Kevin Bryant

After a short visit with 2 local talk radio stations we had our transparency rally Monday morning. A rough gestimate of 60 or so concerned taxpayers turned out at the Anderson County Courthouse steps. Considering Monday morning is the worst time you could invite working folks to a public event, we were pleased. I appreciate the public interest, but when you think about it, concerned citizens should not have to attend a public gathering to show support for open government. It ought to be given to them by default. But, as you know, the good-ole-boy system in the Palmetto State is reluctant to let sunshine on government workings.
                 
I’m sure this was encouraging to Anderson local champion, M. Cindy Wilson. Remember Andrew Jackson said “one man with courage makes a majority”. He should have said “one man or woman with courage makes a majority”. Ole Andy didn’t know M. Cindy Wilson. Councilady Wilson has been the lone voice in the wilderness for over a decade. After joining council in 2000, she simply began asking questions on behalf of her constituents. Simple questions like “where is the money going?” and “can’t we open up the workings of government for our citizens?” are all she’s ever asked. After many years of stonewalling, I’m sure most people would’ve given up. She’s been the victim of character assassinations like I’ve never seen in politics. Hundred’s of thousands of dollars have been spent in vain attempts to destroy Cindy, but she keeps coming back. Well, it appears that the membership of County Council has swung the other way. It looks like Cindy Wilson will have her sunny day in the near future. An ongoing investigative audit has been uncovering many questionable activities that would’ve never occurred under public scrutiny. Anderson County is among a few local governing bodies in South Carolina that are making voluntary commitments to opening up the process.
                        
Ya’ll know we’ve been beating this open government drum for years, and we’ve made some progress, but there’s still a long way to go. This issue will not go away. The technology is here. There’s no reason why you, the taxpayer, can’t log on to the internet and have a user friendly, searchable database to track down every cent taken out of your pocket.
                       
SC Policy Council’s Ashley Landess, Comptroller General Richard Eckstrom and myself were joined with several other elected officials. County Council members Cindy Wilson, Bob Waldrep, Tom Allen, Tommy Dunn, & Eddie Moore, Auditor Jacky Hunter, Sheriff John Skipper were here. An unscheduled visit by Lt. Andre’ Bauer was a surprise. Also, many thanks to Dan Harvell, chairman of the Anderson County Taxpayers Association, as he was instrumental in event turnout. The Anderson Independent Mail covered this event on 3 separate occasions. announcement, ediorial, coverage

A politician actually said this! John Key, Prime Minister of New Zealand gave an interesting interview in the Wall Street Journal
                   
You Can’t Spend Your Way Out of the Crisis
                           
New Zealand’s prime minister wants to give his country a competitive advantage instead.
                         
By MARY KISSEL Wellington, New Zealand
                         
These days, you have to travel far to find a national leader who is talking about market-based approaches to the global recession. All the way to the other side of the world. 

                 
“We don’t tell New Zealanders we can stop the global recession, because we can’t,” says Prime Minister John Key, leaning forward in his armchair at his office in the Beehive, the executive wing of New Zealand’s parliament. “What we do tell them is we can use this time to transform the economy to make us stronger so that when the world starts growing again we can be running faster than other countries we compete with.”
                  
That idea — growing a nation out of recession by improving productivity — puts Mr. Key and his conservative National Party at odds with Washington, Tokyo and Canberra. Those capitals are rolling out billions of dollars in stimulus packages — with taxpayers’ money — to try to prop up growth. That’s “risky,” Mr. Key says. “You’ve saddled future generations with an enormous amount of debt that then they have to repay,” he explains. “There is actually a limit to what governments can do.” Read on

This may be a once in a lifetime occurrence in the General Assembly so ya’ll may want to pay attention. I am cosponsoring a bill with my good friend, Sen. Robert Ford (D-Charleston). Many times I have butted heads with Sen. Ford. The definition of marriage, pork barrel spending, gambling, & capital punishment to name a few. Our voting records would probably show the most differences than any other two members of the Legislature. Yet, today, we’ve found an issue that we both feel passionate about; school choice.
                     
This week,  Sen. Ford introduced a bill (S. 520) that would allow parents more options in education. This bill gives a fraction of the total expenditures to a tax credit to families that are trapped in a failing school. On average, we spend over $ 11,000 per student per year on education. This bill gives a tax credit to parents that want to try a different approach for their child. Choice and competition gives students more options as well as it gives school districts incentives to improve.

              
The Washington Post printed an interesting article: What if Ty’Sheoma Bethea had a choice? “Ty’Sheoma is the young lady who sat with first lady Michelle Obama when President Obama spoke to Congress Tuesday night. She had reached the president through a letter about her school, the ceiling that leaks, the walls that shake when trains go by, the poor education it provides. She warmed his heart and ours…With choice, Ty’Sheoma’s family could evaluate a school, review the programs and the data on school performance. Ty’Sheoma could choose to attend a school that worked for her…Read the full article here