SC

Nikki Haley Picks Eleanor Kitzman For SCDHEC

BUT … WHY? || By FITSNEWS ||  As we reported last week, S.C. governor Nikki Haley has nominated former lieutenant gubernatorial candidate Eleanor Kitzman as her choice to lead the S.C. Department of Health and Environmental Control (SCDHEC). Well, technically the SCDHEC board has nominated Kitzman … but the order to…

BUT … WHY?

|| By FITSNEWS ||  As we reported last week, S.C. governor Nikki Haley has nominated former lieutenant gubernatorial candidate Eleanor Kitzman as her choice to lead the S.C. Department of Health and Environmental Control (SCDHEC).

Well, technically the SCDHEC board has nominated Kitzman … but the order to do so came directly from the governor.  Had it been up to the board, they would have likely gone another route – choosing a nominee endorsed by outgoing agency director Catherine Templeton.

Templeton “had an eminently credible candidate lined up” to take the position, sources tell FITS, but Haley wanted Kitzman.  And as we’ve seen in the past, the SCDHEC board does the governor’s bidding … even if it results in disastrous consequences for the state.

But who are we to question Haley’s judgment when it comes to political appointments?

You know … aside from Lillian Koller at the S.C. Department of Social Services, Abraham Turner at the S.C. Department of Workforce, Jim Etter at the S.C. Department of Revenue and Robert St. Onge of the S.C. Department of Transportation or Kela Thomas of the S.C. Department of Probation, Parole and Pardon Services.

All of those agency heads resigned amid scandal during the governor’s first term in office …

Anyway …

A former campaign contributor and close personal confidant of Haley,  Kitzman raised Haley boatloads of money in Texas after spending just six months at the head of the S.C. Budget and Control Board (SCBCB) in 2011.

The former car insurance executive – who was Haley’s second choice for that position – had a stormy six-month tenure at the agency (including this infamous exchange with former S.C. House ways and means chairman Danny Cooper).

She was also criticized for spending taxpayer money on unnecessary remodeling projects.

In 2010, she ran for lieutenant governor but finished last in a four-way race with only 14.7 percent of the vote.

She was also let go by Texas Gov. Rick Perry after less than two years on the job – never winning confirmation from the state’s Senate.

Why not?

“She has ignored a lot of rules,” one GOP State Senator told The Austin Statesman.

After being let go by Perry, Kitzman was hired in December 2013 by New York based Starr Investment Holdings, but she apparently didn’t last long in that position either.

According to our sources, the state’s business community is making noise about Kitzman “getting fired from four jobs in four years.”  Meanwhile FITS has spoken with several State Senators – Democrats and “Republicans” – who have expressed concerns over Kitzman’s resume.

“I fail to see how this is the best qualified person to carry on the reforms at this agency,” one Senator told FITS.

Another Senator told us they viewed Kitzman’s nomination as a “step backward” for SCDHEC.

Kitzman is the second high-profile appointment made by Haley in recent months to raise eyebrows … and not in a good way.

The governor’s choice of former Clemson University bureaucrat Susan Alford to lead her embattled welfare agency was also panned – especially after she announced Alford would be assisted by another six-figure bureaucrat in her new job.

Both Alford and Kitzman must be confirmed by the S.C. Senate.

***

Related posts

SC

North Charleston Councilman Accuses Cop Of Falsifying Police Report

Will Folks
SC

‘Carolina Crossroads’ Update: SCDOT Set To Unveil New Plan To The Public

Will Folks
SC

Federal Lawsuit Alleges Racial Discrimination in Horry County School

Callie Lyons

63 comments

Iftheyonlyknew January 13, 2015 at 7:29 am

From The State’s story on this:

“Following a private meeting, the eight-member DHEC board voted to appoint Kitzman. Board member Clarence Batts was the lone member not supporting Kitzman. He abstained. Monday’s vote occurred via conference call, with only board chairman Allen Amsler and member Kenyon Wells attending the meeting in Columbia.

Amsler refused comment on why DHEC moved so rapidly to appoint Kitzman and why the board did not conduct a detailed search, as it did before picking Templeton in 2012 after several months of deliberations. Templeton beat 250 candidates for the post.

Read more here: http://www.thestate.com/2015/01/12/3924044_former-sc-insurance-commissioner.html?sp=/99/205/&rh=1#storylink=cpy“.

