Is Thomas Ravenel another #MeToo casualty?

At left, famous Republican socialite Thomas Ravenel (with Ashley Jacobs), of Bravo network's Southern Charm.








Will Folks (whom I interviewed for my own radio show, years ago) has just taken his life in his hands and reported some dirt on Thomas Ravenel, the Palmetto State's own reality TV star, world-class cokehead and dropper of babies into pools.

I say "taken his life in his hands" since Folks has already heard from the lawyer of our famously-litigious ex-state-treasurer, and I hope he has the money to cover the legal fees.

From Folks' blog FITSNews, here are the goods:

[Panama City Beach, FL model and real-estate agent] Ashley Perkins, 29, alleged in a series of tweets this week that Southern Charm star Thomas Ravenel – the former treasurer of South Carolina and a candidate for the U.S. Senate in 2004 and 2014 – settled a sexual assault case involving her mother two years ago.

...

It’s not immediately clear whether a law enforcement investigation into these allegations was ever initiated. In fact, it’s not immediately clear whether law enforcement was ever even notified of these allegations – which are said to have taken place in Charleston, S.C. in December of 2015. Further complicating matters, the alleged victim – a 53-year-old real estate agent who resides in Panama City Beach – reportedly signed a non-disclosure agreement during a mediation at the Belmond Charleston Place Hotel in June of 2016 barring her from discussing details of the incident.

...

Perkins’ initial accusatory tweet toward Ravenel – which included images of wrist injuries allegedly inflicted on her mom by the 55-year-old reality star – was posted on April 11, but she deleted it that same day after her mother was allegedly contacted by Ravenel’s attorneys.

The next day, however, Perkins posted the allegations (and images) again – and has since re-posted them at least ten times (and referenced them in dozens of other tweets to multiple media outlets).

Perkins told us she was upset Ravenel’s attorneys were allegedly harassing her mother over these tweets – which included hashtags that referenced Ravenel and Kathryn Dennis (his ex-girlfriend, Southern Charm co-star and the mother of his two young children).

“Thomas’ attorneys emailed my mom’s attorneys the next morning (April 12),” she told us. “My mom didn’t know what they were talking about. I told her that (the tweets) were pulled and they were. Then later, Thomas’ attorney contacted my mom’s attorney again and said that I still had hashtags up that they didn’t like. They didn’t like Kathryn Dennis and Thomas being tagged.”

That’s when Perkins decided to go forward with the story.

Read the rest of it... and if you have problems with this story, for goodness sake, sue Will Folks, intrepid ex-lover of our ex-governor, not me.

I will certainly stay on this story as long as Will can afford to!

~*~


EDIT/UPDATE - 4/24/18:
FITSNews Interview: Ashley Perkins Speaks On Thomas Ravenel Allegations
The model who launched the Southern Charm sexual assault story speaks exclusively to this news site

EDIT/UPDATE - 5/3/18:
Thomas Ravenel’s #MeToo Problem Escalates
Allegations of sexual assault against reality TV star hit the mainstream after his girlfriend gives online interview

EDIT/UPDATE - 5/8/18:
Charleston SC Police Investigating Sexual Assault Claim Against Thomas Ravenel

In South Carolina news...

In local news, it looks like South Carolina will have uniformly BAD ROADS for another year, at least.




Our roads are secondary to the election. (Aren't yours?) Our awful Governor, Nikki Haley (at left, making excuses), does NOT want to be accused of being "pro-spending" before November. If you wonder why our roads are a wreck, keep this in mind. Safety is NOT as important as Nikki's re-election, of course.

Remember, when she was elected, I pointedly asked: Can the infrastructure of this state stand four more years of total neglect?

I was dead serious, although several local readers believed I was joking. Obviously, we see that I was pretty good at fortune-telling, even without my Tarot cards.

It's even worse than we thought, according to Nikki's ex-boyfriend and one-time mentor, Will Folks at FitsNews:

Three years ago S.C. Gov. Nikki Haley‘s Transportation Department (SCDOT) ran out of money and had to stop paying contractors. The result? All paving and maintenance work in the state ground to a halt (although totally unnecessary boondoggles still got their money).

Haley got her agency out of the jam by (wait for it) requesting and receiving a $52 million bailout from the administration of U.S. President Barack Obama. Just six weeks after she approved what at the time was the largest spending plan in South Carolina history …

Gotta love those “Tea Party” Republicans, right?

Anyway … what is past is prologue, it would appear.

This week, SCDOT commissioners met to discuss the agency’s fiscal outlook … which isn’t good.

Specifically, they admitted their cash balance would be in the negative beginning later this summer – a shortfall that is expected to last for several months. In fact the cash crunch could be much deeper – and extend into 2015 – if the federal government can’t (or won’t) pay states reimbursements from the recent ice storms. [...] At a recent commission meeting, S.C. Sen. Larry Grooms asked point-blank if the agency was going to have another problem paying contractors like they did in 2011. Agency leaders claim they have a contingency plan, but the ice storms were unforeseen, and the U.S. Department of Transportation (USDOT) is already warning states that they will have to decrease payments, beginning in July.

“The trajectory for the highway account has worsened,” federal transportation undersecretary Peter Rogoff said at a hearing in Washington, D.C. earlier this month.

In fact the cash crunch may start affecting states prior to July …

SCDOT is currently run by Haley’s former college roommate. She assumed the position after the governor’s first pick, Robert St. Onge, resigned his office in disgrace earlier this year.

Ugh. Saints preserve us. This woman CAN'T MANAGE MONEY.

At left: Nikki Haley's independent opponent, attorney Tom Ervin.




