***Palmetto Morning Presented by Jim Dyke & Associates***
THIS FIRST — SAFER SC — “South Carolina prison beds should be reserved for the most violent offenders, the state’s Sentencing Reform Commission recommended Tuesday,” reports the Post & Courier’s Yvonne Wenger. “State Sen. Gerald Malloy, a Hartsville Democrat who led the commission through it’s yearlong study, said he is optimistic that the Legislature can put significant reforms in place before its adjourn this summer. ‘We can do better,’ he said. ‘We cannot afford to build new prisons in South Carolina, but we also can’t afford not to keep our citizens safe.’ Malloy said he is confident based on vetting the recommendations received by the commissioners, who included Republican and Democratic legislators, judges and Department of Corrections Director Jon Ozmint. Senate President Pro Tem Glenn McConnell, R- Charleston, said he expects the public will be receptive to the proposed changes. The report does not suggest the state go easy on criminals; rather, it calls for practical changes to the system, he said. ‘It requires some bold steps forward,’ he said.”
HAPPY BIRTHDAY — “Oh no, Dina, Jack can talk Thai. Jack talked Thai real well.” — Blythe Danner turns 67 today.
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NATIONAL LENS — “A group of bipartisan senators today announced their support for a bill to effectively stop the government from prosecuting 9/11 mastermind Khalid Sheikh Mohammad in a criminal court, a move Sen. Joe Lieberman called ‘Alice in Wonderland’ justice. Lieberman, an independent who caucuses with Democrats, along with some Democratic and Republican senators are supporting legislation from Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham that would cut off funding for the trials of the Sept. 11 conspirators. President Obama’s proposed 2011 budget includes $73 million for the Justice Department to transfer, prosecute and incarcerate five Guantanamo Bay detainees slated to stand trial in criminal court for their alleged roles in the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks.”
QUOTABLE — Senator Graham discussing the bill with Greta on FOX: “So this whole criminalization of the war is really going to make us weaker and less safe. And I hope the president will reconsider putting these guys in civilian court. We’ve never done this in any other war, and it’s a bad precedent and it’s just — it’s unnerving the nation.”
DRIP, DRIP, BURST — The First Lady sheds light on her first husband’s quirks about marriage. She “recalls how she made the ‘leap of faith’ to marry … even though the groom refused to promise to be faithful, insisting that the clause be removed from their wedding vows.” She also details how the Governor “sought her advice about his romance and how to deal with the media after she discovered his extramarital relationship with an Argentine woman.”
UNDERSTATEMENT OF THE DECADE — “Clearly those are thoughts I wish he had kept to himself.”
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LEAVE THE GOODIES — “Democrats are pushing to have energy provisions included in the new jobs bill, even as climate advocates warn that pulling popular programs from the climate bill could further cripple their already-dimmed chance of passage this spring.” Senator Graham: “If you take some of the green stuff out, some of the goodies, and put it in the jobs bill, you’re hurting the idea of having an energy package that would attract support.”
HARD HITTING — Senator DeMint “takes exception” to President Obama’s “plan to trim the deficit by raising taxes on corporations, calling it the ‘coward’s way out.’”
CROSSING STATE LINES — DeMint plans to headline the Hillsborough County (Florida) GOP fundraising dinner in March – the “the biggest fundraising event of the year for the local party.”
TO GOD AND MY COUNTRY — What do Sen. Graham, Reps. Henry Brown, Jim Clyburn, John Spratt, Joe Wilson and former President John F. Kennedy have in common? Yep – all Boy Scouts.
WHERE CREDIT IS DUE — State Senate President Pro Tempore Glenn McConnell singles out Judge Billy Wilkins for praise on the Boeing deal. “Without his sharp legal mind and the friendships that he made while serving on the federal bench, the Boeing project would not have been successful. It was that work, the respect that our state leadership had with him, and the comfort level that Boeing had with him that were the genesis for bringing together the team that was so successful in dealing with Boeing and the issues of pulling off a deal this large.”
VIEWPOINT — The Policy Council’s Ashley Landess takes exception in The State, writing, “Suppose an investment broker pitched you a deal, but wouldn’t tell you what it was or how much it would cost you until after you committed. When you asked for an analysis of the project, the broker said it was too ‘secret’ to reveal. And because he wasn’t sure what the total cost would be, he asked you for a blank check. Seriously: Would you still give this guy your money? Here’s the punch line: You already have. The broker is your state government.”
SUNDAY DUMPS — “Orangeburg County’s plan to close garbage collection sites on Sundays was put on hold Monday to allow County Council time to look at the proposal more closely.”
SUPERVISION — “Legislators have given key approval to a measure that would prevent South Carolina governors from telling security details to leave them alone …” and, in case you’d forgotten the context, the AP is quick to provide it, “… as Gov. Mark Sanford did before his rendezvous with an Argentine lover.”
ID PLEASE — “The state Senate [yesterday] deferred giving third and final reading to a controversial voter identification bill. In an unusual move, some senators said they wanted to amend the bill, agreed to last week.”
DOING THE BROWN — TIME Magazine is looking for “10 More Scott Browns” and set its sights on the 5th District’s Muck Mulvaney who is challenging Rep. John Spratt. The description of Mulvaney is one of “yet another small-business owner clamoring to give an insider a run for his money. … He decided to challenge Spratt, he says, when he sat in on a town-hall meeting last year and was disgusted to hear Spratt claim that the new health care bill would offer a ‘quantum leap’ in efficiency and costs. Mulvaney paints himself as an approachable candidate, asking visitors to his website to call — at his actual cell-phone number — or e-mail him at the first sign that he is using spin.”
CAMPAIGN STOP — Mike Huckabee will make a Feb. 18 fundraising stop for Rex Rice. Rice is running in the 3rd District but the campaign opted to hold the event in the neighboring, Inglis-held, 4th District.
MIDLANDS — Local home building at lowest in 18 years
MYRTLE BEACH — Area golf to see upswing
GEORGETOWN — Teachers’ off-campus conduct mandated
CAMDEN — Teacher Allegedly Sent Graphic Pics To Student
COLUMBIA — Review finds several SC lottery shortcomings
ORANGEBURG — Free medical clinic opens its doors
GREENVILLE — Job forecast: More hiring by mid-year
CHARLESTON — SPA invests $15M for future jobs
FINALLY THIS — Spartanburg Clerk of Court Marc Kitchens was arrested on drug charges (hopefully, Sparkle-City won’t be the next Union). Robert Dalton tells us where we go from here.
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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