It’s obvious that DHEC a de facto cabinet agency. The only thing the Board does is provide a layer of insulation for the governor when the shit hits the fan. This confirmation hearing should be interesting.

Reply
Lowcountry January 13, 2015 at 11:47 am

because I don’t believe Templeton resigned the way Will states, I heard she was forced out. So if the governor forces you out, she surely has a replacement ready.

Reply
Centrist View January 13, 2015 at 12:24 pm

Was Templeton absorbing too much of the spotlight and casting a shadow on the Gov.?

Reply
Former Senate Employee January 13, 2015 at 8:48 am

When Haley appointed Kissman and Marshmello Adams to run the Budget and Control Board, It became known as the “Bitch Controlled Board! Unholy Haley is known for her incompetent, unqualified appointments. Just look at the above list Killer Koller, Atemyham Turner, Otter Etter, Karenot Thomas, No St. Onge. I would also throw in Markeitup Keel, for his failure and inaction in the illegal “Lexington Ring” debacle!
During Kissmans reign of terror, at the “Bitch Controlled Board” many long serving employees, previously recognized for outstanding, excellent service were unceremoneously “axed”, riffed, and savaged by Marshmello at Kissman’s direction. Others left voluntarily rather than have their careers sullied by the likes of Haley, Kissman and marshmello!
It is no wonder that Kissman was never confirmed by the Texas Senate and subsequently fired by Governor Perry! Her hasty departure from SC and the “Bitch Controlled Bd.” was followed by many rumors unbecoming a professional, moral or ethical manager, just the kind Haley loves to appoint! A fund raiser, a yes person, a lap dog, non professional, incompetent “alley cat”, TOTALLY UNQUALIFIED/UNPREPARED TO MANAGE DHEC !!!!

Reply
two January 13, 2015 at 9:29 am

There is one low life upstate Senator who will be extrmely happy to see the “bitch” return! I’m sure there will be many meetings.

Reply
former member January 13, 2015 at 10:10 am

Maybe she will get what will mellow her out?

Reply
Beartrkkr January 13, 2015 at 10:30 pm

She sounds perfect for the job!

Reply
nitrat January 13, 2015 at 8:50 am

The SCDHEC Board is obviously the most corrupt and corrupted board we have ever had in this state.
— thanks to Mark Sanford leaving 600+ board and commission vacancies/overdue appointments when he left office, giving Haley the opportunity to pack board after board with people getting payoffs for support – special license tags appear to be the most coveted possession in this state; let’s do away with them and interest in appointments would abate – rather than knowing a rat’s ass about what the agency they were appointed to.
THIS is the fucking SCGOP.

Reply
noname January 13, 2015 at 6:06 pm

exactly what i heard happened……and those folks voted him in the senate. unbelievable.

Reply
Krazy Kat January 13, 2015 at 9:04 am

No! No! No! This is the worst possible choice. Her time at Insurance was tragic. When she left the staff brought cakes, balloons and had a real party. Ask the people at BCB what she was like. Ask her staff in Texas or any of the other jobs she’s washed out of in the last few years. This woman is a menace. And she is far from a “strong manager.” She’s just a mean bitch with well placed friends.

Reply
Mark M. January 13, 2015 at 9:23 am

Truer words….

Reply
Tisk Tisk January 13, 2015 at 10:01 am

What are you talking about?

“getting fired from four jobs in four years.” means she’s PERFECTLY qualified for a gov’t job.

Reply
WTF January 13, 2015 at 10:04 am

Only under a Haley administration!

Reply
Tisk Tisk January 13, 2015 at 2:49 pm

Oh, how I wish that were the case.

Reply
Becky January 13, 2015 at 10:02 am

I think UnHoly Haley owes the “Bitch”! It seems to me Will Folks once wrote that Kitzman, more commonly referred to as “the Bitch”, had intimate knowledge of his and UnHoly Haley’s affair and intended to call her as a witness, should they end up in Court! Fired and run off from EVERY position she has held and appointed by UnHoly again, it must be “HUSH” money, to keep “the Bitch” quiet!
I always wondered, if UnHoly was innocent and had not been involved in an affair with Folks, why she NEVER sued? I ‘d heard about their affair back in 2007, when UnHoly was a nobody, no reason to make it up! I guess the taxpayer is forking over the “hush money” for UnHoly again!

