The Capital Cafe'

NO BIG SURPRISE

2006-02-02T07:00:00.000-05:00

Today, Fifth Circuit Solicitor Barney Giese made it official that he is what many of us have known all along, a Democrat.

There is nothing wrong with being a democrat mind you, after all, this is Sol Blatt talking. But, I am sure that many Republicans are relieved to have this man leave their party.

Something surprising to me however, is how "diplomatic" the State GOP is being about the whole thing. Barney has left them only about 60 days to find a candidate and all Katon Dawson can say is "It’s disappointing and unfortunate...His neutrality in running the office and lack of close involvement in GOP circles “caused some heartaches and complaints,” but it is in keeping with the traditional political profile of prosecutors.” WHAT!

Again the State GOP just doesn't get it.

One of their guys just jumped ship and that's all Scotty, Ragley and Katon can come up with? Republicans should be outraged that their leadership has allowed Giese to get off so light. The job of the Party Chairman is not to be diplomatic, it is to be partisan, bitterly partisan. His job is to attack the opposing party and elect candidates from his own party. Dawson should have cut Barney a new one, but he didn't.

The question that should be asked now is, Why?

Since Dawson and Giese go back a while, maybe the State GOP won't look for a candidate. Maybe they will endorse Barney.

Everyday, the SC GOP is becoming more like a box of chocolates, you never know what your gonna get.

South Carolina...Last Again

2006-01-17T21:43:00.000-05:00

Once again, our fair state has come up on the short end of the national stick.

The Standardized Comparison and Uniform Measure of Balanced Advice in Government (SCUMBAG), the organization which determines the quality of political consultants in America today released its annual study which ranks South Carolina 52nd in the nation on its quality of political consultants. Puerto Rico ranked 50th and Guam ranked 51st.

The study was released on the heels of a story that appeared in The Washington Post's blog entitled "Palmetto State Powerbrokers."

The study points out that the political consulting skills in South Carolina are "minimally adequate" as compared to other states.

"I would equate most of South Carolina's consultants' political prowess and ability to sufficiently advise candidates for public office to the ability of the Hampton County (SC) schools to produce graduates who will become honor students at Harvard or Yale," said I.P. Freely, Director of SCUMBAG. "There is a political corridor of shame and it runs right through Columbia. This is not to say that all of South Carolina's political consultants are performing below national standards."

It is expected that businessman John Rainey and local PR executive Bud Ferillo will unveil plans today to produce a full length documentary on the subject.

What A Load of Crap

2006-01-17T17:52:00.000-05:00

The Washington Post's Blog ran a story about the "Palmetto State Powerbrokers" and in doing so, have shown that their investigative skills as journalists is somewhat lacking.

In this Brothers Grimm-like fairy tale, Moe, Larry and Curly have implied that all of the potential GOP contenders for President in 2008, including John McCain, have "come a courtin."

For those of you who live in fantasyland and believe this hogwash, let me remind you of a few things. How about these quotes to begin with...

"If he enters the race, he'll bring more baggage into South Carolina than Delta Airlines," said Heath Thompson, Bush's state campaign director in 2000." -The State, 2005 on John McCain

Consultant Warren Tompkins, who has close ties to the Bush White House, says he could back anybody but McCain. "He's always first out of the box to criticize the president." -The State, 2005

These are also the same yahoos who distributed flyers on the Sunday before the 2000 primary to local churches calling McCain's wife a drug addict and saying that his daughter Bridget, who was adopted from Mother Theresa's orphanage, was his illegitimate, black daughter.

Oh yeah. I'm sure ole' McCain is willing to let bygones be bygones. Whatever. To McCain, those guys might as well be the Viet Cong. In addition, I do not think that the SC Forbes network brings much more to the deal.

The Palmetto State Powerbrokers...What a load of crap!

Here They Go Again...

2006-01-16T11:41:00.000-05:00

Someone please inform the "Brain Trust" at the SCGOP that a very basic rule in politics is that you do not attack your opponent while he is in the process of self-destructing (ie. Tommy Moore). In today's Greenville News, there is an article regarding the fact that Moore received $4,000 dollars more from the Democratic Party than is allowed by law and must give the excess money to the Children's Trust Fund. And of course, Katon Dawson had to chime in with, what I am sure he thought, was a clever, little quip.

