ADDITIONAL INFO ON POWERFUL LAWMAKER’S “RESIDENCY ISSUE”
By FITSNEWS || Earlier this week FITS reported on new developments in an ongoing federal-state investigation of corruption at the S.C. State House. Specifically, we related information from our sources regarding powerful S.C. ways and means chairman Brian White – who in addition to other things is reportedly being investigated for some sort of “residency” issue.
Details are hazy, but in reviewing past residences listed by White (he quit providing taxpayers with residency information in 2012), one of the properties we uncovered was owned not by him but by Brad Moorhouse – director of an Anderson County, S.C. nursing home that’s operated by the National HealthCare Corporation (NHC).
According to our sources, the questions being raised about White’s residency – including “one of the listed properties in Anderson” – were being viewed through the lens of his proximity to James Randall Lee, a registered lobbyist and executive with the S.C. HealthCare Association.
According to its website, Lee’s organization exists to “promote the general welfare through development and maintenance of high standards of professional care and administration in nursing homes and related long-term care facilities.”
Lee, incidentally, was one of the central figures in the Operation Lost Trust scandal – a federal sting that snared seventeen lawmakers in bribery-related corruption charges a quarter century ago.
Where are we going with this?
Well, it turns out Lee’s lobby – the nursing home industry – is responsible for appointing a member to the South Carolina Health Planning Committee, which is the entity responsible for administering the state’s health plan. In fact this is the infamous committee that was “tasked” by S.C. Gov. Nikki Haley in 2011 with deciding whether to pursue a statewide health care exchange.
They didn’t (the right move) … but taxpayers were unnecessarily deprived of $1 million in the process.
More relevant to our immediate purposes, this planning committee is the entity responsible for administering the state’s Certificate of Need (CON) program – which decides where and how health care services are administered in this state.
Guess who is on the committee?
Pretty cozy, huh?
Again, we’re not suggesting at this point that White has done anything illegal. Or Lee. Or Moorhouse. We believe White’s yet-to-be-investigated 2011 campaign finance scandal (and his recent campaign payments to his wife’s charity) need to be addressed – but at this point no one has accused him of criminal wrongdoing in relation to the ongoing corruption probe.
We’re simply following the advice of a federal prosecutor who told us to “follow the nursing home money.”
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8 comments
Oddly enough…don’t forget that our old friend speaker bobby and his wife owned a nursing home in charleston called oak haven when he was ways and means chair.
I could see the Certificate of Need program being ripe for corruption. Wanna open up a new nursing home? Better pay up, buddy. Untraceable bills preferred.
With these reports coming out some folks may be getting nervous and feeling sort of squirmy. Watch for some digging up their flower beds and pumpkin patches. Used oil cans in the garage are popular.
In Charleston alone, the word is already spreading about the feds preparing to bust certain land developers.
“Again, we’re not suggesting at this point that White has done anything illegal.”
Well then STFU
This dog will not hunt, as Alan Wilson has collected a lot of nursing hime money. Lee is the traffic master of the money, but it comes from various entities and individuals.
This will die.
facts:
Moorhouses bought that house in 2007 for $500k
Whites sold their house in 2009
Whites changed address to 2933 Concord rd, the white house the Moorhouses bought, about the time they sold their house
“source” says follow money in residency issue related to nursing home industry
i bet what happened…Moorhouse bought that place in 2007 for $500k, (still hasn’t changed it to his home address) it is a good investment near hwy 81 and across from New Spring, for those of you not familiar that is one of the largest mega churches in the country, even if they never bought it it would still be a great location. While he waits for his investment to become sellable he is paying a lot in taxes and insurance, so he needs to get cash flow. Meanwhile White sells his home in 2009 and needs a place to stay while they look for a new home. He knows Moorhouse and maybe even knows he has an empty house. Any landlord will tell you a $500k place needs a MINIMUM of $3000(with minimum interest and long term loan) per month (probably closer to $5-6k), however since this is an investment based on location and not the structure Moorhouse probably just needs to pay taxes and insurance so he needs maybe $1200-$1500 at most. Between friends only charging half of market value; not so bad. Between a politician and someone he closely regulates gets the attention of federal prosecutors. I don’t know any of this, i am just guessing and it wouldn’t surprise me if this is what happened
I’m sure the fact that Brian White has a hand in the budget decisions for SCDHHS, the agency that pays for nursing homes, does not in any way play a roll in this.