South Carolina Governor: Sanford (R) With Solid Lead

Rasmussen Reports ^ | 5/10/05

[JohnnyZ]

Those are just FACTS.

[fieldmarshaldj]

Finally, some coherent points, let's take a look...

"1. SC has the 4th highest unemployment in the nation."

Is that above or below where it was prior to Sanford's administration ?

"2. He has had a revolving door of appointees at the SC Department of Commerce and the gutting the agencies funds has caused weak economic growth in the state. Incidently this agency used to be one of the most respected in the nation and is the only one that actually makes money for the state."

According to Sanford, "Department of Commerce reduced its staff and budget by 25% and still exceeded its capital investment goal by $1.1 billion and exceeded its jobs goal by 30%. This includes recruitment of an airplane manufacturing-assembly plant that will serve as a hub for a future aeronautic cluster that will drive further job creation and capital investment."

"3. Sanford recently vetoed legislation that would have raised the fines for parents not placing their children in car seats. The fine would have gone from $25 to $150. Sanford said it wasn't government's role to fine parents for not protecting their kids and it was better to hurt a parents chance of winning in court if they don't buckle their kids up."

You may disagree with the stance, and that's fair. It sounds like a strictly libertarian position to me. I read up on his position and it sounded perfectly reasonable. I might remind you that even the National Transportation Safety Board has taken NO position on the issue of fines.

"4. Has done zero to address SC's schools, especially in the poor rural areas of the state. His only solution is vouchers for private schools when there are 700,000 public school students and 7,000 private school students. He sends his kids to private school and then bad mouths SC schools on 20/20."

I have no love for public schools and actively look forward to the day when they are formally dismantled. I don't know many pols (or public school teachers) who send their children to public schools. At least he has a non-hypocritical position, unlike 'Rats who rail against vouchers while sending their own children to private schools. But his doing "nothing" for schools goes against this point: "signed the first budget in five years to fully fund the Base Student Cost and proposed and adopted an increase in teacher salaries to $500 above the southeastern average."

"5. Pissed off the families of fallen state troopers in SC when he vetoed legislation that would have provided some monies for a memorial to troopers killed in the line of duty. The families raised the funds privately and then he had the nerve to show up and try to steal the show at the ribbon cutting."

Also not an unusual stance for a libertarian. Just because he doesn't favor spending money for some expensive memorial doesn't mean he is anti-law enforcement.

"6. Hired a rich, liberal economic professor from Harvard, Michael Porter, to tell the state how it should improve its economy. The professor cost taxpayers over a million dollars for his worthless study."

I don't know what Prof. Porter's conclusions were, so I can't comment.

"7. Let's his wife Jenny, an unelected offical, run a good deal of his agenda and will send her to meetings in his place."

How do you know she's "running a good deal of his agenda" ? Would you prefer the wife to be seen and not heard ?

"8. Claims to be a farmer but his family estate hardly qualifies as a farm."

A very subjective claim, and comes off as petty.

"10. Sanford has no vision for SC or leadership ability. He doesn't know how to fix the problems we have. His only solution is notion to cut, cut and cut more. One of the best governors ever in SC was the late Caroll Campbell. He knew how to lead, set a vision, did not spend excessively but spent wisely. Sanford hasn't a clue."

Forgive me, but a lot of people around here think the "notion to cut, cut and cut more" IS visionary and demonstrates considerable leadership. It's VERY easy to spend taxpayers money on "fill-in-the-blank", it's very hard to say a firm "no" to new spending.

"If you can point to one thing positive he has done for us folks in SC then please let me know. Otherwise shut your damn pie hole."

I already stated it above. His reducing state spending is an enormous positive to me, and to the state. I'd certainly love to see it applied up here in TN. You disagree and have a basically different notion of what the Governor should be doing, and that is perfectly understandable. I read Dr. Lovelace's website, and while I'm sure he is a fine man, but I can't see that the gentleman either has the needed experience to serve as Governor, nor a particularly clear vision of what he wants to get done. A vote for Lovelace is merely a protest vote, and I find it doubtful he'll get 20% of the primary vote.