Outside the local library, the well-scrubbed Tom Ervin partisans had tables all set up, taking signatures for Ervin, their Independent candidate. I usually sign all petitions for Independents to get on the ballot, since as a Green Party member, I want more parties involved in the process, in addition to the Majors. So, I joked to the well-scrubbed partisans that I was a socialist, red as they come, but if they want, I will sign.

They glared. They obviously needed signatures, because they grimly and wordlessly handed me their pen. So I signed. I told them to get rid of the governor, and they just glared some more.

So, Tom Ervin, teach your people to be NICE. Even if I AM a red, I vote strategically and have consequently voted for Ron Paul twice. My vote counts as much as anyone else's, whether I'm a red or not. Put that in your bong and smoke it.

Which brings me to say something nice (!) about the Governor. About the bong, I mean.

Nikki Haley Signs Medical Marijuana Bill Into Law:

South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley (R) signed the Medical Cannabis Therapeutic Treatment Research Act into law Monday, clearing the way for children with severe epilepsy to use cannabidiol oil (CBD), a non-psychoactive derivative of cannabis, to help reduce their seizures if recommended by a licensed physician.

The bill, which passed the Senate unanimously and cleared the House with a 92-5 vote, will also designate a new clinical trial at the Medical University of South Carolina dedicated to evaluating the effectiveness of CBD in controlling epileptic seizures.

Seven other states -- Alabama, Iowa, Kentucky, Mississippi, Tennessee, Utah and Wisconsin -- have also implemented similar CBD-only medical marijuana proposals in the past four months.

It's a start.

Mr Daisy joked that since several children have died in DSS care, Nikki figured she better do something for the children, quick. The election, remember?

The SC Department of Social Services scandal has resulted in Lillian Koller's resignation, and not a moment too soon. (Once again, I warned you about her too.)

From WLTX:

Columbia, SC (WLTX) - South Carolina Department of Social Services Director Lillian Koller has resigned amid continuing concerns about the agency that she ran.

Koller submitted her letter of resignation to Governor Nikki Haley Monday morning, and Haley accepted. In the letter, she said she felt her continued presence at the agency might be causing problems.

"It has become more and more apparent to me during the past few weeks that my being the State Director is causing a distraction and making it more difficult for DSS to continue the measureable improvements made to the Agency during my tenture that have improved the lives of citizens we serve."

She said it had been a privilege to be the director.

The resignation comes a day before state senators were to discuss a no-confidence vote on Koller.

Koller's agency had come under scrutiny over how it handled cases, including some where children died. One of those was the death of 4-year-old Robert Guinyard, a Richland County boy who died after being given back to his parents. Last week, his parents were convicted of killing the child.

In another case, also out of Richland County, DSS employees were criticized for failing to find a mother who Richland County Sheriff Leon Lott says didn't give her child the proper medical care. The coroner concluded the neglect led to the boy's death. In the wake of the incident, DSS changed an agency policy, saying it would request law enforcement help if it couldn't locate a child withing 72 hours on its own.

During a state senate committee hearing looking into allegations within the agency, concerns were also raised about the workload of DSS caseworkers.

Haley had stood by Koller through the criticism, and in a statement after the resignation, praised her work within the agency.

"Lillian Koller is a dedicated public servant and child advocate, and a wonderful and loving mother - and I am so grateful for her service to South Carolina," said Haley. "Under her leadership, DSS closed a $28 million deficit, moved more than 20,000 South Carolinians from welfare-to-work, and has done wonders to improve our foster care system, placing more South Carolina children in stable, healthy families."

Koller had been director since 2011. Amber Gillum will served as the interim director until a permanent appointment is made.

Closing deficits! Now, that's important.

Children? Safety? Roads? Our money? Not so much.

Haley Watch: Why won't Democrats attack the governor?

South Carolina's progressives continue to twist slowly, slowly, in the wind. The official state Democratic Party seems to be ... well, where are they?

There are plenty of actual rank-and-file Democratic voters, but the state party leadership seems to be too timid to actually present these voters with any real options. (It might, you know, appear RUDE or something.)

It is therefore up to conservative libertarians like Will Folks, to attack Governor Nikki Haley for being corrupt. The conservatives are left to do the work of criticizing Republicans?!?

Yesterday, FITSNews reported:

S.C. Gov. Nikki Haley says she will openly defy a two-decade-old state law which prohibits elected officials from using taxpayer resources to conduct political campaigning.

Haley has been busted violating this law on numerous occasions in the past – most notably during the aftermath of a previously undisclosed car crash that followed a campaign event in North Carolina (news of this crash was reported exclusively by FITS).

Prior to that Haley has come under fire for racking up exorbitant security costs on political trips – including fundraising trips. The governor reimbursed some (but not all) of those costs.

Now she won’t have to pay any of them.

Check out the whole thing. Read it and weep.

And while you're at it, weep over the fact that Will is 100% correct. His CONSERVATIVE blog, FITSNews, exclusively reported Haley's North Carolina car crash that occurred on our dime. No Democrats have used this incident to go after Haley hammer and tongs, as they should. Instead, we get the usual tepid, perfunctory and meek "response" quotes; the sort of half-baked, apologetic political bullshit always offered for standard publication.

In the above post, for example, we read the following boring-ass quote from SC Democratic Party spokeswoman Kristin Sosanie:

Rather than following South Carolina’s laws and behaving ethically, Nikki Haley just writes herself a new set of rules so she can continue to campaign on the taxpayer dime.

Wow, ya think?!?

Will's post has more chutzpah in one sentence, than THE REAL DEMOCRATS can muster in all of their silly, inconsequential canned-media mewling.

