ADDITIONAL LEGISLATIVE SELF-DEALING EXPOSED … BUT WHAT SHOULD BE DONE?
Last month the Center for Public Integrity – in partnership with The (Charleston, S.C.) Post and Courier – published an expose on the extent to which elected officials in the Palmetto State used campaign funds as “a personal ATM,” one that “dispensed nearly $100 million since 2009.”
You can read our recap of that expose here …
This week, the two entities have teamed up for another big dual report on the extent to which lawmakers profit from their connections to government.
“It’s almost impossible to say with certainty how much money flows from government coffers to lawmakers because the state’s reporting laws are littered with loopholes and inconsistency,” reporters Doug Pardue, Glenn Smith, David Slade and Rachel Baye noted. “It’s a murky system, created by lawmakers, that makes it difficult for the average voter to see just where the money is going and to whom.”
Amen … and the system gets even murkier when lawmakers fail to report income they receive on the side (as governor Nikki Haley infamously did).
Anyway, this band of investigators has unearthed approximately $16 million in contracts with state and local governments awarded to twenty current or former legislators – although again, that’s just what has been publicly reported.
Additionally, fifty-five current or former lawmakers received millions more from entities that lobby state government – and millions on top of that “representing people, businesses or government bodies in government matters, such as worker’s compensation cases and adoptions.”
They even got cash directly “from the very agencies whose budgets they oversee.” Budgets they often voted for …
“This profit-making out of state and local governmental coffers is perfectly legal in a state where the 170 legislators make and enforce the ethics rules that govern their behavior,” the report concluded.
Exactly … which is why this website has been fighting for years to not only expose the corruption itself, but more importantly the self-policing system that perpetuates it. We’ve also aggressively exposed the “reforms in name only” lawmakers have put forth as part of a backdoor effort to muzzle criticism of their chronic self-dealing … while giving the appearance of doing something to promote “public integrity.”
What a joke.
We’ve tried to hold this system accountable – and are taking shots because of it.
State lawmakers? They’ve continued to cash checks and evade accountability for their actions. Meanwhile the state’s top prosecutor – S.C. attorney general Alan Wilson – has been disturbingly selective in his promised pursuit of public corruption.
The result of all this? A state which literally breeds corruption.
Rumors have swirled for more than a year about the status of an ongoing federal-state investigation into legislative self-dealing, but so far “the probe” has nabbed only one official – former S.C. Speaker of the House Bobby Harrell.
And even this “victory” has raised the specter of deeper corruption.
To be blunt: Harrell’s ethics violations (doggedly pursued by this website) strike us as tame in comparison to some of the taxpayer-subsidized fleecing other state lawmakers are perpetrating. And his indictment and subsequent resignation from office has only enhanced the political influence of some of these lawmakers.
We’ve asked it before, we’ll ask it again: Is there one honest person in state government? One official willing to take a real stand against this brood of vipers?
So far the answer to that question has been a resounding “no.” In fact the governor who was elected on a platform of transparency and accountability back in 2010 has been the chief beneficiary of the state’s culture of corruption.
In other words she’s been every bit as disingenuous when it comes to ethics reform as she was on that whole “limited government” schtick.
So we ask again: Who will stand up to this?
And how?
Every bit as important as prosecuting existing corruption is fixing the system so that future leaders cannot continue to live off the land.
To that end, two-and-a-half years ago this website proposed a novel two-step process …
The first step? Raising legislative pay so that individuals who serve in the S.C. General Assembly aren’t compelled to cut self-serving backroom deals every five seconds.
Currently state lawmakers make just over $10,000 a year – an amount they can stretch to $30,000 or so annually if they maximize various expenses and allowances. We would propose raising this sum to $50,000 – $60,000 annually – and eliminating all expense payments (in other words lawmakers would have to pay for their own food, transportation and lodging).