[JohnnyZ]

Yes; however, he has done a piss poor job of leading the state

Anyone who thinks the governor of their state is their "leader" has issues.

Might be more comfortable in a totalitarian system.

[fieldmarshaldj]

Interesting point I noticed that Dr. Lovelace pointed out he was grateful that his parents forced him to attend public school rather than a private school at 13 and he seems very gung-ho for public schools. That rubs me raw like you wouldn't believe and I wouldn't vote for any candidate that takes the position to unapologetically support these Stalinist one-size-fits-all "institutions", and has the unmitigated nerve to criticize a Governor who wants parents the CHOICE to get their children out of that awful prison system.

[JohnnyZ]

I'm glad I went to public school.

The education was substandard, but I learned what normal people are like.

Of course now I don't understand what rich people are like. Oh well.

Seriously though, if govt funding is cut for a monument, and it is funded privately anyway, doesn't that just prove that it doesn't need to be funded by the govt?

Oh well, some people like things to be how they've always been, no matter what kind of mess it's gotten them into.

[fieldmarshaldj]

BTW, I'll offer an apology for ripping your head off earlier. Having gone to battle in the Katherine Harris/Florida Senate race threads, far too many of her most die-hard supporters used the "you don't live here, so you have no right to offer an opinion/you don't know what's going on/etc. etc." as substitute for legitimate debate because they couldn't refute other points that were offered up by myself and others, very very weak and disingenuous. Though I disagree with some of your positions against Sanford, at least you attempted to make some specific point-by-point policy disagreements.

[fieldmarshaldj]

"I believe the unemployment rate was lower before Sanford took office and we weren't rated the 4th highest in the nation but I will check on that and get back to you. Yes we have had some big economic successes but some of those projects like the airplane manufacturing facility were in the works before Sanford was elected. He has every right to take credit for the project as it happened on his watch. As I pointed out in previous posts, his gutting of the state economic development agency forced the local and regional economic development groups to step it up and they did a fantastic job of recruiting companies to SC."

It sounds like that may have been part of his intent to have those other groups and agencies to step up to the plate.

"I didn't mean to infer that Sanford is anti law enforcement because he is not. The point was he tried to politically capitalize on the memorial dedication and it really upset the family members in attendance and officers around the state."

Well, on the surface, it does sound a bit crass. I do hope he at least explained why he was opposed to taxpayer money going into a memorial. I'd at least think he did support it, just with private donations (nothing wrong with that).

"I'm definatley not cut from the mold of wanting a wife to be seen and not heard but I don't support the Hillary Clinton notion of buy one get one free. Elected officals wives are no substitute for the governor when his attendance is requried nor should they be making decisions on important issues (that is only speculation but it is definatley the word on the street)"

I don't think many of us want a first lady (or first husband, as the case may be) stepping in to do the Governor's job. Depending upon what the case may be, assuming it isn't something extremely important, if the Governor can't be in two places at once, sending his wife or another surrogate in his place is fully justifiable.

"I agree that cutting is better than spending but spending needs to be targeted to the right areas. Governor Campbell understood this and the state benefited tremendously under his leadership. To me those areas in which spending needs to take place are public education (an educated workfroce is SC's key to health and prosperity) and economic development (for the same reason)."

BTW, are you supporting his son, Mike Campbell, for Lt Governor ? I consider his elevation to be quite important over the erratic Andre Bauer, especially since it is quite possible he may be getting elevated to the top job before Sanford's 2nd term is up (I wouldn't rule out the possibility that Sanford could end up on the VP slot).

"I guess we will just have to agree to disagree on how good of a governor Sanford has been but as I said before, Sanford will get my vote in the general election. I haven't voted for a democrat since 1994 and I'm not about to do it this fall."

Just be glad you didn't have to endure 8 years of Don Sundquist up here in TN. Talk about a nightmare of a RINO dud.