How about something like this: "This irresponsible, lazy, narcissistic and inexperienced LIAR is thieving from the people of South Carolina to fund her pricey, designer-clothes wardrobe; her trips to France and Germany; crashes of unauthorized cars in North Carolina; and now... she is going to use our money to keep her job for another four years. Meanwhile, the Department of Revenue is hacked, while she takes another vacation. She needs to GO. She is destroying the state."

THAT is how it's done, people.

Hey Dems, if you need me to help you out, contact my radio show. I'll be glad to write you some applause lines. Or maybe you can call Will?

Apparently, the Republicans and Green Party people are more effective at being Democrats than the Democrats are.

~*~

The Democrats have launched no genuine, full-throttle, hard-hitting ATTACKS on this ethically-challenged, opportunistic political-nightmare, who is spending our money like it is going out of style, all while advertising herself as a fiscal conservative. Voters on both sides of the political spectrum are thoroughly FED UP with her.

Where are the Democrats and why are they not taking full advantage of this sordid situation? Same place they've always been: asleep at the switch. As always. As usual.

In this state, Democrats are too defeatist to even BEGIN. They are too cowed to realize when they actually have the upper hand, as they do with corrupt Governor Haley. They are so accustomed to losing, they practically announce their losses before election season. They expect the worst, and therefore try to behave and blend in, basically apologizing for existing.

Democratic slogan in South Carolina: "We're sorry for being the opposition! It's a dirty job, but someone has to do it!"

But see, they DON'T do it, is the problem. They are a collection of empty suits.

This is the party that nominated an unelectable man with a prison record to run for the 3rd District congressional seat, rather than dynamic Jeanne van den Hurk, who would have run a vital, energetic and very capable campaign against awful Tea Partier Jeff Duncan. This is the party repeatedly presenting us with the well-behaved snoozefest known as Vincent Sheheen (no offense, Vince, but facts are facts) to run against Governor Haley, an up-and-coming, razzle-dazzle neocon star (and Vogue model) with oodles of Tea Party money at her disposal. This is the party that gave us the disaster known as Alvin Greene to run against the formidable Jim DeMint. This is the party that did VERY LITTLE to help my friend Deb Morrow, in her congressional run against the 4th District's terrible Trey Gowdy.

Why are they so incompetent? WHAT ARE THEY DOING?

Why are they so comatose and complacent in the face of total disaster?

(((Daisy goes off to gnash teeth, pull out hair, and howl at the moon.)))

Governor Haley named as "other woman" in divorce case

The accusations against Governor Nikki Haley, first alluded to during the 2010 Republican Primary, are now once again center stage here in South Carolina.




From FitsNews, here is a post by another of Haley's ex-boyfriends (and you knew I couldn't leave that out, dincha?):

S.C. Gov. Nikki Haley is one of three “other women” named in a divorce lawsuit filed in Richland County, S.C. earlier this month.

According to court documents obtained exclusively by FITS, Jennifer Marchant – wife of prominent S.C. State House lobbyist Larry Marchant – is suing her husband for divorce on the grounds of infidelity.

One of the three women Marchant accuses her husband of cheating on her with? You guessed it … Haley.

“On or about June 2, 2010, (Larry Marchant) publicly admitted to having an affair with a woman well-known to the parties and the citizens of the State of South Carolina,” the lawsuit reads. “(Jennifer Marchant) was humiliated and embarrassed by (her husband’s) public admission and was unable to appear in public for some time. Eventually, (Jennifer) conditionally forgave (Larry)’s adulterous behavior.”

Damn …

The lawsuit was filed in Richland County family court on February 6 . A preliminary hearing in the case has been scheduled for 11:00 a.m. on February 20.

Marchant submitted an affidavit in October 2010 - swearing that he and Haley had a one night stand in Salt Lake City, Utah in June 2008.

(For details about that alleged encounter, click here).

Haley categorically denied Marchant’s claim. In fact she said Marchant was unable to prove the two of them were ever alone together on the Salt Lake City trip.

“We’ve had representatives go on the record that said we were in a group setting all the time,” Haley told former Columbia, S.C. radio host Keven Cohen at the time.

Other sources who went on the Salt Lake City trip have disputed Haley’s claim, however.

“They left the W lounge together,” one of these sources confirmed to FITS, referring to a dance club located three blocks away from the Marriott hotel where the South Carolina delegation was staying.

Another source also confirmed seeing Haley and Marchant on the corner of Broadway and Southwest Temple streets in downtown Salt Lake City at around 2:25 a.m. as the pair walked back to their hotel room.

Marchant’s affidavit was dismissed at the time by Haley’s lawyers because it was not submitted in connection with a court case. Meanwhile Haley refused to submit an affidavit attesting to her version of events.

“It’s up to them to prove it,” Haley told WSPA TV 7 reporter Robert Kittle. “It’s not up to me to prove that I’m telling the truth. It’s up to them to prove that is true.”

So … will Marchant change his story in open court – with a possible perjury charge and hundreds of thousands of dollars hanging in the balance?

Good question.

Meanwhile, lots of people are suddenly remembering Haley's hilarious comment on THE VIEW, that "women don't care about contraception"... and we are wondering if, you know, she was being 100% honest about that? Sounds like Haley, at least, sure did care! (You don't think she was lying, do you?)

You can't make this stuff up! Stay tuned, sports fans.

Weekend update

My intrepid radio co-hosts, at left, Gorgeous Gregg Jocoy and Double A diehard.







Radio podcast is up--have a listen, yall!





~*~

There are about a half-dozen irrepressible Greenville Occupiers left (although hundreds still access the Facebook page), and we are wondering what we should call our group. Time to segue into Another Phase. Any suggestions?

