6 Stories In SC Politics This Week: Null, No Shows, Not My State, Not Interested

A weekly, irreverent look at what occurs inside the Statehouse

1. Obamacare nullification bill rendered null and void

This week the state Senate killed a controversial bill allowing South Carolina to thumb its nose at Obamacare.

Beaufort Sen. Tom Davis worked for months to try to make the bill more constitutional, only to hear from the Senate's chief referee that the measure broke the rules.

Our sources say this is a rough reenactment of Davis' reaction:

2. Appearances are everything

...especially if you head a very large state agency being criticized from all directions. Grim-faced lawmakers this week once again asked DSS Director Lillian Koller to answer questions soon about stories they are hearing concerning inaction against abuse and neglect of children -- who were allegedly under their oversight.

But DSS staffers say Koller cannot testify until she recovers from a stroke she suffered in December. In the meantime, state senators are furiously shadow-boxing with Koller until she is medically cleared to testify.

This one is important to list, but not funny.

3. The first rule of Fight Club...

What happens when the South Carolina's top prosecutor faces off against one of the state's most powerful legislators? Well, we may not have known if House Speaker Bobby Harrell's lawyer had his way.

Attorneys representing Harrell in an ethics investigation against him wanted to remove State Attorney General Alan Wilson from the case. But they also wanted the potential political slugfest to be kept secret. The State newspaper found out and the judge opened the hearing on Friday.

Then the real drama unfolded:

A staffer for Harrell claimed Wilson made an implicit threat against the Speaker, when Harrell did not initially support a new corruption investigation unit Wilson wanted. But Wilson said he made no such threat and had simply met with Harrell's staffer on the new unit because it would be inappropriate to meet with a lawmaker his office was investigating at the time.

4. Showing MOXie

Speaking of political prize fights, Gov. Nikki Haley and Attorney General Wilson formed a legal tag team once again to fight a decision out of Washington, D.C. that they did not like. This time it was a decision by the Energy Department to shut down a nuclear fuel making project in SC, known as the Mixed Oxide Fuel Fabrication Facility (or MOX).

The lawsuit tries to keep construction going on the nuclear plant that is billions of dollars over budget, but provides nearly 1,800 jobs in Aiken County. Haley says the project has come too far to turn back now and the DOE better keep their promises.

Haley even channeled her inner Clint Eastwood and pulled out the fighting words, "They have messed with the wrong state."

5. Cursive, the other way to write

Before we forget how to write with swooshes (and thus become doctors), state lawmakers are trying to make cursive a requirement in elementary school.

The requirement stopped in 2008 and lawmakers say the "cursed" (all right, bad pun, sorry) Common Core curriculum does nothing to restore it either.

Verily, since our forefathers brought forth dispatches in such fashion, we henceforth shall.

What's next? Outlawing spell check?

6. Please don't make me!

Lt. Gov. Glenn McConnell might be leaving his post to become president of the College of Charleston if the school's trustees select him from a final group of three finalists.

The state constitution then calls for Senate President pro tempore Sen. John Courson, R-Richland, to leave his post and replace McConnell. But Courson made it clear last week he will do no such thing, thank you very much.

A big reason why is that the Lt. Gov job carries much less power than President pro tempore and would last only seven months until Election Day.

It's not unprecedented for Senate pro tems to turn down the theoretically-a-promotion-but-really-career-ender. The Lt. Gov. position has been vacant several times throughout the state's history, most recently in the late 1960s.

Many will recall that McConnell, however, did actually leave his Senate position to become lieutenant governor after his predecessor Ken Ard resigned to face corruption charges.