County Democratic organizations in South Carolina are expressing serious reservations about   our ability to work with the new Governor and the Republican majority in the South Carolina General Assembly.  I'm afraid I have some real bad news for you. While you are expressing this doubt and expressing your continuing criticism of the powers that be, many of the Democrats in the Legislature are cutting deals for themselves and their family members instead of doing what they can for the voters of their districts.  One hundred six members of the General Assembly voted for Governor Nikki Haley’s "transparency" legislation.  Not one House member voted against the measure.  In the South Carolina Senate, thirty-three (33) Senators voted for the legislation and eleven (11) voted against the measure.  Of the 11 Senators who voted against the Governor's plan, four (4) were Republicans: Senators McConnell, Campsen, Grooms and Verdin.  The other seven NO votes (7) were Democratic Senators: Reese, Malloy, Ford, Elliott, Scott, Hutto and Pinckney.  This a bad bill for all South Carolinians-- Democrats, Republicans and Independents. And it is loaded with  self-serving deals which were specifically crafted to win over reluctant Democrats.
 
A lot of people were upset with the Governor for removing Darla Moore from the University of South Carolina Board as the Governor’s Appointee because of her tremendous financial contributions to the university.  The Governor is simply playing hardball politics; she replaced Mrs. Moore with a gentleman who made a substantial contribution to her campaign.   On the other hand, I was a little upset with Ms. Moore when I found out the two other candidates for Governor who were Democrats received substantial campaign contributions from Mrs. Moore, while I did not. Well, that's politics. To the victor go the spoils. 

Now, I need to address the following concerns which are weighing heavily on my mind.  First and foremost I am devoted to our revolutionary Civil Rights Movement, which we must keep alive in America; second, I believe that we should teach Civics to all Americans as a major curriculum in our schools. My third major concern is the failing school system that a majority of public servants continue to support, despite the fact that a whole generation of our young people are at risk and falling behind the rest of the world.
 
During the 1950’s and 60's the brave men and women who were on the front lines of the Civil Rights Movement created a chance for all of us to be transformed from a life of  poverty, despair and second class citizenship to a world in which the color of a person's skin does not keep them from realizing the promise of the American Dream. But now, we , as a community, find ourselves in a state of perpetual complacency. The original purpose of the Civil Rights Movement was to knock down doors and tear down the barriers that severely handicapped our people physically, mentally and spiritually.  Four hundred years of slavery and Jim Crowe had left our people in a really sad state-- many were even satisfied with their lot as second class citizens. What could be worse than to lose your liberty and then, to give up all hope that you would ever be free?  
In 2011, the doors are wide open for us. We can be anything we aspire and dream of; if we dream it we can attain it.  But what has happened to Dr. King's dream? --to our dream?  What happens when we become comfortable members of the middle class ourselves? What happens when we take advantage of the doors of opportunity which were opened for us by those who marched and went to jail all those decades ago? Do we remember to keep the doors open for all of the children coming behind us?  Some do. But many do not.  We have become self-centered. Our new attitude is “I’ve got mine.”  Now we are closing the doors on the masses which means we are destroying everything that African-Americans have achieved.

Brothers and Sisters, it is so easy to give back.  For example, a number of my middle class friends are members of Book Clubs where they get together to read and socialize to themselves.  Have they and their counterparts considered the millions of black students that attend failing schools who barely read at a third grade level and what they could do for them?   Why not become a tutor and help our African American students read at grade level ? You could make all the difference in the world, even if you taught a single child (or adult) to read.   Something as simple as that can be the instrument to improve the lives of our people tenfold.  I don’t care who you are, you have a responsibility to give back and try to make every African-American life a little better.  For a brief time during the 1960’s, we developed a deep love for ourselves as a race of people.  We must begin to love ourselves in this manner once again, every other ethnic group in this country already promotes this sense of “we” and not “I” and as a result we see how they benefit as a community and the result demonstrated by their cultural and financial gains.

Civics, now labeled as "Government" controls our lives on a daily basis.  As a matter of fact, from birth to death it’s the number one factor under which we live.  A first-class elected official is a good public servant that has a passion for service and the love of people.  In America now, we are encouraged to vote for looks.  The qualifying factors are the candidate’s physical appearance, not how he serves.  The main reason that I ran for Governor of South Carolina was to address our 3.8 billion dollar budget deficit. The fact that the State of South Carolina was broke and according to forecasts will be for a long time to come.
 
The only money that can liberate the State of South Carolina budget is the gaming industry-- a point I tried to convey in the 2010 gubernatorial election. Casinos, Horse Racing and video gaming would quickly create no less than 150,000 new jobs. The tax base would be expanded without having to raise anybody's taxes. The 5.2 BILLION DOLLARS in new state revenues would be enough to completely overhaul our failing school system. We would be able to grant a decent salary increase for every state and public employee  (teachers, police and firemen, health care workers, etc;) thus improving the life of every citizen in the state.

As a Senator, I have a proven record of accomplishment.   Senate District 42 which I represent, will see 35,000 new jobs created over the next five years.  This includes employment opportunities from Boeing, the new Wind Turbine facility and many related (spinoff) private-sector jobs. Yet I was blocked out as far as campaign contributions were concerned by state Democratic Party officials and the 700,000 public employees in South Carolina, who were aware of my plan,  which they rejected.  But again,that's politics. I will not be deterred by any of that. I will keep fighting for the priorities I have spoken of here.

On Saturday, March 12, 2011 there was a Vote for a Morale Budget Rally,  sponsored by a host of religious, political, civic groups, service and labor related groups. They railed against what they perceived as discretionary politically directed injustices.  The purpose of this rally was to speak out against the deep demoralizing proposed budget cuts.  The affect of the projected cuts on the delivery of services to the elderly and indigent of South Carolina are significant and in some service categories devastating.  When I heard about the rally, I said "Where were these folks last year, whewn I was the only candidate in either party to propose a timetable and a proven way to address the large budget deficit facing the State of South Carolina.
I guess the other candidates got votes because of their looks.

Conclusion: 
So when you vote, vote for a candidate with a platform that makes sense.  Make sure that the candidate has compassion and loves people-- a candidate who wants, above all else, to be a public servant.  Please remember those who fought (and sometimes died) to make voting an inalienable right for you. Your right to vote came as a result of much blood, sweat and tears.   If you want to throw it away for looks, go ahead. But like the old folks say: "Don't make your bed hard: because you are the one who has to sleep in it!"