SC’s fallen soldiers honored, another name added today (Audio)
March 10, 2010 by senatormcconnell
The Department of Defense announced today the death of a South Carolina soldier supporting Operation Iraqi Freedom. Sgt. Aaron M. Arthur, 25, of Lake City, died March 8 north of Al Kut, Iraq, of injuries sustained during a vehicle roll-over. He was assigned to the 203rd Brigade Support Battalion, attached to the First Battalion, 10th Field Artillery Regiment, Third Brigade Combat Team, Third Infantry Division, Fort Benning, Ga.
Such notifications happened in South Carolina 10 times in the past year. Families like the Fowlkes of Gaffney still struggle with the grief. Dominick Fowlkes wrote about it after his brother Lance Corporal Christopher Fowlkes was mortally wounded in Afghanistan.
(Listen to Fowlkes’ poem, “The War” MP3 :40) Read more
Lawmakers Honor Fallen Soldiers
March 10, 2010 by senatormcconnell
South Carolina lawmakers remembered the members of the armed forces from South Carolina who died in the last year while serving their country.
This year’s Fallen Soldiers ceremony and luncheon honored ten young men and their families.
Each family was presented with a concurrent resolution from the state House and Senate honoring the fallen soldier, along with The Order of the Palmetto Patriot and a state flag that was flown in their honor over the Statehouse.
WSPA
Video on Spending Caps
March 10, 2010 by senatormcconnell
Democrats Blocking Bill Protecting Rights of South Carolina Workers
March 10, 2010 by senatormcconnell
Republicans Working To Guarantee Right To Secret Ballot Elections
South Carolina’s Republican Senators are pushing a bill on the State Senate floor that guarantees a worker’s right to a secret ballot election in the workplace, but liberal Democrats are continuing to block that right. H.3305, introduced by Rep. Eric Bedingfield, is a constitutional amendment that would guarantee a worker’s right to voting by secret ballot during union organization.
The legislation is a reaction to the deceptively named federal “Employee Free Choice Act,” which would strip workers of their right to vote for unionization by secret ballot, opening them up to intimidation and harassment by unions. The legislation is being pushed on the federal level by union bosses and their liberal allies in Congress. Read more
Peacemakers don’t dwell on bitterness
March 8, 2010 by senatormcconnell
I was disappointed to see the Rev. Joseph A. Darby’s Feb. 19 column, titled “We should not honor secessionists,” in The Post and Courier.
At first, he appeared to me to be writing merely to express his opposition to the idea of erecting a monument at Patriots Point to the 171 South Carolinians who signed the Ordinance of Secession in 1860, a document that represents a tragic and transformative time in the history of our nation.
Rev. Darby called all those who signed that document 150 years ago “traitors” who deserted their country.
However, a careful reading of Rev. Darby’s guest column causes me to opine his agenda had more to do with modern politics than it did with his views on history.
He bitterly criticized the two African-American political leaders, Sen. Robert Ford and Rep. Tim Scott, who have endorsed the proposed monument at Patriots Point. Read more
Push is on for hike in cigarette tax
March 4, 2010 by senatormcconnell
Supporters hope this is the year lawmakers will OK increase
Tate Mikell, a young Charleston police officer, had just finished a long run on the beach with his dog in 2005 and was sitting down to lunch with his mom and dad when the symptoms set in.
The Citadel graduate felt dazed as a massive headache clouded his mind. It was a brain aneurysm, and it would leave him paralyzed on his left side and permanently wheelchair-bound.
Today, Mikell, 31, hopes lawmakers will get serious about passing an increase in the state’s cigarette tax. The revenue – potentially $145 million – would be used to offset budget cuts to Medicaid programs and services that Mikell and other disabled South Carolinians rely on.
This Week in the Senate- February 25, 2010
February 26, 2010 by senatormcconnell
SC Senate Passes Overhaul of Jobless Agency
February 26, 2010 by senatormcconnell
Bill would lower legal age required to get tattoo in S.C.
February 25, 2010 by senatormcconnell
South Carolina lawmakers have agreed to lower the legal age required to get a tattoo without parental consent from 21 to 18. Now, it’s up to Gov. Mark Sanford to decide whether to sign the bill into law.
South Carolina is currently the only state in the nation that requires someone to be 21 to get a tattoo.
Senate President Pro Tempore Glenn McConnell, R-Charleston, sponsored the bill because he thinks the current law is unconstitutional since it doesn’t treat all adults equally. Someone is considered an adult at 18 and can sign contracts, vote and join the military, everything except drink alcohol, so he thinks they should be able to get a tattoo. Read more
Senate passes ESC overhaul
February 25, 2010 by senatormcconnell
Jobless benefits agency would be led by director named by governor
The Senate approved its version of reform for the troubled state Employment Security Commission on Wednesday, agreeing to move the agency to a Cabinet-style form of government led by a governor-appointed director.
Along with House-passed legislation approved last week, the Senate’s move means significant changes for the agency that manages South Carolina’s jobless benefits. Read more
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