[fieldmarshaldj]

I never went to private school, either (not that my parents were poor, though they weren't rich, but my parents never believed how dreadful the schools I went to were until the stress nearly destroyed my health). I'm not exclusively pro-private schools, but pro-innovation. We should be constantly reevaluating how, where, and when we educate our children, the curriculum, different approaches, thinking outside the box, rather than a largely failed system that takes a one-size-fits-all approach. Until we treat children as INDIVIDUALS with differing needs, public education will continue to fall far short.

[Uddercha0s]

I agree in theory with what you are saying. But, it should not be that way.. I feel that I was one of the last generations to actually get a good public education. I graduated in 1982. There is no reason that the taxes that we pay can't give our kids a great education but it takes a lot of work from us at home and at school and at the voting booth. I'm not ready to give up up just yet (and I have no kids so I'm paying and fighting for yours)

[RightWinger]

I'm voting to reelect Mark Sanford.
Overall, I like what he's done.

[FerdieMurphy]

How many of SC's problems had Sanford inherited?

[gunnedah]

Welcome to South Carolina. It has been like this for over 50 years and the Governor can not stop it as long as the Republican controlled legislature cuts his throat at every corner.
Our school system has been like this since they were integrated. Both blacks and whites had better schools before they made them into political machines.The schools will never fair any better until the parents become more involved with their kids and stop trying to let the government baby sit them and take them off their hands. On top of this we are now starting to pay for all those children that came into this world with drugs in their system and live in this environment until they start school.It is a way of life and the damn government cannot manage our lives for us regardless of what we think and want.That is the problem,too much government with no accountability.
Eight years ago the legislature took $520 million dollars it spent on tax relief programs, off budget. That is the money that paid for residential property tax rollback for school operations . That reduced state funding for local governments by about $22.5 million per year. All of this is according to the State Paper which reported it in Feb. of this year. Mind you this left the counties to make up this short fall and you have some counties in the Pee Dee that are the poorest in the state and nation.
Sexually transmitted diseases have been a problem here most of my life because of poor hygiene and the uneducated. But this is no longer the only reason,simply put Americas moral compass has been taken away by the courts and the ACLU and Individual rights at the expense of the rights of many.When your so called leaders flaunt their immorality and criminal ways openly in the public and the public keeps reelecting them what do you think children and even a lot of adults think? America is on the brink of disaster and we no longer have any real leadership we elect Kings and Queens.
I disagree with Sanford on several things but I think he is a man of conscience and is very thrift.
South Carolina has always been among the top states in the nation in traffic accidents. I know in the late 60's and 70's the Highway Patrol had less troopers than they do today and they worked long hours with no overtime,had good enforcement programs and something was done about it.But we turned the Patrol into a real political machine.
As far as our highways the tax dollars that are paid on gasoline for highway maintenance was spent the same way you Social Security taxes have been spent. On top of that poor states like South Carolina actually subsidizes the bigger states. This comes from Congressional oversight.
Let me make another point to you,12 of the 13 poorest counties in South Carolina are strong Democrat controlled strongholds.
You vote for who you please but Sanford has no real control or clout over the legislature and they are our biggest downfall.

[gunnedah]

That is just it it was courage or principal,it sure wasn't political. Maybe this state will elect them another good old boy Democrat but they wont do it with my vote.
For once and all, the Legislature runs South Carolina not the Governor,unfortunately!

[TheStickman]

He's the best governor we've had in SC since I moved here 10 or so years ago. The Greenville area/economy has SKYROCKETED since he has been in office. My only complaint with him is the state run public school system is still controlled by leftist/liberal wackos.

[visualops]

A good bit of the money spent in public education is wasted in administrative costs. The state does not need to throw more money at education. What money they have needs to be spent more wisely.

[Uddercha0s]

"...state run public school system is still controlled by leftist/liberal wackos."

Isn't that redundant? It's up to us to take it back and I don't have a kid in this fight.