Of course that’s not all we would eliminate …
Given their enhanced incomes, lawmakers wouldn’t need to rely on the sweetheart deals and state contracts they habitually award to themselves, their families or their companies. Accordingly, in conjunction with any legislative pay hike, we would institute a lifetime ban on any current or former member of the S.C. General Assembly – or their family members or businesses – receiving a dime of tax money (other than their salary and benefits, naturally).
Or ever becoming a lobbyist.
In other words, give lawmakers a real salary – and then make it illegal for them, their families or their businesses to ever profit off of their office. The more we watch the naked graft going down at the S.C. State House, the more convinced we are this is a good idea.
The next step? Eliminating the S.C. General Assembly’s “see no evil” self-policing “ethics” committees. We should never expect corruption to stop if the same people profiting off of the system are also responsible for policing it.
“The only way to end legislative self-policing is by putting lawmakers under the same laws that govern everybody else,” a recent report from the S.C. Policy Council concluded. “After all, every other person in South Carolina is independently policed: why should state lawmakers be any different?”
Other sensible reforms? Imposing term limits on legislative leadership positions and committee chairs. We no longer believe in term limits for legislators themselves, but lawmakers should not be allowed to wield leadership posts in perpetuity.
Reforms must also be accompanied by real consequences for elected officials who break the law – even just a little, even just once. Public corruption will never be rooted out if tough new laws included slaps on the wrist for violators.
Betrayal of the public trust should be met with jail time – and lifetime bans on seeking or holding elective office in the future.
71 comments
60K is the figure that makes a POS quit being a POS?
Some say $80K. I have no problem paying that – including an annual upward adjustment linked to CPI – if it is accompanied by draconian ethics reform that stops far greater fleecing.
Like an old training officer explained to me many years ago: “Integrity, either ya got it or you don’t. It has nothing to do with your paycheck, but with yourself.”
These leeches already make several times the quoted $10K in per-diems, health care, a retirement plan far more generous than other state employees have, and God-only-knows.what else. And that is just the stuff on top of the table.
Are you serious?
Amen! Their expense accounts go toward their lucrative taxpayer funded retirement! They are wined and dined, taken on free trips, many to Costa Rico recently. Gold plated health/dental care, Gold plated retirements, in district expense, per diem, mileage, free meals, outlandish gifts, vested retirement after only 8 years service etc., etc.
They are doing GREAT! Why else spend hundreds of thousands to get elected? It ain’t only because of the MANY political groupies who provide them with home, away from home sleeping partners!
You’re looking at it the wrong way, look at it like this. If you up the salary up to something decent like you would make doing similar work in the private sector say $80k and include insurance and state benefits then you can attract the type of people we need running for office.
Most working middle class people can’t run for the legislature because no ones boss is going to let you take off time to campaign and then take off time for six months of the year to go to Columbia and meet for your “part time job”. Unless you are already wealthy or have wealthy backers there is no way you can accomplish this, not even you Mom & Pop small business can do it because it is too time consuming. The current system was put in place when most of the population were farmers or ran a small shop in town and might have came to Columbia to meet once or twice a month.
If you make it a full time Job with benefits and limit any outside income to investments and “side work” say 10K a year then when the legislature isn’t in secession these new professional legislators will be back at home in their districts providing constituent service. You attract quality people to run for office, that will be less likely to be corruptible not because the money makes them honest be because honest people can run. If you limit outside income then the political elite will be less interested in running. Constituent service will go up because the people elected will have actual skin in the game and be interested in keeping their jobs not in pleasing their monetary backers. A serious set of ethics laws with teeth would need to be put in place to keep the system from being re-corrupted but it could work. Have the state finance the campaigns to the tune of $5k or so with no “donations” allowed.
The money saved in the first two years would pay for the salaries and financing the campaigns.
There are quality people out there who would take on these jobs now, but they cannot afford to run successfully without the backing of a powerful machine and a LOT of money. Some try to run but invariably are outgunned with the signs, bumper stickers, electronic media ads, and all that determines how our brain-dead majority will vote.
answer is too long .. stupid . get lost.
If we could only come up with a price for honesty, sigh.
How about 75K (plus any across the board raise they give state employees in any given year) and they get the GSA per Diem for Columbia when in session, but ONLY if they provide receipts for lodging and food.