Old Occupiers? Greenville Badasses? Lefty Upstate? Upstate Lefties? The Greenville Remainders? I dunno.

We are taking suggestions.



~*~

Meanwhile, I am still in Old Timer Blogger mode... and I have not made the important ailurophile transition from Friday Cat Blogging (old timer mode) to current-hipster CATURDAY... and for this reason, keep forgetting to do either one.

Therefore you should please consider this my first official Caturday post, as still another new DEAD AIR tag is born.

Yes, I know it's Sunday, but nobody's perfect.

The black and white kitty is Peace Cat, the Official Cat of DEAD AIR, and in the photo below him, Cyril, my other beloved feline. (HERE is Cyril as a sweet kitten, when I first introduced him to readers.)

And happy Caturday, even if I AM late arriving.

~*~




There is an upside to the unfortunate, dreadful FUBAR situation described yesterday, wherein three out of four SC residents had their Social Security numbers hijacked... I am still waiting to find out if that includes me and Mr Daisy, but we are assuming the worst and taking action nonetheless.

The upside is: this fiasco might be the proverbial nail in the coffin for our Vogue-magazine-modelling, globe-trotting governor Haley, who has habitually been asleep at the switch (or partying abroad) when she should be dealing with crucial issues here at home.

If anything does her in, this might be it. Democrats are certainly wasting no time pointing fingers:

In the days ahead, the unprecedented and costly breach likely will emerge as a political and governing test of the Haley administration.

It’s yet unclear how high the tide of public anger will rise. For the moment, residents are struggling to follow Haley’s urging to call a toll-free number to enroll in credit protection paid for by taxpayers — a system that initially was swamped and rendered ineffective by the sheer wave of callers.

The chairman of the state’s Democratic Party, Dick Harpootlian, has delivered a blunt assessment of the governor.

“If she were the CEO of a company that had a third of its data hacked, especially after all the public warnings of the danger of hackers, she would be fired,” said Harpootlian. “Too bad she has two more years on her contract.”

Off with her head!

Let's hope this beautiful noise continues, and all our suffering will not have been in vain.

~*~

More Haleyatin (as one of my radio-callers has named my attacks on Nikki Haley) for your edification: GOVERNOR BLASTING POLITICIANS FOR TAKING THE SAME PAYMENTS SHE TOOK.

Once again, good work, Will.

Haley Watch: The Governor's star turn

As reported yesterday, our fashionable governor took the podium at the Republican National Convention last night, camera-ready for her big close-up, and the reviews are in.

How'd she do?

For those of you lucky enough to miss it, SC Governor Nikki Haley read Barack Obama the riot act:

Haley then accused the Obama administration of launching an all-out assault on her state.

"The hardest part of my job continues to be this federal government, this administration and this president," Haley said, going on to say that "Obama will do everything he can to stand in your way," even if you play by the rules.

According to Haley, her state had attempted to implement "one of the most innovative illegal immigration laws in the country," bring jobs to South Carolina through a deal with Boeing and enact a voter ID measure, only to have the Obama administration bring lawsuits against them.

The Justice Department has sued South Carolina over its immigration law and voter ID measure over concerns that the legislation put the state in violation of various civil and voting rights acts. Obama's National Labor Relations Board eventually dismissed a union lawsuit against Boeing, which Haley suggested was a response to the state getting "loud."

Haley got a standing ovation for her support of voter ID laws, saying that it was a natural step when identifications were required to pass through airport security or purchase Sudafed from a drug store.

Really?

And here we thought it was just her overall incompetence that made her...totally incompetent. Instead, she blames her incompetence on the president. Good work if you can get it, and this song-and-dance has obviously taken Nikki all the way to the podium in Tampa.

Actually, the "hardest part of her job" appears to be the job itself, which she seems patently unable to do. As the Charleston City Paper correctly pointed out, she can't even talk to the South Carolina press, and prefers to model clothing for Vogue magazine instead:

Nikki Haley has refused to speak with members of the press, both those of the state's two largest and most influential dailies, the Post and Courier and The State, as well as the state's two alt-weeklies, The Free Times and the Charleston City Paper. On one occasion, Haley even ran away from reporter Renee Dudley.

How is this habitual scampering away from reporters, the fault of President Obama?

Hard-core conservatives like Will Folks, however, weren't having any. He ably picked apart the fine points of Nikki's speech. Folks gives away his Ron Paul-partisanship, when pointing out that:

[The] fight over Boeing was clouded by the fact that the company relies extensively on billions of dollars in taxpayer-funded subsidies doled out from both the state and federal governments.

Aside: It's a sad day when it's up to libertarians to do the job of (snort) "liberals," pointing out how working-class taxpayers regularly foot the bills for big business. This might be why Democrats do so poorly around here. It's usually been up to the Paulites to highlight CORPORATE welfare, while the rank-and-file Repubs natter on about "government handouts." I still remember our counter-demonstration at the local Republican debate, when Ron Paul supporters were the only ones to applaud one protester's sign, "Drug testing for corporate welfare recipients!" They loved it, as Will Folks would probably love it. The regular Republicans rolled their eyes and ignored us. (Same as they do with corporate welfare.)

Nikki Haley initially marketed herself as a Tea Party Republican, all ready to challenge the status quo, and she has instead rolled her eyes and ignored the malcontents, just like the rest of the big-money Repubs. Meet the new boss, same as the old boss. One hopes the Tea Party-affiliated Republicans in this state will not sit back and simply allow her to shit all over them, in her breakneck-climb to the cover of Newsweek, her fashion spread in Vogue, and the Conservative Book Club bestseller's lists.

