***Palmetto Morning Presented by Jim Dyke & Associates***
BREAKING — The December unemployment rate remained unchanged at 10 percent.
THIS FIRST — Thank you for your continued patience with our technical difficulties the last two days. While we claim to be more important than your coffee, we’ve never claimed to be Bill Gates. Still, there’s plenty to pass along. The Statehouse is awash in budget talk and it’s not all good. The Times & Democrat report that Democratic Reps. Gilda Cobb-Hunter Harry Ott of St. Matthews “fired salvos Thursday at the General Assembly’s Republican leadership regarding everything from property taxes to the streamlining of state government. Cobb-Hunter: ‘All the people in my district want to know is why aren’t y’all doing your job to deal with the cuts. I would challenge any of you to see how many commissions we have created and then to check and see what we’ve done with the results.’”
HAPPY BIRTHDAY — Two “living” legends – Elvis Presley & R Kelly are celebrating today.
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NATIONAL LENS — Senator Lindsey Graham, jointly with Senator John McCain, sent a letter to the President asking him to “extend a freeze on prisoner transfers from the military prison in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.” (The current freeze only extends to Yemen).
COMMON GROUND — “Congressman Joe Wilson, South Carolina Republican, said Thursday he agrees with White House National Security Adviser James Jones’ assessment that the Obama administration’s intelligence agencies failed twice in detecting early warning signs to stop two recent attacks — the mass shooting at Fort Hood, then the failed Christmas Day airplane bombing.”
EVERYWHERE THERE’S SIGNS — People will not be able to take signs inside the building during U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham’s town hall meeting in Clemson on Tuesday.
SLOW DEATH — Sanford censure may die in Senate. Senate President Pro Tem Glenn McConnell said Thursday the S.C. Senate may not ever vote on a censure of Gov. Mark Sanford that the House expects to approve next week.
HEALTH CARE — Rep. John Spratt says the health care vote ‘too close to call’
TIME — Takes a look at “What Health Care Reform Means for the States”
AWAY WITH YOU — Sen. Larry Martin wants to get rid of the Lt. Governor … not just Bauer – the whole office.
RESOLUTIONS — Health care reform and improving national security and local issues such as the expansion of Beaufort National Cemetery and the creation of a Jasper County port are on this year’s legislative agenda for U.S. Rep. Joe Wilson.
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ENERGIZER BUNNY OF NEWS STORIES — The guy who was fired as Norway Police Chief, Hired as Erhardt Police Chief, elected mayor back in Norway then resigned as mayor now has his job as Ehrhardt Police Chief in jeopardy.
TRANSITIONS — What will Greenville’s Walt Wilkins Do Next?
VIEWPOINT — FROM SKYS TO SEAS — The Head of the Ports says, “The cruise industry contributes more than a quarter of a million dollars of revenue to the local economy every time a ship is in port. That’s obviously very good for our economy.” Meanwhile, the Greenville airport chief thinks, “there is a strong relationship between Greenville’s economy and aviation. Our community is fortunate to have three airports that play a positive role in the economic development of Greenville.”
A$$i$TANCE — Rep. Jim Clyburn announced $3.5 million “to help serve the homeless and hungry.”
BETTER OFF — “Comptroller Richard Eckstrom said South Carolina state government has now received $1 billion in stimulus money, and that most of it has benefitted people ‘who tend not to be taxpayers.’ Along with other Republican critics of the Obama administration’s stimulus plan, Eckstrom said South Carolina residents would be better off if the $787 billion American Recovery and Reinvestment Act had never been passed.”
SUMTER — Residents get chance to give feds their 2 cents on creating jobs
MYRTLE BEACH — Cold weather keeps homeless shelter and church busy
PICKENS — Tourism group seeks tax money for director
CHARLESTON — Boeing insists on secrecy
GIVING BACK — “Rev. Solomon Jackson Jr. won the $259.9 million Powerball jackpot last summer, he said someone else would be blessed with some of that money, too. Thursday, when he handed Morris College a check for $10 million during a jubilant midday program on campus, students, faculty and staff learned they were that collective somebody.”
MEMORIES — Lt. Gov Bauer attended a ceremony celebrating the opening of an expanded memory care unit
WE’RE JEALOUS — “Ben Jealous, national president of the NAACP, will be the featured speaker at the annual King Day at the Dome rally. This year’s event, to be held Jan. 18 on Martin Luther King Jr. Day, will be the 10th rally. The first rally, in 2000, drew roughly 50,000.
The NAACP will use the rally to again call for the removal of the Confederate flag from State House grounds.”
FINALLY THIS — WHERE CREDIT IS DUE — Kathie Migliaccio always dreamed of a big family. ‘I always wanted 10 kids, all of them boys. My husband wanted four, so we compromised,’ said Migliaccio of Sumter County. Kathie and her husband had seven biological children. They’ve also adopted 33 -– many of whom have special needs. The Migliaccio’s wanted to give a home to children that might not otherwise have a chance.
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!
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