Hey, lets give the guy some free ink! Lets give Tommy Moore some credibility. Since we have nothing else to do today except help our Executive Director, who is a Lieutenant in the SC State Guard, coordinate an attack on Jake's Landing with the Irmo Navy and Boy Scout Troop 12, lets attack the democrats on an issue that all of us have been guilty of at sometime or another.

A little advice. Since we are the majority party and we control the debate, ignore Tommy Moore. Ignore Frank Willis. Ignore Robert Barber. All you are doing is giving the appearance that the GOP is worried about what they do.

Since all of you at the State GOP stink at going after Democrats, stick to what you do best and find some people in your own party to beat up.

How Sad

2006-01-06T08:48:00.000-05:00

Well, my little experiment proved my hypothesis. What was it? I am so glad you asked.

In my years in politics, I have always maintained that political operatives, hacks, whores, whatever you want to call them, are shallow. They do not care about promoting or advancing the philosophy of the party they have chosen to align themselves with. They are primarily concerned with shameless self-promotion and launching assaults against those who would prove more valuable as allies rather than as adversaries. I have admittedly, at times, been guilty of this as well.

My last two posts on this blog, have been geared more toward "typical blog banter." By this, I mean that I have written things that were more gossip-like and personal in nature than issues oriented. One comment even chastised me for not "holding us to a higher standard" as I had promised.

The thing that I found interesting, and proves my point, is that I have had more visits to The Cafe' and more comments given over my last two posts than almost the last five posts combined. This is truly sad. Why? Because we would rather read and respond to, sophomoric personal attacks against other people than hold a substantive debate on the issues.

You may say, "Well, operatives are not supposed to be about furthering the agenda of a party. Their job is to further the agenda of the particular client who is writing them a check." If this is your line of thinking, you are very misguided and are a prime example of why our state has very little chance of ever reaching the true potential I know it can.

I became involved in the political process because I thought that my party had the best ideas on how to make our state and our country a better place. I wanted to help promote my party's ideals and philosophy to make that a reality. And sometimes your party deviates from the philosophy that attracted you to it. That, however, is another discussion for another time. Nevertheless, furthering your party's agenda or your own personal political philosophy, may require you to work with people you do not like. Sometimes you might have to put aside your personal feelings to achieve the greater goal.

Is that naive? Maybe. But just because you may consider that line of thinking naive doesn't mean that it isn't right.

Think about that the next time you crawl out of the gutter that you have pulled South Carolina politics into.

Get A Life...

2006-01-05T06:15:00.000-05:00

I don't know how or why it started and quite frankly, I don't care, but this fetish that Paul Adams (author of Queer as Folks) seems to have concerning Will Folks is just plain bizarre.

This obsession is unhealthy. Will Folks this. Will Folks that. Will's got an imaginary office for his imaginary consulting firm (much like Mr. Adams' imaginary political connections that he lists on his imaginary political resume). Its all he can talk about. But, I think I now understand why he named his blog as he did;)

Double up on your medication my friend, lighten up and get a life!

2006 Wish List

2006-01-02T22:33:00.000-05:00

Over New Year's and after several "dirty cokes", we at the Capital Cafe' came up with our Wish List for 2006.

It is our sincerest hope...

- That Rod Shealy, Jr. will let everyone know his due date and what he plans on naming it if it is a boy or a girl.

- That someone will be kind enough to purchase Terry Sullivan a spine and a membership in the Hair Club for Men.

- That Rick Quinn would realize that he has maxed out his support at The Back Porch and The Clubhouse and that he needs to start campaigning elsewhere.

- That the State GOP would stop letting nerdy, little kids run the party and hire some decent looking leg like were there when Henry ran the show. Their "hottie" criteria for female employees has been lacking to say the least.

- That Tony Denny would just shut up for 10 minutes and listen.

- That Mark Hammond would get a clue. I know Ed, I don't know how he won either.

- That we could understand why a former Miss South Carolina would go to work for Robert "I've never seen an all-you-can eat buffet I didn't like" Cahaly. What was she thinking?

- That Laurin Manning would want to have her way with me. I mean leather, chains, whips, the whole bit.

- That Tommy Windsor would decide what party he is in and admit that he is having an affair with Gilda Cobb-Hunter.