For the 75K salary we make the job full time and when they are not in Columbia in session they must “clock-in” at their local office every workday. We prohibit them having ANY secondary employment while elected.
This would have the added benefit of helping the average citizen consider the possibility of running for office. Currently only the independently wealth, retirees, or those whose employer somehow stand to benefit from an employee being elected can run.
Also, would it be possible to pass a law that caps expenditures on non-statewide campaigns at 5K per cycle?
So called public service is not more than public scamming. When someone does you a favor in most cases they are looking for something in return unfortunately.
Elfego, They are getting something in return and they get it. So easy in South Carolina. The fox is guarding the hen house… Yes. Yes. The State Ethics Commission, The House Ethics Committee, is guarding the hen house. Look at the fines imposed by the Ethics Committee and Commission that are in their books. Million of dollars in fines that are not collected by the ETHICS COMMITTEES AND COMMISSION. Gross . and, WE. the tax payers are paying for their parties, their vacation in Italy,, Casa Carolina, Costa Rica, and money in their pockets and the pockets of their friends. Look it up, names and fines are in the books..
The state treasurer, Curtis Loftis makes more than that…and he sure gave his buddy 2 million… He violated that part of the ethics laws, hired a friend with whom he is associated… friend and friends of friends and all guarding the hen house. And putting money in their pockets… Elected officials need to have integrity before they get in office and after they are sworn to protect and defend the Constitution of this state and the United States. Transparency before and transparency after and more than a slogan… Transparency and integrity.
You pathetic little liar. how desperate you are.
Jake, Curtis Loftis violated the ethics laws, hired an intimate friend with whom he is associated. What will his fine be? A slap on the wrist and $2000? Million of dollars lost and unaccounted for? 220 million lost from the trust fund of retirees and million from the tax payers of this state. $2000 for million lost, in the pockets of friends and friends of friends… A fair trade, it is not! Transparency, it is not! Integrity, it is not!
You pathetic little liar. You are a sad, pathetic, lonely liar.
No, Jake… Curtis Loftis has no integrity, a long history of lies, false accusations, allegations without proof.. He has completely destroyed the STO… 3 staff members are leaving soon. The turn over of the distinguished staff of Grady Patterson has been replaced +100%, by friends and friends of friends. It speaks volume about Loftis lack of ability to lead and get along with staff and people. He is a known bully of the worst kind, with a temper beyond control, a chemical imbalance which explodes often with veins popping… He is an angry, sad. pathetic, lonely liar.
You pathetic little liar. Lonely, living to tell lies on the internet. How sad for you.
Lonely? Who is with you tonight, Curtis?
Could he be spending the night with one of young well hanged guys, orphans in Ukraine , Paul, male traveling companions? Sorry ass. Vile life.
You forgot the 14 years old in Iceland? young men with big bulge, young kids and a $20 bill? People are talking.. His staff and former staff, his ex wife, his 2C girls. They are talking and we are listening… Vile life, infected and gross
Sad little person. You must be so lonely, sad, and pathetic,
Are your parents proud of you? Do you tell them what you live for? Do you brag to your friends?
How can you, sad little person, look in the mirror? You self-hatred must be all consuming. Poor pathetic little person.
You are a sad, vulgar, pathetic little person. Useless you are.
You are living to lie and defame a good man. So sad. So much envy you must have. So much self-hatred you have.
Do you brag to your loser friends about your vulgar lies? Do you say I made up more lies today? They were whoppers…I am so proud of them!
You are so sad and pathetic.
You could pay the bastards $150,000/year and they would still steal the pennies off dead taxpayer’s eyes
Like Corruption Columbia posted, “Integrity, either ya got it or you don’t. It has nothing to do with your paycheck, but with yourself.”
Fuckin’ Cockroaches
If Diogenes had only been advanced enough to know he needed a briefcase full of cash instead of a lantern.
Cockroaches? How original. Do you have a bug problem at home or something?
