Nikki Haley for South Carolina Governor

The House of Representatives today voted down a Haley Amendment to the budget that would have required three days between the presentation of the final budget and the House voting on it.

The budget, hundreds of pages long and spending 5 billion taxpayer dollars, is far too large for House Members to know what they are voting for in mere hours.  Three days would give every legislator – and every taxpayer – the opportunity to understand exactly what those $5 billion are going to.

Yet somehow, the House rejected the waiting period.

How can we ever have a working government for South Carolina if our legislators refuse to open up the process in which they spend our money?

The answer is we can’t.  Below is the roll call vote on Nikki’s amendment.  The ‘Yes’ votes below (those highlighted) are those who voted to keep the majority of the legislators – and worse, the people of this state – in the dark about how your money is spent.

After making other cuts, SC lawmakers vote to keep $10M loan to PGA tournament in state budget
By Seanna Adcox

COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) – South Carolina legislators voted Wednesday to keep a $10 million loan to the state’s only PGA tournament in the state budget.

The House voted 69-43 to loan the money if the Heritage golf tournament on Hilton Head Island can’t find a sponsor to replace Verizon, which says this is its final year as sponsor. If needed, the loan would come from the state’s insurance reserve fund.

Opponents said it didn’t make sense in a year of deep cuts to services, including layoffs of teachers, state law enforcement, public defenders and Juvenile Justice workers, as well as possible cuts to services for the disabled.

Rep. Nikki Haley led an effort to remove the loan from the state’s $5 billion spending plan — which is down from $7 billion two years ago.

“In a budget year like this, they raided the insurance trust fund — a fund that’s meant to protect consumers after hurricanes and natural disasters — to lend money to a golf tournament. That is so far removed from what our taxpayers want,” said the Lexington Republican.

She criticized federal bailouts of banks and car companies, adding, “Now, we’re going to bail out golf courses. When’s it going to stop?” She asked whether South Carolina would next lend money to steeplechase races. …

Click here to read this story in full.

Friends,

Yesterday we received some incredibly exciting news – former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney has endorsed our campaign for Governor.

“Ann and I got to know Nikki Haley during my campaign for president and came away enormously impressed with her as a person of character and as the spokesperson for a new generation of leadership for South Carolina,” Governor Romney said. “She has a proven conservative record of fighting wasteful spending and advocating for smaller, more efficient government. I’m honored to call her my friend and prouder still to endorse her campaign for governor.”

Governor Romney is a national leader and one of the most successful businessmen of his generation, and I’m honored to receive his support. He knows how to create jobs and turn the economy, and his support and advice will be invaluable over the months and years ahead as we do everything we can to put South Carolinians back to work.

The momentum for our campaign is continuing to grow and yesterday is yet another example of the exciting news we are getting day in-and-day out. I am so proud of the campaign we have run, how far we have come in the relatively short time we have been at this, and the prospects for all of us as we approach the primary on June 8th.

And we need your continued support to get our message of pro-business, good government reform to as many voters as possible. Would you donate, put a bumper sticker on your car, and put a yard sign in your yard?

Thank you again for all you have done for this campaign. Together, we can and will change South Carolina forever.

My very best,

Nikki
P.S. – We need your continued help to spread our message. So please click here to request a bumper sticker, here for a yard sign, and here to make a contribution.

Today, Representative Nikki Haley received the endorsement of former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney, who praised her efforts to fight wasteful government spending and singled her out as part of a “new generation of leadership for South Carolina.”

“Ann and I got to know Nikki Haley during my campaign for president and came away enormously impressed with her as a person of character and as the spokesperson for a new generation of leadership for South Carolina,” Governor Romney said. “She has a proven conservative record of fighting wasteful spending and advocating for smaller, more efficient government. I’m honored to call her my friend and prouder still to endorse her campaign for governor.”

Representative Haley, in turn, expressed her admiration for Governor Romney’s leadership and his extensive private sector experience.

“Governor Romney is a national leader and one of the most successful businessmen of his generation, and I’m honored to receive his support. He knows how to create jobs and turn the economy, and I look forward to leaning on him for support and advice as we do everything we can to put South Carolinians back to work.”

Governor Romney also announced that he will be joining Representative Haley on the campaign trail in South Carolina on April 1.

Nikki Haley Released The Following Statement On Passage Of Her Amendment To Direct More Education Dollars To Teachers And Students In The Classroom

“South Carolina has consistently ranked at the bottom of national education rankings, but it’s not because of how many dollars we spend – it’s because of how we spend those dollars. This amendment makes sure more of those dollars will go to teachers and students in the classroom, which is exactly where they belong. I’m extremely proud that we were able to enact this important change, and I thank all my colleagues who joined me today. ”

Background

House Amendment 118 to H.4657, alters the Department of Education budget so as to require 70 percent of a school district’s per pupil expenditures be spent on site. The amendment was adopted by a vote of 74-42.

###

Representative Nikki Haley Released The Following Statement On Today’s Vote To Spend Almost $200 Million In Stimulus Dollars That Have Not Yet Been Authorized By The Federal Government

“Once again, leaders in the State House have elected to turn to the federal government to solve South Carolina’s problems – except this time the situation’s even worse: the almost $200 million they spent today hasn’t even been authorized by the feds. They have actually spent money that doesn’t yet exist.”

“The House is making a promise to those dependent on the Departments of Disabilities and Juvenile Justice based on money that hasn’t been passed by Congress and hasn’t been signed by President Obama. If that money doesn’t show up – and there’s no assurance that it will – those South Carolinians will be left out in the cold. The smart thing for us to do is to go through the burn, prioritize our spending so as to take care of those needy families now, and not simply cross our fingers in hope that the Obama Administration comes through with yet another stimulus rainfall.”

Background

“For the second year in a row, S.C. lawmakers are drafting a $5.1 billion state budget uncertain whether the state will be able to tap federal money to help fill a half-billion-dollar budget hole. … The federal cash, an estimated $170 million to $200 million, is intended to extend federal stimulus health care funding through the end of the fiscal year beginning July 1. The federal money was included in a U.S. House of Representatives jobs bill but removed from the U.S. Senate version.” (John O’Connor, “Budget Panel Not Counting On Federal Money,” The State, 2/23/10)