- That Lobbyist-Principals/Lobbying Firms who hire people based on the fact that they have been active in the Republican Party and may have some GOP connections, would realize that just because someone has been involved in the party does not mean that they are any good at being a lobbyist.

Happy New Year!!!

The Politics Of Ego

2005-12-29T11:26:00.000-05:00

Here at the Capital Cafe, we are beginning a series on "The Politics Of Ego." It is the story of Mike, a recent college graduate just starting out in life and it will highlight some of his adventures in the world of South Carolina politics. It is a political soap opera of sorts, created to, not only entertain but, remind us of what kind of dopes are actually trolling around the political sub-culture of our fair state.

Mike's best friend in college, Scotty, dabbled in politics. It started when Scotty joined College Republicans. The main reason he joined was not because he was interested in the GOP but so that he could get some quality face time with a hot little Zeta named Amy. Scotty had put up a yard sign or two and made some phone calls for some candidates and even got a job as a page at the State House.

Mike is just a regular, non-political guy sitting at his desk one afternoon when his phone rings. Its his buddy, Scotty, who invites Mike to attend a political fundraiser with him that night. Mike says, "Man, I don't want to go to a political fundraiser with a bunch of old people." Scotty says, "There will be plenty of hot, college girls working the event and free liquor. Trust me. It will be fun" With nothing more enticing planned for the evening, Mike bites and tells him, "OK."

Mike gets there and heads straight for the bar. Mike is standing there, sipping on a Makers and Ginger and chatting with Scotty about the blond girl with "big eyes" wearing the really short mini skirt, when suddenly, from out of nowhere, a young, over-eager and naive political operative appears. He is proudly sporting his candidate's lapel sticker on the well-worn navy blazer that his Mom and Dad bought for him during his senior year in high school. And then, with the enthusiasm of virgin blogger immersed in Laurin Manning's hard drive, he introduces himself. "Hi, my name is Kerry Mulligan and I work for Greg Brady who is running for (insert insignificant political office here). Somewhat taken aback, Mike is polite and introduces himself and then utters the ten little words that he will soon regret..."So Kerry, how long have you been involved in politics?" After that, the political event that Mike is attending, primarily for the free alcohol and eye candy, becomes a living hell.

Kerry has now been given the opening that all young political junkies live for. The chance to tell Mike and anyone within earshot, how important and politically connected he is.

Mike, longing for a refill from the bar, listens to Kerry spew his resume' and sales pitch for his candidate for the next 30 minutes. Kerry finally ends by giving Mike his crisp, new business card that proudly displays his title, Campaign Manager. It will be some time before Mike finds out that when a young guy calls himself the Campaign Manager, it actually means "I do all of the crap work the high-paid consultant tells me to do. I have no real decision making ability"

Semper Libertas

2005-12-28T10:21:00.000-05:00

The following is an excerpt taken from the blog free carolina by Semper Libertas:

"The Roman Senator Cato was willing to sacrifice his life to oppose the consolidation of power into one monarch, Julius Caesar. However, in South Carolina politics, such high-minded notions fly in the face of reality."

Me thinks a more appropriate description of the nature of South Carolina politics would be, "Et tu, Brute!", taken from Act III, Scene I of Julius Caesar by William Shakespeare.

That my friends is the reality of politics in the Palmetto State.

God In Public Schools

2005-12-22T10:06:00.000-05:00

As most of you know, there is serious discussion about teaching creationism in the public schools in tandem with the theory of evolution.

While I applaud the efforts of Senator Mike Fair and I fully agree with his intentions, I can't help but wonder. Do we really want to give the South Carolina Public Schools the responsibility of teaching the word of God? What if an atheist teacher was charged with instructing young people about God's creation of mankind? Do you think that they would do an adequate job?

There is currently a movement to remove references to God from almost everything from our nation's currency to the Pledge of Allegience. It is my humble opinion that teaching the gospel to our children should be left to those who believe it. If it is left in the hands of our public school teachers, some of whom reject God's teachings, it may end up doing more harm than good.

Bush Crosses The Line

2005-12-19T17:20:00.000-05:00

This time Mr. President, you have gone too far. Patriot Act or not.