Jim has coined a very fitting and appropriate analogy. Like roaches, the majority of our legislators and other elected or appointed officials are nothing more than loathsome, harmful, vermin. What’s not to agree with?
They do little for the taxpayer. Spend our money on their follies and pork, while clandestinely raising their own benefits, vacationing on our money while claiming fact finding trips. They get expense reimbursements , while accruing no expenses, better medical benefits than anyone else. The medical Association treats them like kings and charges them no co-pay!
They have it made for a part time job (3 days a week for 5 months) and have other jobs, or retirements.
They know what the job pays and benefits before they run for re-election. If they are unhappy, let them make an honest living and NOT run for re-election!
Screw um!!
Of course you are right, not original –
Generations of family have called elected and appointed officials cockroaches for over 150 years
Stories past down seem to pinpoint the term being used extensively when the carpetbaggers descended upon the South during and after the War of Northern Aggression
Now Page 2, what is original to this blog is the term Fuckin’ Cockroach, fucker
Curtis Loftis does.. He has a big bug problem. A big problem.. The bug man of West Columbia…a vicious problem with a vile, loathsome disease, contagious and with no cure.. Stay away from our children and young men ! Stay away… Better go away and the Donald Trump will say. “You are fired and stay away from my family”. How many PR young viral guys has Curtis Loftis hired and how many have left in 5 years? The answer is 7. Why ? very sordid .. Gross. and it must stop. Curtis Loftis is a danger to our young men. How many young, young kids have been exposed and exploited by him? See Ukraine and Serbian Orthodox Church.
So sad your are, pathetic little liar.
Useless life you are. Squandered you should you have. You are pathetic, sad, lonely creature, living to liable a good man.
You are pitiful.
You would be surprised at what could be unearthed in the Judicial System if the truth were known.
Heck, they would steal the yeast out of a biscuit.
… and from a yeast infection!!!!
We should change our motto from: “Dum spiro spero” to “Dum spiro ego accepturus pecuniam.”
I didn’t take Latin. Can you help me out, please. :-)
While I breathe , I will take money. LOL Hat tip to Google translate.
Thanks, Taz!!!!
There’s nothing you can do.It’s always been that way,and it always will.This is America.
It will stay that way, if the State Ethics Commission, the senate ethics committee and the legislative ethics committee do not enforce the fines… Catch me if you can or if you want… And then when you issue a fine, I will do as I please and ignore the imposed fine… What a joke.. The ethics committees and commission are meaningless. Protecting the hen house. With that in mind , why would anyone be scared of the Ethics Committees and Commission? At the expense of the tax payers… The legislators know this, the senators know this , the elected officials of this State know this… Million of dollars in fines are not collected. Corruption is virulent in this State. Reforms are needed now. Enforce the laws and the fines..
Catch, you are correct… Did not Bobby Harrell say that he will not pay the fines? So what is next? Prison time for him? What power will enforce his fine ? Meaningless and powerless House Ethics committee?
Flash news. The house ethics committee gives Bobby Harrell more time to pay his $100,000 fine? It will not be long till the self policing committee forget about the fine and let it sit on their book like so many before . Million of unpaid fines.. Let’s hope that Donald Trump is informed of the virulent corruption of elected officials in S.C. Bobby Harrell, Curtis Loftis, MacMasters, ….. Too easy to ignore the laws, too easy to forget to mention $ gained illegally . Too easy since the fines are not enforced!
Ah, Donald Trump! So many, if not all of South Carolinians identify with his very difficult start in life and his business, with a small loan of one million dollars, followed by 300 million in inheritance from Daddy.. Yes, indeed a very difficult start.. LOL
Donald is just like you and me… Let’s vote for him!
I doubt anyone been around for over two terms is clean. Power brings corruption and probably the only answer is term limits but even then those in power will learn how to manipulate the system. Just like those who leave join a law firm,become lobbyist are hired in other forms to use the system and contact old constituents or those they appoint to something.