At left: Governor Haley's photo from The New York Times Magazine. (Since she is afraid to talk to the South Carolina press, we have to go to national media to find pictures of her.)




The Charleston Post and Courier reports:

Haley’s star status has been on display here for days. Monday morning, she won a standing ovation from Florida’s GOP delegation. Georgetown County GOP Chair Jim Jerow, who is at his first convention, was there and noted Haley “is growing in her job.”

U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham, the South Carolina Republican who had the biggest moment at the GOP convention four years ago, said Haley’s speech would be a good honor for the state and for her as an individual.

He said she needed to make the home team proud, please the “chattering class” in the media and make a personal connection. “I think she’s going to do really good,” he predicted.

Rep. Jeff Duncan, R-S.C., agreed with Graham’s prediction. “She’s going to showcase the state well. She always does,” he said. “It’s got to help her. I’m focused on how it helps us as a party. She’s going to be the face of the party.”

World-class stupidity as the "face of the party"! Well, they didn't mind hosting Dubya for eight years, so this isn't too surprising.

Growing in her job? WHAT, pray tell, does that mean? Sounds like an internship, rather than an elected office.

NPR says it's all about being a minority female. They are pushing her out front because they feel they have no choice:

It's become a perennial problem for Republicans, but not one that the party yet knows how to solve.

Recent polls show GOP presidential nominee Mitt Romney taking a drubbing among minority groups, badly trailing President Obama among Hispanics, Asians and single women.

One recent poll showed Romney's support among African-Americans at 0 (yes, zero) percent.

In a sense, this is nothing new. As long ago as 2001, Rich Bond, a former head of the Republican National Committee, told The Washington Post: "We've taken white guys about as far as that group can go. We are in need of diversity, women, Latino, African-American, Asian."

What has changed is that minority voters now make up a large and growing share of the electorate. Between 1992 and 2008, the non-Anglo portion of the electorate doubled, to 26 percent from 13 percent, as measured by exit polls.

According to a recent National Journal analysis, Romney will need the percentage of white voters to remain at 74 percent nationwide — and he'll have to take 61 percent of that white vote — in order to win.

"This year or 2016 will be the last time Republicans can do as well as they've done in recent decades with [just] a strong showing among white voters," says Henry Olsen, vice president of the conservative American Enterprise Institute. "At some point in the not so distant future, Republicans have to start doing better among minorities or they will not win elections."

One way the party is hoping to speak to minority voters is by having minority officeholders speak to them. The GOP's convention lineup this week is loaded with high-profile minorities, including Florida Sen. Marco Rubio (Thursday), former Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice (Wednesday) and Govs. Nikki Haley of South Carolina and Brian Sandoval of Nevada (who spoke Tuesday) and Susana Martinez of New Mexico (Wednesday).

Haley claims to be all about bringing minorities and women into the Republican Party. Um, since when?

Well, since she was elected and they gave her the script, of course:

"It's offensive to me as a woman and as a minority that Democrats can go and say, 'That party hates you,' and can get away with that," Haley told an editorial board from Gannett and USA Today on Tuesday.

Haley suggested that her party offers a welcoming home to many minority voters and is a good fit for them on issues such as the economy and jobs.

The "We Built It" theme of the Republican Convention, actually tramples all over minority people, who built most of the South, where the convention is. It tramples all over the maids and janitors who are cleaning up all the balloons and streamers and vodka-puke that the Republicans leave behind. Ann Romney's maids and assistants, the overworked-seamstresses who sew Nikki Haley's designer wardrobe, the lighting technicians and the retail/fast-food grunts and the hotel clerks and secretaries, THESE ARE THE PEOPLE who keep everything going. And they/we built it too.

And if you persist in NOT seeing this, Republicans, you will fail.

Your cartoon-convention, scrambling to find minorities and women to put on stage and on camera, is just that, a cartoon.

Governor Haley goes nationwide tonight

Governor Nikki Haley, Vogue-vetted fashion plate, models her trademark designer duds, while mouthing some indecipherable nonsense in Tampa at the Republican Convention. Since she has proudly bankrupted the working class of South Carolina, this is the closest the rest of us will ever get to designer clothes, so you might want to tune in tonight at 10pm to see what she wears.

~*~

The good news is, maybe she will get a national gig and GO AWAY.

The bad news? Tonight, the unbearable Haley-fawning reaches a fever pitch... Newsweek, Vogue, Christiane Amanpour, The View, a hardcover biography and now she is at last ready for prime time. All this prepping, all this hoopla, and you can almost hear em sing THERE SHE IS, MISS AMERICA... as she struts those infamous mega-pricey stilettos up to the GOP podium. This is it! She's ready for her close-up, Mr DeMille!!!

Some of the up-and-coming politicians who have historically been selected for this coveted time-slot at past conventions include Sarah Palin, Barack Obama and Bill Clinton.

Yes, our little Nikki has hit the big time. And all she's done is creatively manage her dad's books and dodge an ethics investigation. Oh yeah, and receive endless genuflection from the national press as an attractive Indian-American female star for the GOP; currently the youngest governor in the country.

As Newsweek famously summed her up two years ago:

[The GOP's] freshly anointed gubernatorial nominee arrived: Nikki Haley, 38 years old and Indian-American, wearing a snug, saffron-colored suit and stilettos you could impale a small animal with. Only a few months ago, she was an obscure state representative. Then former Alaska governor Sarah Palin endorsed her, the Tea Party movement embraced her, and she proceeded to dispatch a U.S. congressman, the lieutenant governor, and the attorney general in the Republican primary and runoff. Now she’s the hottest thing in South Carolina politics. And if she wins in November, becoming the state’s first female and first nonwhite governor, she’ll likely rocket to national prominence and secure a spot in the GOP firmament.

