|
Getting your Trinity Audio player ready...
|
by WILL FOLKS
***
During her much-ballyhooed campaign kickoff event last week, South Carolina lieutenant governor Pamela Evette – one of the top “Republican” contenders in the 2026 governor’s race – issued some tough talk to “woke corporations.”
“I will stand up to the woke corporations and radical left trying to transform our state,” Evette said. “They’ll learn quickly, there’s a new sheriff in town, and she’s ready to fight.”
GOP voters who filled a packed house at Judson Mill in Greenville, S.C. – the epicenter of the Palmetto Republican monolith – responded to Evette’s statement with roars of approval. But while such full-throated affirmation is an opiate to aspiring leaders, Evette might want to consider dialing down such “anti-woke” rhetoric in the future… or, in lieu of that, looking in the mirror as she begins her “fight.”
That’s because the company Evette founded, Quality Business Solutions (QBS), has a history of embracing woke propaganda – included discredited diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) programs. Not only that, the company has previously advertised its services as a way for employers to game the system when it comes to meeting arbitrary diversity spending goals.
“Pamela Evette got rich off inflicting radical liberal DEI human resource policies and trainings on South Carolina workers,” an operative familiar with her company’s history told FITSNews.
***
Evette backers aggressively dispute that contention – arguing the 57-year-old Ohio native has had no direct involvement in her former company since she became lieutenant governor six-and-a-half years ago. According to them, the vast majority of pro-DEI rhetoric attributed to QBS came after her departure – and was the handiwork of the Arizona-based company which purchased a majority stake in QBS in early 2019.
Critics contend her husband’s ongoing involvement with the company – and his participation in the DEI push – is more than enough enough to hang the label on her candidacy.
“Without commitment to improve diversity, equity, and inclusion (#DEI) in the workplace, businesses will struggle to grow,” a January 2022 QBS post noted. “Research shows that diverse and inclusive organizations are 87% more likely to make better decisions and bring products to market 75% faster when compared to organizations that don’t focus on DEI.”
QBS did not cite any specific research in support of this assertion, yet concluded DEI “was an important thing to consider when planning your business goals for 2022.”
The previous fall, in a since-deleted post from the Myrtle Beach Area Chamber of Commerce (MBACC), QBS cited “diversity, equity and inclusion visibility as an interest and influence in candidates’ job selection” – volunteering to “help manage these processes and support the integration of new employees into your company’s workforce.”
Months earlier, the company promoted DEI research peddled by the left-leaning Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM), stating that “inclusive leadership can be assessed, coached and developed” and that the effective implementation of DEI can be “defined empirically and experientially by looking at specific inclusive leader competencies.”
In 2020, the company bragged about its expertise in helping businesses find “outside vendors to provide workshops and training on incorporating diversity.”
***
RELATED | SOUTH CAROLINA’S SHOCKINGLY DEEP DEI RABBIT HOLE
***
“Existing employees are looking to employers for inclusivity initiatives and prospective employees are seeking attractive benefits, including a diverse, inclusive workplace culture,” a post on QBS website noted. “Our HR experts can provide best practices for workplace diversity and inclusion, as well as resources and customer support to assist you every step of the way. QBS can help you update your employee handbook, learn new and improved ways to become culturally competent, and establish a more inclusive workplace for your business.”
For those of you unhip to DEI lingo, “cultural competence” is code for divisive “bias awareness” and exposure training – and has been described by the Oxford Review as a “fundamental aspect of effective diversity, equity, and inclusion strategies.”
In addition to promoting such divisive ideology, QBS appears to have profited from gaming the system – specifically by standing in as a female-owned “professional employer organization,” or PEO, for companies looking to artificially boost their “diversity spend.”
In a since-deleted 2017 post – made while Evette was still involved with the company – QBS coached businesses on how to hire them as a PEO “so that payroll dollars can count toward diversity spend.”
“The entire amount of a company’s payroll shows on paper as revenue to this PEO,” the post noted. “If the PEO is a woman- or minority-owned vendor, it is considered diversity spending. Since PEOs also often handle other key areas, such as insurance, benefits and workers’ compensation, the diversity spend continues to add up, allowing some companies to double or even triple their diversity spend simply by changing a vendor.”
“Want to learn more on how QBS can help you meet your diversity spend goals or make you more attractive to potential customers?” the pitch concluded. “Contact us today.”
Of particular interest? QBS stated its objective in facilitating such goals for these companies was “enhanc(ing) their reputation as a progressive organization.”
***
***
Evette’s husband, David Evette – who appeared alongside his wife last week as she bashed “woke corporations” – has touted DEI following his wife’s ascension to the No. 2 executive post in state government.
“We’ve been proactive in sending out a lot of webinars and training materials about how to be more inclusive, be more diverse with your workforce, and listen to your people,” Evette said in a 2020 interview. “You’ve got to take a good look. You can’t be the status quo of what you’ve done for the last year, five years, or 10 years. You’ve got to look at that.”
QBS promoted David Evette’s 2020 interview as highlighting “the importance of ongoing diversity and inclusion efforts” – while making yet another pitch for its “diversity training” services.
