Thursday morning’s edition of “This Week in the Senate”. We previously thought I would join Sen. Larry Grooms (R-Berkeley), but there was a scheduling conflict. This edition I joined the host President Pro Tem Sen. Glenn McConnell (R-Charleston) and Sen. Mike Rose (R-Dorchester). We spoke about deficit spending and agency (mis)interpretation of regulations.

The embedded code automatically plays, so I didn’t embed the video. click here to watch

It is now February and the Senate is on the same contested bill we began with. I’m sure you’d expect to see us working very hard on legislation to address our abysmal unemployment?
Wrong. We have spent one month of your time on a bill defining raffles. Hardly anyone is opposed to raffles for charitable purposes, yet the fear of the current legislation has allowances for casino nights that some see as a loophole to open up full casino gambling in South Carolina.
Hopefully, we’ll be able to get to bills that will address our economy like the secret ballot enabling legislation, and tort reform to name a few. Also, we’ve got some transparency legislation on the calendar which should pass soon.

Our Sputnik Moment? Really?

What’s next? Telling the American people the automobile was invented in the States?

Whoops! The President already did that during a previous address delivered in the House Chamber. (See Germany, Mr. President.)

Another fact check: If the President has his way — if he forces another “stimulus” program onto our economy, or raises taxes — this will actually be America’s Titanic Moment.

“In America, innovation does not just change our lives — it’s how we make a living,” the President noted in his State of the Union Address on January 25.

Does he mean policy entrepreneurship, or private sector entrepreneurship?

I’m going to guess that given his lack of private sector leadership experience, the latter is not what’s really on his mind.

For this American, the Apollo Project of our time would be establishing a framework to reduce our national debt by halting frivolous federal spending.

The Apollo Project of our time would entail quashing specious assertions that we can spend our way out of debt.

The Apollo Project of our time would entail no more government “pat-downs” — of our wallets.

Michael S. Smith II
Co-Founder, The Charleston Meeting