Yes, and here we are.

Ron Paul draws thousands of eager, dedicated young kids to the Republican Party and hosts raucous Republican rallies, yet he is denied a speaking spot at the Republican Convention, while our governor, a walking disaster (albeit a very fashionable one), who can't even make sure our roads are repaired, is officially anointed as the hot new thing.

As Ayn Rand would say, choke on it, Congressman Paul, life isn't fair.

And all because she endorsed Romney early and allowed Mitt and Ann (as well as every other Republican presidential candidate) to use the Governor's mansion as a Motel 6, on our dime. She has just given her staff big raises (again, on our dime), but is nonetheless heralded as a fiscal conservative and Tea Party true-believer. And just wait till she gets started on her newest melodramatic role, "military spouse"--a role she coincidentally landed just in time for the convention.

It's enough to make you sick.

Like, really sick.

And hey, I ain't the only one. Her jilted lover, blogger Will Folks, is even more nauseated than the state's lefties are.

For him, it's personal, as he offers an amazing (and quite comprehensive) a laundry list of her offenses at his conservative blog, FITSNews. He reminds everyone of what is now known as the Savannah River Sellout, and fulminates at some length. (Preach it, Will!)

But in the end, we are just huffing and puffing. It's Haley's night. I've got some DVDs, some Marx Brothers, some American Dad, and if it gets too painful, I will not subject myself to lengthy torture. After all, I live here under Queen Nikki's rule, and I am tortured every time I drive down Woodruff Road, taking my life in my hands.

The only good thing about Romney possibly winning the election, is that Queen Nikki will undoubtedly be dispatched elsewhere. (But then, what about the rest of the country?)

I'm afraid there is no good outcome, and either way, we all lose.

Enjoy the speech... and the fashionistas among you may want to play "name that designer!" while you watch. Bring those anti-nausea meds.

Haley Watch: Governor Nikki's "book"

Her book has the properly Republican title: "Can't is not an option"--supposedly something her mother said. The subtitle is "My American Story" (just in case you thought it was from somewhere else).

George Will once referred to such omnipresent politician-accounts as "one of those word-salads you write 'with' someone"--and that seems to be an accurate description of Haley's little Horatio Alger tale. Unfortunately, the ghostwriter is not named, which might be a good thing for the ghostwriter; we do not want to hold an innocent party accountable for the soon-to-be-published bullshit.

What amazes me is, she hasn't even been in office two whole years... and a book already?!?

Will Folks (the governor's ex-boyfriend) is now making jokes that her first appearance in the upstate will be at the amusingly-named (under the circumstances) local bookstore Fiction Addiction. (tickets required!) Of course, Folks will NOT be left out of the biography; Nikki's busy PR team successfully spun his accusations as a vicious attempt to keep this fabulously wonderful, plucky nonwhite lady OUT of office, that white male meanie! (As I have stated before, I believe Folks' account.)

My question is, does it not matter that she is totally incompetent and gave away the Port of Charleston? Apparently not. Obviously, her fresh, attractive appearance and high-profile status as South Carolina's first nonwhite woman governor, easily eclipses whether she actually does a decent job or not. (Or whether she is corrupt, as even several Republicans have concluded she is.)

And by the way, Haley recently lied (again) about her daughter winning a pageant. Truth-telling is most assuredly not her long suit.

I warned yall not to vote for her. (sigh)

South Carolina Lt Governor Ken Ard resigns

Good riddance to another South Carolina Tea Party busybody! Let's hope Governor Haley is next, even if she DOES get the cover of Italian Vogue.

From the Charleston Post and Courier (story by Robert Behre):

COLUMBIA -- Ken Ard quickly rose to prominence in S.C. politics as a tea party favorite, hailing his business credentials and his family's roots in Pamplico, a Florence County town so small it lacked a traffic light.

Ard's political career crashed around him Friday, and the Republican lieutenant governor resigned in disgrace.

In an unprecedented sequence of events, Ard then:

:: Was slapped with seven ethics violations by a state grand jury.

:: Pleaded guilty in a Columbia courtroom, tearfully asked a circuit judge for mercy.

:: Was spared prison but was given five years' probation, a $5,000 fine and 300 hours of community service.

Ard's legal woes reverberated far beyond his office. Charleston Republican Glenn McConnell also resigned Friday as Senate president pro tempore, a post considered the most powerful in state government, to assume the state's largely ceremonial, part-time lieutenant governor job, as the state constitution calls for.

Friday's unprecedented sequence of events stemmed from Ard's decision, the year before his 2010 election, to funnel his own money through friends back into his own campaign so it appeared that he had far more financial supporters than he actually did.

That would work to scare off potential primary opponents.

S.C. Attorney General Alan Wilson noted that Ard could have contributed legally as much money to his bid as he wanted -- and Ard did spend about $525,000 on his own race. But it was $75,000 of his money that Ard deceitfully funneled through others and back into his campaign that led to four charges of unlawful reimbursement of campaign funds, Wilson said.

Ard also pleaded guilty to two counts of filing false reports stemming from about $87,500 in phantom contributions that were never made to him. The last count was for using his campaign money for personal use, a charge for which he already had paid a $60,900 ethics fine, the second-highest in the state's history.

"Campaign transparency was in reality campaign deceit," Wilson said. "Nothing is more important than our election process. The people have a right to true and accurate information so that the voters can make their own judgment. ... If the process is falsely manipulated, its purpose is destroyed."

From his resignation statement to his appearance before Circuit Judge G. Thomas Cooper, Ard did not attempt to gloss over his failings.

"Your honor, I stand here accepting 100 percent of the blame," he said. "I stand here humble, apologetic."

