downtown to get prostitutes off the streets.” Make a long story short – Burton was arrested and taken to the county jail where he is currently out on bond.”
THAT’S IT FOR THIS MORNING – STAY TUNED ON TWITTER OR FACEBOOK FOR UPDATES THAT JUST CAN’T WAIT UNTIL TOMORROW. HAVE A GOOD ONE!
