COLUMBIA, S.C. (WACH) – On this week’s Connect to the Capitol we look at a history making day in South Carolina.
Last Monday, the sate Senate voted 33-8 to oust the state treasurer out of office over a well-documented $1.8 billion accounting error.
It will now be up to the House to decide whether to have its own hearing. If at least two-thirds of its members vote against Treasurer Curtis Loftis, he will be removed from office.
Monday’s extraordinary hearing was the culmination of over two years of investigation by the Senate that began when state accountants unintentionally exaggerated money given to colleges and universities by $3.5 billion.
That led to the discovery of an account error that started a decade ago when the state was changing from one accounting system to another. If accountants couldn’t balance the entries in the two sets of books as they moved thousands of accounts with different definitions, they kept adding it to a special account year after year until it grew to $1.8 billion.
No office holder has been removed in this way since South Carolina became a state more than 200 years ago.
On Tuesday, a heated debate unfolded as lawmakers heard more than two hours of testimony on three bills that would bring gambling and casinos to South Carolina, with a focus on what’s called the “I-95 Economic and Education Stimulus Act.
The bill aims to establish the South Carolina Gaming Commission and issue casino licenses in select counties, starting with the repurposing of the long-abandoned Santee Mall in Orangeburg.
Supporters say it could spur economic development in areas like Orangeburg, which they say desperately need financial growth.
However, the proposal has faced opposition, particularly from the religious community, who argue that gambling leads to addiction and societal harm.
Governor Henry McMaster has expressed his opposition to casinos and gambling in the state.
On Wednesday, people from across the state rallied at the State House for the “Hands Around the Statehouse” rally.
A number of groups, including state lawmakers, are demanding that the General Assembly take long-overdue action by passing a hate crimes law in the state.
It’s been 10 years since the mass shooting at Mother Emanuel Church in Charleston, and South Carolina hasn’t passed hate crime legislation.
Advocates are urging the Senate Judiciary Committee to schedule a hearing and vote on the “Senator Clementa C. Pinckney Hate Crimes Act.”
Pinckney was one of nine people gunned down during a bible study at Charleston’s Mother Emanuel Church in June 2015 by avowed racist Dylann Roof.
The bill has passed in the House three times, but continues to stall in the Senate.
South Carolina is one of two states in the country without a hate crimes law on the books.
Also, Republican Congresswoman Nancy Mace is also in the spotlight after a video showing her spar with a constituent at a Lowcountry store went viral. The man in the video questioned when Mace would host another town hall, sparking what became a heated argument.
Later in the week, Mace faced criticism over the legal wrangling concerning universities and allegations of antisemitism during a town hall at a private, gated island community in her coastal South Carolina district.
The crowd of several hundred on Dataw Island was primarily friendly, with a moderator asking pre-screened questions of Mace on stage. A small group of attendees walked out after Mace talked about Jewish college students being mistreated by campus protesters, an issue that has become a flashpoint in the Trump administration’s feud with institutions of higher learning.
“I support all Jews in Israel, thank you very much,” Mace said. “They are our best friend, and Christians are in their fight with them. I support them 100%, and it says a lot about the folks walking out of here, when I’m talking about protesting Jews and religion.”
Mace has often invited confrontation, posting to her social media videos of conflicts with protesters and people who come to her events. As she drove to the Dataw Island event, she posted a video of herself on social media, waving at people gathered to protest her appearance.
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