Reply
Smirks January 13, 2015 at 10:23 am

I know a few people in state, they’d pretty much confirm everything you’ve said.

Reply
Tanya January 13, 2015 at 10:30 am

I know many who would!

Reply
Carl January 14, 2015 at 7:32 am

What are you talking about?

Reply
jimlewisowb January 13, 2015 at 9:21 am

Press Release from Eleanor Kitzman

To all of those who pissed on my back as I was leaving the State of South Carolina let it be known throughout the Gypsy Queen’s Kingdom – I’mmm Baaack – payback is going to be hell

There will be blood in the halls
There will be blood in the streets
There will be blood on the walls
Not a creature stirring will be able to save their balls

This short but to the point Press Release has been approved by the Gypsy Queen and the GQ welcomes Bloody Eleanor and her Bitch Blade back to her Kingdom

Roll on Gypsy Queen Dooh Nibor, dammit, roll on

Reply
Mark M. January 13, 2015 at 9:27 am

Run out of South Carolina. Run out of Texas. Fired from a private position.
“Hey Nikki, help a sister out…I need a job…”
Give it 12-18 months, and when DHEC is in even further disarray, and that’s saying something, she’ll either get run off again, or resign “for personal reasons” so she and Haley can save face.
Kitzman is just not a nice person. And yes, the story about the employees having a party at the DOI when she left is 100% true.
Just a bad choice…for any job.

Reply
Former Haley Suporter January 13, 2015 at 10:08 am

“Kitzman is just not a nice person”???
What a friggin understatement!!!!!
Like Hitler, Osama, and members of ISIS are “just not nice people”!!!!
She is, as coined, by employees at B&C BD and Dept. of Insurance “a bloody BITCH”!

Reply
Mark M. January 13, 2015 at 10:11 am

LOL. I was trying to be diplomatic. Really don’t know why…

Reply
WW January 13, 2015 at 5:52 pm

Haven’t been on this site long..eh?

Reply
noname January 13, 2015 at 6:01 pm

true that – in further disarray…..don’t believe everything you hear/read from the templeton camp

Reply
William January 13, 2015 at 9:37 am

Haley has had some bad luck with her appointees. One would think lessons would have been learned. This will end up being her biggest mistake ever. Our only hope for a decently run DHEC is rejection of her confirmation by the Senate. Kitzman has demonstrated over and over again how poor her management skills are. How many jobs has she had in the last 10 years? By my count it averages about one per year. That ought to tell you something. And her people skills are nonexistent. No employee likes or respects her. They fear her deliberate meanness and unpredictability. DHEC’s countdown starts now.

Reply
WW January 13, 2015 at 5:51 pm

Self inflicted “bad luck” by appointing unprepared, unqualified, feckless people, who could help her husband with military promotions, who had a personal aircraft she could use, or raise money for her!

Reply
noname January 13, 2015 at 5:58 pm

DHEC has been on the countdown for 4 years already.

Reply
you know me January 13, 2015 at 10:26 am

Is Eleanor married?

Reply
Anne January 13, 2015 at 10:32 am

Not that I’m aware of!
Like sleeping with the Devil!

Reply
Rhubarb January 13, 2015 at 2:24 pm

Not likely. Even the devil has SOME standards…

Reply
Soft Sigh from Hell January 13, 2015 at 5:30 pm

As a lovely lively lady once said to (but fortunately not of) me, “I may not have morals, but I do have standards.”

Reply
poopoo January 13, 2015 at 5:55 pm

Kitzman has no standards, morals, or soul!!
Right Senator.

Reply
Objectifying Eyes January 13, 2015 at 10:53 am

She doesn’t even have Templeton’s ass and tits…this is not a good replacement.

Reply
Touche' January 13, 2015 at 2:56 pm

She probably doesn’t hold her liquor as well though, so odds are you might have an easier time getting her to put out.

Reply
lulabell January 13, 2015 at 4:04 pm

A senator may be able to answer?

Reply
Col. Klink January 13, 2015 at 4:22 pm Reply
scotty January 13, 2015 at 11:05 am

One has to wonder why the governor has picked this arrogant skank who is incapable of doing anything for very long? Incompetent doesn’t even start to describe the bitch.