Ard's voice cracked as he mentioned his wife and three children by name, saying they and his supporters have been better to him than he has deserved. Ard said he was "ashamed" of what he had done, but noted that he can't undo it. "All I can do is say I'm sorry."

He also said he would love to have the day back when he sat in his truck and conceived of the illegal campaign financing scheme.

"I don't regret much, but I regret this as much as anything I've ever done in my life," he said.

Eddie Floyd of Florence County said he deeply regrets advising Ard that he did not need to spend thousands of dollars on a professional campaign consultant, and Floyd said he would serve Ard's sentence for him if he could.

Ken Jackson, a business associate of Ard, expressed the same regret, saying Ard never was one to tend to details. "He is what you might call a 'manager by walking around.' He is not a detail person."

The Rev. Jim Crooks, Ard's pastor, said he has come to love Ard in spite of his mistakes in this case. "I like his realness," Crooks said. "He's been straight up ... he has not tried to lie his way out of it, and I admire that about him."

Left: Ken Ard, guilty guilty guilty.




Cooper noted that he, like Ard, also once served on a county council, adding, "I think you have done a disservice to the people of South Carolina by these actions." Cooper also told Ard that he was different from most criminals who appear before his court. "Some might say this sentence is harsh. Some might say it's lenient," Cooper said. "I do not feel a prison sentence is appropriate today."

Wilson said he expects no further indictments in the case by the state grand jury. He noted that all witnesses had cooperated.

As a politician who also won his first statewide office in 2010 and who campaigned alongside Ard as part of the GOP ticket, Wilson he still personally likes Ard and wishes his family the best.

"I entered this day with a heavy heart. I leave it with a heavy heart," Wilson said. "There's nothing fun about this."

For those following Friday's news as it broke, there were few lulls.

At 9:40 a.m., Wilson's office said he would discuss the statewide grand jury later in the day. Ard submitted his resignation to Gov. Nikki Haley by 10 a.m. Wilson met with a swarm of reporters at 1 p.m., then he and Ard appeared in a courtroom an hour later.

Well, *I* thought a prison sentence was appropriate today, and every day, for lying politicians. (Read the rest of it.)

Meanwhile, dogged Will Folks is still on the case. He pointedly asks where our fashion-plate Governor had gone off to, during the Ken Ard extravaganza? Good question:

So where was South Carolina’s embattled governor, Nikki Haley, during all of this turmoil?

That’s easy … she was sipping drinks at the luxurious Ritz-Carlton hotel in Palm Beach, Florida, where she and her husband Michael were attending the 2012 Club for Growth winter conference. In fact the governor and First Gentleman were spotted “enjoying some Cabernet” with Jon Fleischman, editor of a 1990s-themed California political blog.

Wait … Haley? At a Club for Growth event? With her atrocious fiscal record?

Apparently so … in fact Haley goes to these sorts of things all the time … all over the country.

It's like when they caught Spiro before they caught Nixon.

Doesn't seem fair, somehow, does it?

Stay tuned, sports fans.

Haley Watch: More More More

For the record, I am ambivalent about linking Will Folks' Republican blog, FITSnews.

Folks is the blogger who claims he got into [South Carolina Governor] Nikki Haley's pants, before she reached her current levels of megastardom. I tend to believe him, simply because I want to... and because he and the governor were "good friends" and close political associates at one point (he didn't invent this out of whole cloth). I certainly haven't seen this accusation bring him any goodies. Quite the opposite. As a Republican blogger, you don't print sex rumors about a beloved Republican rising star without encountering a lot of conservative anger. The subject of haters throughout the state, Will Folks has had to stand up to the kind of scrutiny that makes most accusers melt into a puddle... and he hasn't. Instead, he has been emboldened. He continually threatens a tell-all book about their affair, and has stayed on Nikki's trail like the proverbial bloodhound. (Hell hath no fury like a blogger scorned!) As a result, FITSnews has all the goods on our governor. Will has stepped into the breach and made Haley-watching his CALLING.

Unfortunately, another result: Will has found it necessary to double down and get dirty, which is too bad. There is a rather disgusting, old-boys-network, locker-room vibe in the comments on Will's blog, and for that I heartily apologize. Like me, he rarely deletes anyone, even the people who hate him, so it's all right there, including the nastiness. The guys like to make nasty sexual remarks about Haley, and although Will himself rarely does, his claims about Haley have been the overall catalyst. Like most bloggers, he seeks high-traffic, so he allows it. He shouldn't, but then, it's his blog. But the continued tolerance of nastiness DOES say something about him, which I don't think he quite realizes: It compromises his account of events. Would designer-clothes-clad Nikki crawl into an SUV and copulate with such a FRAT BOY? The more the pesky frat boy-vibe triumphs at FITSnews, the less believable Will Folks' account is.

And yes, I WANT people to believe him. I think he is telling the truth. I think he felt USED by a candidate, who screwed him primarily for political support and good press. And she then left him twisting slowly, slowly in the wind, and he was furious as a result. So, he decided to go after her and make her his raison d'être. In his position, I might have done the same.

This has made for a great blog, with tips coming in across the land, but it has also made for a blog with too much sexual (and sexist) innuendo, which sometimes tips over into racism as well (since Haley is Asian, the first nonwhite governor in SC). He needs to get a handle on that shit if he wants to be taken seriously and go nationwide, which he could. GO BIG OR GO HOME, Will. Grow up and leave the locker room, and muckraking fame could well be yours.

Having said all that, I will now link FITSnews, with the appropriate CAVEATS. Beware misogyny in comments, or just skip the comments. Will's reporting itself is not offensive, except of course for his subject matter: Nikki Haley herself is plenty offensive.