According to Pamela Evette’s campaign, none of these criticisms hold water because she has not been involved in any aspect of the business since shortly after she became lieutenant governor.
Evette transferred all of her QBS shares to her husband in February 2019 prior to a majority acquisition by Vensure Employer Solutions. Once this acquisition closed at the end of that month, David Evette stayed on as company president – with a focus on business development and client relationships. Oversight of all other areas of the company – including marketing and communications – were taken over by Vensure, per Evette’s campaign.
“Pamela Evette founded and grew a merit-based business, and has been clear in her beliefs — both in her time as a business owner and now as lieutenant governor — that employees seeking a job or a promotion should be judged by the quality of their work alone,” said Megan Finnern, Evette’s campaign manager. “Pamela has had no financial interest in or operational control of QBS since 2019, long before anything referenced in this story and in any of the cited claims.”
***
RELATED | PAMELA EVETTE MAKES HER CASE
***
Regarding the 2017 post, one of Evette’s former clients told FITSNews he believed Evette was “frustrated” by the woke culture at the time and was trying to help businesses which could have been adversely impacted.
“The infiltration of non-merit based quotas in business was becoming a challenge for companies like mine that were not DBEs,” said Hudson Denney, a partner at Greenville, S.C.-based Net3 Technology. “Having worked with QBS in 2013-2019, I still remember Pamela’s frustration with the hoops she and her clients had to jump through to win contracts — both with corporations and government agencies. It got so bad that after over 15 years as a woman-owned business, to stay competitive, she found it necessary to become WBE certified.”
“I know that this frustration was part of what ultimately led her to pursue public office,” Denney added. “She believes, and has always believed, that employees and businesses should be evaluated solely on the merit of their work.”
Evette’s campaign added the timing of the DEI criticisms against her was not coincidental – pointing to her official entry into the governor’s race last week.
”Honestly, and sadly, I’m not surprised that our opponents are making up stories about Pamela already,” Finnern said. “Just one week into this race, she’s thoroughly out-raised and out-worked them. Stay desperate, boys… we’re back to work!”
Along with S.C. attorney general Alan Wilson, first district U.S. congresswoman Nancy Mace and fifth district U.S. congressman Ralph Norman, Evette is one of the early frontrunners for the 2026 GOP gubernatorial nomination. The formal filing period for the office is set for next March, with voters going to the polls on June 9, 2026.
Stay tuned to FITSNews for updates on this campaign as it continues to unfold…
***
ABOUT THE AUTHOR…
Will Folks is the founding editor of the news outlet you are currently reading. Prior to founding FITSNews, he served as press secretary to the governor of South Carolina. He lives in the Midlands region of the state with his wife and eight children.
***
WANNA SOUND OFF?
Got something you’d like to say in response to one of our articles? Or an issue you’d like to address proactively? We have an open microphone policy! Submit your letter to the editor (or guest column) via email HERE. Got a tip for a story? CLICK HERE. Got a technical question or a glitch to report? CLICK HERE.
5 comments
She looks like a total air head. It is as though she was able to master a female version of the GW “Dubya” Bush blank stare. She was smiling and clapping at an Israeli state version of AIPAC kickoff a month or two ago. No doubt the Joos will be feeding her campaign lots of money for her cooperation in their incursion into SC state government.
The last time I supported for SC Governor a pretty brunette talking a good GOP conservative game I was ultimately sorely disappointed. David E’s looks scream “DEI-Loving Beta Male,” which doesnt boost my confidence in her or her candidacy. I have a few months to decide whom to throw in with–Pam or Ralph.
None of the above, aka neither.
Seriously, Will? Let me get this right. A woman builds a massive multi-billion dollar business. She has an enormously successful track record. She elevated the role of Lt. Gov. to a meaningful role while serving full-time. She succeeded- say it. Just a guess, but businesses operate in markets, clients are not all clones and alike, to be successful you have to meet a client’s need. She did it- say it. Now, you trash a successful WOMAN bc she is willing to offer herself and do the same for her state. Is there a pattern? Nikki. Is it just women who are successful that get under your skin? I would rather have a proven, successful business leader in the Governor’s office than a poser. How many other candidates can say they have made meaningful contributions? Buckle up! As a quote in the article said,
“Honestly, and sadly, I’m not surprised that our opponents are making up stories about Pamela already,” Finnern said. “Just one week into this race, she’s thoroughly out-raised and out-worked them. Stay desperate, boys… we’re back to work!”
“She elevated the role of Lt. Gov. to a meaningful role while serving full-time.”(?)
Are you serious? She was McMaster’s obedient and silent lapdog for the past eight years. She was best seen and not heard. Not what I would call a dynamic go-getter at all.
“Now, you trash a successful WOMAN bc she is willing to offer herself and do the same for her state.”
Offer herself? Seriously? In the pattern of Nikki Haley whose only real goal was promoting and expanding her brand for her own personal gain. Nikki managed to go from teetering on the edge of bankruptcy when running for Governor, to living in a million-plus dollar home in a gated community a few years later. Some people know how to play the tax-paid jobs into a lucrative career. Women are among the best at it.