Reply
Dan Ruck January 13, 2015 at 11:26 am

Nice story, Will. Thanks!

Reply
Leviticus 20:13 January 13, 2015 at 2:59 pm

Shut up fag.

Reply
Meow January 13, 2015 at 11:46 am

I like her fashion taste. Wearing your kill is en vogue.

Reply
Prometheus January 13, 2015 at 2:02 pm

A leopard does NOT change it’s spots. Kitzman has been unable to hold a job, has alienated every employee she has been involved with, is despise and hated by most.
She is a skank among skanks! Feckless to her responsibilities; but, she is Ohaley’s bitch!

Reply
Meow January 13, 2015 at 2:58 pm

Yea, but the bitch killed a leopard, skinned it, and then threw it around her shoulders without washing it….that’s gotta count for something.

Reply
At your own risk January 13, 2015 at 5:53 pm

Absolutely…covers the fishy smell!

Reply
Soft Sigh from Hell January 13, 2015 at 7:43 pm

We can use more Xena types.

Reply
ELCID January 13, 2015 at 1:00 pm

HALEY IS A GD IDIOT!
The people who voted for her should be banished to TEXAS, where all the money came from that convinced the fools to vote for this crook.

Reply
Edgar January 13, 2015 at 1:19 pm

This is about the dumbest move Nikki has made yet. I try to defend Gov Haley because overall she is better than the Democrats being in charge, but really. This was not a smart move.

Reply
She sucks stop justifying January 14, 2015 at 12:32 pm

In what way is she better?

Reply
Kinda Wonder January 13, 2015 at 5:50 pm

What do you suppose her role will be at DHEC?

Does she have a mission or is this simply a paycheck to her?

Will she be engaged within the agency or above it all and engaged in “higher” political matters?

Reply
Becky January 13, 2015 at 5:57 pm

Probably spend most of her time in the Senate office building. Use to hang out there all the time, leaving Marshmello girl A-Damns in charge!

Reply
Kinda Wonder January 13, 2015 at 7:46 pm

Will she have a similar henchwoman at DHEC?

Reply
noname January 13, 2015 at 6:04 pm

there is no longer a mission at DHEC…went down the drain when Haley took control…..

Reply
Squishy123 January 13, 2015 at 6:11 pm

Nobody has mentioned her qualifications. What makes her qualified to lead DHEC?

Reply
Kinda Wonder January 13, 2015 at 6:18 pm

And is she a lawyer?

Reply
Kinda Wonder January 13, 2015 at 7:36 pm Reply
Soft Sigh from Hell January 13, 2015 at 7:41 pm

“In a letter, Cooper ripped Kitzman for . . . making public comments about not taking advice from middle-aged white men.”

Hey, then she can’t be all bad!

Reply
Point of order January 13, 2015 at 10:39 pm

Well, if she’s a lawyer she has vast experience in dealing with muck, and getting right down in it and rolling around. That’s a good DHEC qualification.

Reply
Beartrkkr January 13, 2015 at 10:32 pm

When did qualifications matter?

Reply
WW January 14, 2015 at 6:55 am

She is a haley confidant and fund raiser!
Only qualification needed by Haley!

Reply
Haley Is Insane January 13, 2015 at 6:51 pm

A car insurance executive running a massive Health and Environmental agency????? ROFLMFAO!!!!!! …… Haley needs her head examined. This pick is simply ludicrous!

Reply
RHood2 January 13, 2015 at 7:07 pm

Do not knock it before you know for sure what will happen.
I for one think the health of SC residents will be vastly improved by the new carpeting to come to DHEC main office once she’s installed.
And what better way to control the environment than from a dark cherry wood finish desk and new desk chair with the finest Corinthian leather?
At least this one will be HQ’d out of Columbia, not commuting from Charleston whenever … Though I doubt she’ll ever put in a full 40 a week.

Reply
Otis January 13, 2015 at 7:18 pm

Bloody Eleanor!! She doesn’t smile.

Reply
Marilyn January 13, 2015 at 7:59 pm

Just a horrible choice. I don’t know how the Governor can do it. She must have something on the Gov.

Reply
shifty henry January 14, 2015 at 8:59 am

It appears that she just woke up from having her brains screwed out. “Let me count, this makes how many times I’ve had this experience.. well, this makes one, two…….”

Reply

Leave a Comment