Elfego, crappy people do crappy thing. The voters must be aware of crappy people before the elections for crappy people will be crappy after the elections. Crappy Loftis, exposed as a “FRAUDSTER” in 2004 by Serbia Orthodox Church and by his sweet ex wife, does crappy things. Let us hope that the legislative oversights committee reviewing state agencies will ask why he paid his attorneys out of the control of the STO books, why he signed a 10 year contract with the same bank that lost million , why transactions are not accounted for, why it is so difficult to record transactions on the State computers and books. And , ” it is difficult because the Bank of New York/ Mellon is big” and: ” we are working on it” are not good answers. Not acceptable answers. Transparency and integrity needed here.
How desperate you are , you pitiful little liar.
Jake, Curtis Loftis must admit his mistakes , stand up to his errors since he made many…( violence against women, bashing of gay men, bashing of black men, bashing the governor, bashing journalists, bashing senators, legislators and more)..and pay his fine and be removed from office. Since he is not qualified to serve on the Investment Commission, a qualified person with the intellect and degrees in finance must be appointed, just as the governor and the comptroller general have done. The tax payers and their money must be protected. Seems logical and urgent.
You pathetic little liar.
Jake = Curtee. Please, do tell where the lies are. You know that toserve, above is telling the truth. You are a pathetic little liar. you are a hateful ,pitiful ,small person. What a pathetic little liar you are. Sad for you. Jake tell the truth…
Sad little soul. How pathetic your life…living to liable and defame a good man. So sad. So pathetic. So sad you are.
Yeh.. Loftis is not qualified to serve on the Investment Commission since he lacks the knowledge (a high school degree from BC and an associate degree(?) at USC?) do not match the knowledge of the members of the Commission.. The entire senate of South Carolina voted against him in this role and it is expected that the House body will follow its lead and vote to appoint a person with the proper qualifications, able to serve the people of S. C. with integrity. It can’t be soon enough for taxpayers and retirees.
You hateful, pitiful, small person. What a pathetic little liar you are. Sad for you.
Meanwhile, a Russian jetliner has crashed in the area of Egypt, killing all 224 passengers. Reports are surfacing that ISIS or one of their subsidiaries are claiming responsibility, with one video purporting to show the airliner as it is hit by a missile.
Chances appear high that the missle used to bring it down may have been one of our gifts to Islamic “rebels” in the region, according to some. If so, Lindsey-poo and McCain, along with 0bama, should be made to apologize to surviving family members in person.
Maybe our Navy shot it down like the civilian Iranian jetliner.
In the brief video I saw, the camera was staying trained on the jet for a few seconds as though expecting it, before the explosion on the plane. Voices in the background sounded “Middle-Eastern”.
“Reforms must also be accompanied by real consequences for elected officials who break the law – even just a little, even just once. Public corruption will never be rooted out if tough new laws included slaps on the wrist for violators.
Betrayal of the public trust should be met with jail time – and lifetime bans on seeking or holding elective office in the future.”
I 100% agree with this!!!!
“Reforms must be accompanied by real consequences” and the fines must be collected. Look at the pages of the senate ethics committee, the legislative ethics committee and the State Ethics Commission. All three ethics have million of not collected fines. Hell, one guy has a fine of $ 200,000! on the State ethics Commission. See their websites.. Names and fines are there! Good grief! Create a collecting agency and enforce the fines…
The powerful laugh at you for thinking you can tame them. You think they care what you think. You think what they do is illegal but in fact they have written the laws such that they are not guilty of breaking the law.
They throw you red meat like abortion and gun control and Bengazi and Black Lives Matter because it keep you concentrated on those issues and not them issues that really matter.
They have stolen more than you can ever imagine. And please know this—with rare exception you don’t know their name. Most of the politicians mentioned today are not bad guys—they are just sacrifices given to the masses by the rich and powerful .
Follow the big money, the state’s money, and you will clean up government. Your people are shooting at the small fish. Follow the big money. Anything else is waste of time.
Hell, why not? For all too many of them, their “real jobs” are shams to begin with. The get clients and plumb deals funneled to them for going along to get along. They get the funnel stopped up bigtime when they forget to go along, even for a little bit.