There is a reason for the 4th Amendment Mr. President. Maybe you should dust off your copy of that document you swore " to preserve, protect and defend..."

There are people who are risking and giving their lives, at your direction no less, to ensure that the rights afforded to us in that document are protected. There are people from all parts of the world who are willing to sacrifice all they have to come and live in this country so that they may have the priviledge of having those same rights.

Your actions are a slap in the face to the American people, the brave men and women who defend our nation and the ideals our country is supposed to represent.

Uproar In The Blogosphere

2005-12-15T17:00:00.000-05:00

As the blogosphere exits its enigmatic sub-culture status and begins its entry into the mainstream, those of you who are blog addicts need to keep in mind that your comments are no longer innocuous, sophomoric rantings. Because the blogosphere operated under the radar screen for as long as it did, I believe that we were lulled into a false sense of security. That we could say whatever we wanted to free of consequence. That is not the case.

So whether you decide to trash Will Folks, Mark Sanford, Carroll Campbell or Frank Willis, you better think long and hard about what you choose to say. Or else you could end up in a banner headline in The State.

Capital Hill Breathes A Sigh Of Relief

2005-12-12T14:20:00.000-05:00

While Ole' Sol tends to agree with our esteemed Governor on most policy issues, I tend to watch in bewilderment at the type of tactics he employs in dealing with the General Assembly. He's been Governor for 3 years and he still ain't figured out who runs things up here. I can tell you that if I were still in the Legislature, I would have put him in his place right quick!

This is why his announcement that he does not intend to run for President in 2008 has many inside the beltway very happy.

Can you imagine his operatives calling Dennis Hastert "The Mayor of Importantville?" (No disrespect intended Mr. Folks) Or flinging porcine fecal matter all over Statuary Hall? Think what would happen if he took the same attitude with Congress that he takes with the General Assembly. He would probably hack off most of them and end up with bloody sheets and a horse head on his futon courtesy of Congressman Corleone (D, NY).

If the Governor does have aspirations to be this country's chief executive, he needs to learn an old saying my daddy taught me...You attract more flies with honey than you do with vinegar!

Showing Our Respects

2005-12-08T12:25:00.000-05:00

The Cafe' does not have a flag that it can lower to honor one of South Carolina's greatest sons. So, to show our respects to our beloved Governor, The Capital Cafe' will be closed until Monday, December 12, 2005.

May God Bless Carroll A. Campbell, Jr. and his Family.

Only A Boob...

2005-12-06T16:10:00.000-05:00

would not support Rep. Chip Limehouse's bill that would allow women to breast-feed their children in public places. As Rep. Limehouse says, "Breast-feeding is a perfectly natural thing..." It will be interesting to watch who will oppose this legislation. Since the pro-child, pro-family GOP is the majority party, it should pass with ease, right?

Why Mark Sanford Brings Out The Worst In The Republican Party

2005-12-06T09:29:00.000-05:00

Now I know that some of you are scratching your heads and asking yourselves, "What does Sol mean by saying that Mark Sanford brings out the worst in the Republican Party?" It is really quite simple.

Prior to 1994, people became active in the GOP because they wanted to advance conservative principles. Smaller government, less taxes, private enterprise. Do any of these sound familiar? Now, people become involved in the GOP because it is the majority party, not to further conservative ideology.

When the GOP was the minority party, they said that if they were in charge, things would be different. Government would run more efficiently, taxes would be lower, education would improve. Our state and nation would be a better place to live if we followed the path as proposed by the GOP. That has proven not to be the case. Government spending has increased and taxes are going up. So why is Mark Sanford responsible for bringing out the worst in the GOP? The answer is quite clear. He is advocating real conservative principles. He really wants to make government smaller and let the taxpayer keep more of their paycheck. And who opposes him? The members of the GOP establishment. Now that the GOP has control of government on both the state and federal level, they have a real opportunity to change things. To prove that their policies are better, right? Wrong.

We are finding that the current party leadership is not as dedicated to the conservative values that the party is founded upon. Their motivating factors are more about political self-preservation and maintaining the status quo. By Sanford actually stirring the conservative pot, those who are not real conservatives, bubble to the top and show their true colors. We have all heard the term "RINOs" (Republicans In Name Only). In my experience and based upon what is happening in our state and nation, the terms Republican and Conservative are not synonymous. I care more about whether or not someone is conservative than I do if they are a Republican.

