*Action Item* Dastardly Doings in Columbia

This is what the liberty movement is all about, citizens letting their representatives know what they want. IF YOU POSSIBLY CAN, please go to Columbia next Wednesday morning, and contact your representative this week!!!
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From Talbert Black Jr.
Dear Friend of South Carolina,

First, the Senate sub-committee hearing on H3047 is scheduled for Wednesday, May 5 at 9:30 a.m. in room 308 of the Gressette building.

We need you to pack the room… standing room only! You need to be there! It is likely that this bill will be voted down at this hearing. But, we need to make sure the members of this subcommittee and the rest of the Senate know that we will not give up on this bill. They need to know that we are watching.

Next, an apology to Senator Cromer and Senator Shane Martin. They were absent on Thursday, the day of the motion to recall H3047. The Senate journal for Thursday did not show them excused and absent for the day. However, after being alerted that they were absent that day, I checked the journal entries for Tuesday and Wednesday. The entry for these days show that they were excused for Thursday. I am still learning how to navigate through the journals and didn’t realize that a Senator could be recorded in advance for being absent in the future.

The Garnet Spy has picked up our video montage of the debate. Please follow this link and give him some traffic as a way of saying thanks! If you haven’t yet, you need to see this video montage showing Senators McConnell, Larry Martin, and Knotts leading the fight to kill H3047. H3047 is the bill that will require the Senate and House to record how each representative votes on every law they pass. Currently, less than 25% of all their votes are recorded!

Then you will see why you are needed at the subcommittee hearing, scheduled for Wednesday, May 5 at 9:30 a.m. in room 308 of the Gressette building. Again, my sincere apology goes out to Shane Martin and Ronnie Cromer!

Here is a list of “sponsors” of the bill who did not stand up with Davis and Peeler. Three were recorded as absent that day.

Cromer (was absent) – CromerR@scsenate.org
Massey – ShaneMassey@scsenate.org
Bryant – BryantK@scsenate.org
Fair – FairM@scsenate.org
Ryberg – SLC@scsenate.org
Hayes – set@scsenate.org
Campbell (was absent) – PaulCampbell@scsenate.org
Mulvaney – MulvaneyM@scsenate.org
Rose – MikeRose@scsenate.org
Rankin – LR@scsenate.org
Courson – EDU@scsenate.org
Thomas – SBI@scsenate.org
Alexander – SGE@scsenate.org
Cleary – ClearyR@scsenate.org
Bright – LeeBright@scsenate.org
Campsen – Campsen@scsenate.org
Shoopman – ShoopmanP@scsenate.org
S. Martin (was absent) – ShaneMartin@scsenate.org
Sheheen – VS@scsenate.org
Elliott – DE@scsenate.org
Lourie – JBL@scsenate.org

Thanks for all you are doing to defend liberty and freedom in South Carolina! Please call your Senator and tell him to support H3047 and to support a recall of the bill from committee!

You can find your Senator and his contact information by clicking here and entering your zip code.

Best regards,
Talbert Black, Jr.

April 29, 2010   Posted in: State

2 Responses

  1. Karen Martin - April 29, 2010

    Well I emailed my Senator Lee Bright this
    “Senator Bright, I’m a voter in your district. I’m also a precinct delegate for my precinct. And I am the organizer of the Spartanburg Tea Party. And I work 10-15 hours a week as a volunteer on a campaign in the Upstate.

    Please tell me why you, as a sponsor of H3047, did not support Senators Davis and Peeler last Thursday as they tried to recall this bill.

    Transparency is a baseline of voter confidence in a representative, in these times there are few issues that matter more to a voter, and I expect it to be a number one priority with my representative. I want my representative to fight on every level, at every opportunity to pass bills like H3047.

    Thanks, I look forward to your response,”

    and received this response:
    Your outrage is misplaced . I was prepared to ask for the roll call when Senator Davis withdrew his request for recall. This was done against my wishes. Feel free to discuss this with Senator Davis! I have done my best to protect tax payers and will continue to do so. If you will talk with many folks in our movement you will discover you are attacking someone who is fighting the good fight in Columbia.

    so hmmmmm … I emailed Senator Davis and have not heard back yet. but it is good to have this dialogue with your representatives, so GO TO IT!

  2. Karen Martin - April 29, 2010

    and as follow up, here is the reply from Senator Davis:

    Thanks for your passion on this issue. You obviously share my belief that a representative democracy cannot, by definition, properly function if the governed are not able to hold accountable those who govern on their behalf. And you are right to be frustrated that that H 3047 has not to date had much traction in the Senate — especially when an essentially identical bills in the Senate has 23 co-sponsors. The sad reality is that many legislators will sponsor a bill because they know they are popular with their constituents, and then will proceed to do everything they can to derail the bill behind the scenes. And that certainly is the case with S 11 (the companion bill to H 3047). That said, the senators you copied with the email below — Shane Martin, Mike Fair, Phil Shoopman and Lee Bright — are true believers when it comes to increasing transparency and accountability. They strongly supported me when I made the recall motion and, I am positive, would have voted to have it recalled. I made the decision to withdraw my motion after I received assurances from Senate leadership — from both Republican and Democratic leaders — that H 3047 would receive a fair subcommittee hearing next week and that, if it didn’t, we’d be right back on the Senate floor with another pending recall motion. In no way did I feel abandoned by my allies in this matter; they had my back 100 percent. In any event, it is time to move onward from here and focus on next week’s subcommittee meeting. I am glad to hear that you and other reformers will be there. Your presence makes a big difference!

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