Make that shit illegal. Hold them all accountable for staying honest. Close every loophole there is on such accountability.
It could sure weed out the worst of ’em. They would not know how to function in such a system.
Trikki Nikki’s hopes for a VP slot are slowly going poof in the wind just like her popularity has here.
No rants from GT or pogo on this one. Hmmmmm. No crap about David Wren, lawsuit, 650 bucks, bla bla bla.
btw, David Wren works for CP&C now.
Funny how that works.
Just as a side-note, I notice Kenny Bigguns being mentioned prominently. Let’s hope he sues me now, for mentioning that.
One of the ways the cockroaches keep you from speaking up and speaking out is intimidation lawsuits, and the trolls who use them in an attempt to instil fear in your heart.
This audit by the Post and Courier are a prime example of why term limits are necessary.
Wilbur Hayes, I agree but with term limits we must have ethics laws clearly written, an Ethics Commission with members not appointed by the governor, a common ethics commission which covers senators, legislators and elected officials. The Ethics Commission must be independent from political influence, and be able to enforce the laws and collect the fines. All appointed members to the Ethics Commission must be qualified with solid integrity and with a proven record of following the laws. Actions have consequences. Now, breaking the laws and putting money in your pockets is a very popular political game. No consequences for the crook… Is this too difficult to do? South Carolina can do better than that. There are still true public servants willing to do right by the people that elected them to office. The voters must know better and learn to see through worthless slogans such as transparency, no tax increases ever, for any purpose! Yes, we, the voters are as much to blame since we elect and re-elect the crooks even after proven ethics violations. Mark Sanford is the best example.
Never serve as a lobbyist? Now serving public office should permanently restrict a persons career options? Never heard of such an absurd forfeiture of individual liberty. Put the bong away, heir diktator.
Jean Toal still walks among us. Corruption is still alive and well in the Judiciary also.
The USUAL SUSPECTS (other than the Loftis haters) continue to avoid this comment thread like the plague.
That should tell us something, right there. Too easy for them to reveal themselves on here as the status-quo-GOP-RINO-loving faux-conservative frauds that they are.
That is why a handful of establishment lackeys hate Loftis. He doesn’t care what the establishment thinks or does, he is going to keep fighting them and they hate him for that. I say more power to anyone that stands up to the establishment SOBs.
What B.S.!!!! Loftis has become one of the most egregious insiders ever, taking advantage of any crack he can widen. This guy is ripping us off like we have never been ripped off. Look at the $2 million he shuffled to his personal attorney outside the state books! Open your eyes to one of the most gifted ripper-offers we have seen in government.
Loftis is part of the establishment and drinks at the teats of government . His appetite is huge and he knows that if he screams like a blooming idiot , he will get his vile ways and more money in his pockets and the pockets of his friends , friends of friends. Loftis is an expert at pay to play… vacations in the Casa Carolina in Italy owned by Ed Mcmullen is one example .. The bugman of West Columbia is scared to lose the best job he ever had! He got elected by a fluke and he knows it. It will never happen again. And to : The buzzman, and to: Mitchell, get with it and stop looking like stupid, delinquent fools. If Loftis does not like his position, then he should leave as soon as possible like NOW. Good riddance! Hypocrite!
Poor, pathetic little liar. How sad to be you.
Spending your life to libel and defame another. No matter what the reason, your mission is sad and it decays your putrid soul with every lying post.
Poor pathetic little liar. Committing your life to deceiving. Committing your life to lying.
So sad to be you.
“….So we ask again: Who will stand up to this? And how?…..”
Wil…..all war fare is based upon deception. Maybe you do not realize how a person is standing up.
Wil…..if we have satellites that can see a “heat flare” over the Sinai desert from a jet at 31K feet, do you not think that patterns of 9K lobby payments can be seen…? 9k is a flare to get everyone to forget about 900 Million to BOEING and jack squat to Century Aluminum ….!
We wonder where the Center for Public Integrity has their trash hauled too…….?