Courtesy of Post & Courier The U.S. Justice Department has decided that it will not oppose South Carolina's redrawing of state Senate election district lines, state Senate leaders said Tuesday. The decision -- which Senate President Pro Tem Glenn McConnell said he learned from a Monday letter from Justice officials -- means that that the 46 districts may now be lawfully implemented. However, there are already plans to challenge them in court. State Democratic Party Chairman Dick … [Read more...]

More South Carolina families should be pleased with their schools' report cards this year, according to results released today from the state Department of Education. Graduation rates for the state and Lowcountry districts improved, and most districts maintained or improved their ratings from last year. "If the state is to see gains again next year, schools must maintain their laser-like focus on high school graduation -- the state's economy depends on it," state Superintendent of … [Read more...]

Republicans in the South Carolina state Senate lashed back after the U.S. Justice Department sued to stop South Carolina’s new immigration law from taking effect. The Senate GOP caucus issued a statement Wednesday accusing the federal government of failing to act on illegal immigration. That statement came after the Justice Department filed a lawsuit Monday arguing South Carolina’s new immigration law is unconstitutional, partly because it gives local law enforcement the ability to … [Read more...]

Senate President Pro Tempore and Senate Majority Leader Issue Joint Statement on U.S. Justice Department's Injunction against S.C. Immigration Law McConnell and Peeler: Federal Government Forces the States to Act on Immigration but Shoot Them Down When They Do Columbia, SC - November 2, 2011 - This week, the United States Justice Department challenged South Carolina’s new immigration law, preventing it from going into effect. The Justice Department argues that the new law preempts the … [Read more...]

Courtesy of The Post and Courier BY YVONNE WENGER Tuesday, August 30, 2011 COLUMBIA — South Carolina should turn to a five-point plan to get "fiscally fit," Senate President Pro Tem Glenn McConnell announced today. The Charleston Republican will lead a bipartisan senatorial panel in the coming months to craft a package of bills intended to change spending habits in Columbia. But wholesale changes to spending and taxation might not be politically possible next year, Burnie Maybank, … [Read more...]

State lawmakers Tuesday approved the outline of a new 7th Congressional District for South Carolina that is anchored in Horry County and includes the Pee Dee region. Competing plans had pitted Horry against Beaufort County as the anchor for the new district, created because of the state’s population growth over the last decade. However, renegade Republican state senators who had pushed a Beaufort-centered district surrendered Tuesday, endorsing the Horry district in a move they hope will … [Read more...]

The state Legislature is expected to take its final votes this week on redrawing the boundaries of the state's congressional districts, including the addition of a seventh seat. The once-in-a-decade undertaking accounts for population growth and shifts, as reported in the U.S. Census. Here are the pros and cons of dividing Berkeley, Charleston and Dorchester counties into two congressional districts and what that means locally: Pros The tri-county would gain an additional voice in … [Read more...]

COLUMBIA, S.C. — South Carolina Senate leaders are trying to rally support for a compromise version of a new map for U.S. House seats that includes a new, seventh district. Legislators expect to meet Tuesday to debate redistricting plans. Last month, the Senate rejected the version of the proposed lines the House had approved. Senate Republican leaders were then surprised when their proposal was upstaged by a plan backed by Democrats and several Republicans. Sens. Larry Martin and … [Read more...]