By Sanford forcing a debate about applying conservative principles to governing, we are seeing who the real conservatives are.

Layoff Will and Ashley

2005-12-05T14:31:00.000-05:00

There is not a day that goes by that I do not read someone's blog (specifically those of in-state political wannabes) that there is not some type of gratuitous jab at the misfortune of Ashley Smith and Will Folks. They even create blogs derived from the subject. The thing that bothers me most is that it is on blogs whose authors claim to be "southern this or southern that."

Let me assure you, that there is nothing southern about poking fun or making light of other peoples misfortunes or personal tragedies. The south is supposed to epitomize genteelness and good manners. These remarks are the polar opposite of both of these southern characteristics.

Yes, these incidents make for lively discussion and humorous banter, but that does not make it right. We all have personal struggles that we deal with and I am convinced that those who continue to joke about others and their problems are jealous. They cannot stand the fact that they are so insignificant in the grand scheme of things that no one gives a damn about what they do. They can only dream about having the opportunity that Will Folks has had in shaping and impacting public policy in our state. Fortunately for them, the blog was invented so that they may have the opportunity to revel in their own self importance.

State GOP Suffers From Bi-Polar Disorder

2005-12-01T18:55:00.000-05:00

In a recent Free Times story about our kick ass Attorney General Henry McMaster, Katon Dawson was quoted as saying the following, "He has put partisan politics aside and has done a good job representing all of South Carolina. Henry didn't go to mark time. He went to get something done. And he's taken the [AG's] office to a new level of responsibility."

Ole' Scotty Maleryck and the rest of the SCGOP brain trust need to sit down with their Chairman and remind him that you're not supposed to put partisan politics aside. Ever. Even if it is in the best interest of the people of the State of South Carolina. Remember how the SCGOP jumped all over Lindsey Graham for "putting partisan politics aside?" These are the same guys who, at every opportunity, try to cut John McCain a new one for doing the same thing.

Now, I don't always agree with Lindsey and McCain, but the SCGOP wiz kids need to make up their minds (no matter how small). I suggest that y'all stop breaking your pills in half. Either putting partisan politics aside is good or its not.

I know it irked the hell out of Katon to have to say something complimentary about Henry. In fact, he was probably so upset, I bet he didn't sell a single bottle of winshield-washer fluid the rest of the day. Katon's comments are obviously a very half-hearted attempt to say something nice about a man he can't stand and will screw over the first chance he gets.

Interesting side note: In spell check, it suggests replacing Katon with Satan. Too Funny!

Do I Really Want To Know?

2005-12-01T11:42:00.000-05:00

What about Sunny Phillips makes her crunchy?

SC shows its smarts again

2005-11-30T17:15:00.000-05:00

Who is the genius that came up with the idea of placing Scott Maleryck in a special state guard unit whose job is to " begin work immediately and concentrate on telling officials in communities large and small across the state what the 1,500 volunteers in their organization can do."

As Executive Director of the SC GOP, he has a hard enough time telling the people of the state what the Republican Party can do. I am confident that he will be as effective in his new, volunteer role as he is in his current paid one.

Upside- He gets to wear camoflauge and play army without actually having to place himself in harms way.
Downside- He can't blame the screw ups of the State Guard on the Democrats.

What's next? Word is Jay W. Ragley is being placed in charge of latrine inspections.

Hey Y'all!

2005-11-30T10:34:00.001-05:00

Goodness Gracious! All this new fangled technology is confusing to me. I found out about this blog thing and thought to myself, "Sol, what a way to let everybody know whatchya thinkin'!" So, if I mess something up, y'all need to be patient with me.

I've been around South Carolina Politics a long time, but I just can't figure out what's happening to our fine state. We got a bunch of kids running this operation and its going to hell in a handbasket. All these Republicans who have been complaining about how this state has been run are now in charge of everything and have been for 10 years. What the hell have they done? Not much that I can see. They seem more interested in beating up each other than they do in working for the people. The Democrats ain't no better.

I hope that this little part of the world wide web might help us in solving some of these dilemmas and while doing so ...we might just have us a little fun! Gossip, lies and half-truths welcome!

So, y'all have at it!