Bold type is from FITSnews.

:: Federal probe into Nikki Haley "Family Temple" Expands - A federal investigation into the finances of the Sikh Religious Society of South Carolina – the temple where S.C. Gov. Nikki Haley’s parents, Dr. Ajit S. “Doc” Randhawa and Raj Randhawa worship – has expanded to include the governor’s personal and campaign finances, multiple sources familiar with the ongoing probe tell FITS.

Specifically, agents are said to be investigating whether Haley and her husband, Michael, received improper payments from the temple – allegations which have revived lingering questions about discrepancies between the couple’s meager pre-gubernatorial income and the lavish lifestyle they enjoyed.

Haley is a former Sikh Religious Society board member as well as the former accountant for the temple. Randhawa, her father, is the current president of the congregation.

In addition to a 2010 scam in which Randhawa allegedly doled out tax receipts to donors in excess of the amounts they actually contributed to the temple, agents are also said to be investigating allegations of possible financial “co-mingling” between the temple and Haley’s 2010 gubernatorial campaign.

:: The Nikki Haley “Family Temple” Files - FITSnews managed to get their hands on the actual pdf files. ((applause))

:: More “Haleynomics?” - The original FITSnews story about the Sikh temple, right before the 2010 election. Prescient as always, Will correctly informs us this won't influence the election, but "could possibly have far-reaching implications beyond it." We can only hope.

:: Sources: Feds Investigating Randhawa - The temple’s poor fiscal management is nothing new. According to Richland County court filings the Sikh Religious Society has been sued four times since March 2010 – including actions to foreclose and debts totaling $116,000. In a court filing dated October 15, 2010, the temple was given a twenty-day notice of an impending lawsuit regarding a lien placed on its property by Hardaway Concrete Company – one of several contractors that is suing the temple for non-payment of invoices.

In addition to failing to pay its debts, there are also questions about how “Doc” Randhawa has managed the temple’s books.

Until last October, shortly before FITS began making inquiries regarding the temple, contributions earmarked for the project were sent directly to Ajit Randhawa’s residence, however in recent months the congregation has been asked to “make a deposit direct to BB&T” and “call your friends and relatives to donate.”

Speaking of donations, one of the sources we spoke with told us that Randhawa has a history of providing donors with tax receipts that are in excess of cash contributions made to the organization – which if true would be highly illegal.

Also – and this is the most damaging allegation – several congregation members claim that Randhawa may have illegally funneled money intended for the temple into his daughter’s gubernatorial campaign.

Needless to say, this story has not really hit the major press AT ALL, except for some passing mentions here and there. The Republican star-machine is busy prepping Nikki for Italian Vogue, and seem to regard this little investigation as just that, little.

We'll see, won't we?

Good work, Will.

Please do not vote for this woman

As DEAD AIR readers can see, I am running out of anti-Nikki Haley blog-post titles in this harried week before the election, and today's title reflects my desperation. In ohhh so many ways!

Just, please, DON'T VOTE for her.

Last night, the party continued over in Florence:

FLORENCE — Republican Nikki Haley and Democrat Vincent Sheheen are painting differing portraits of the state's most pressing problems and how to solve them with a week to go before voters choose one as their next governor.

At their final debate, held Tuesday before a crowd of more than 400 at Francis Marion University near Florence, Haley talked of the state's “cultural problems” that she said are handicapping the state's work force, such as a lack of education skills and drug addiction that causes failed drug tests.

She said she would address the problems if elected governor by using a faith-based coalition that would tutor school children, counsel victims of domestic violence and help those in poverty.

Sheheen said the biggest problem facing the state is its 11 percent unemployment rate and said he would spend his time recruiting jobs and industry to the state.

FAITH BASED COALITION? (((gnashes teeth, slits wrist)))

I don't want to talk to any so-called "faith-based coalitions" that likely include the kind of people (considering that this is South Carolina) who don't believe certain populations even deserve charity, okay?

During their hour answering questions from a panel of reporters, the debate's moderator and two student body presidents, Haley and Sheheen disagreed on how to pay for the $2.5 billion Interstate 73 project, healthcare, education funding and each other's jobs.

Each found opportunities to attack the other, with Sheheen drawing both applause and gasps as he told Haley at one point: “I'd rather be a successful lawyer, I'd rather have a successful lawyer as my next governor than an accountant who didn't pay her taxes,” a reference to Haley's late payments in recent years.

(((giggle))) Too bad he couldn't sneak in some Will Folks references; if a totally-accurate tax-evader jab brought gasps, imagine what a little joke about climbing into some blogger's SUV for a late-night party might do.

I say, go for broke, Vince! It can't hurt, at this point.

Sheheen said he has supported I-73and would support tolls on the road as well as the creation of a national infrastructure bank modeled after South Carolina's infrastructure bank to pay for it. I-73 would connect Myrtle Beach to Michigan and run through the Pee Dee and coastal regions of South Carolina.

Haley said she opposes tolls and the creation of the federal infrastructure bank, arguing that as governor she would ask the state's congressional delegation to find the money.

Asked about how they would handle the state's financial troubles, Sheheen said more taxes weren’t the answer and agencies might have to consolidate services. He said he would prioritize economic development and job-related services.

Haley said there was still waste to be cut out of state government, arguing that in most states, an estimated 10 percent of Medicaid funds are lost to abuse and fraud.

She once again pointed at amounts spent on education “overhead” at the Department of Education, insisting the agency has more than 1,100 positions, a figure Sheheen said isn’t true. He said the agency told him the number of actual workers is 883, half of which are bus drivers.

“It's important that we talk truth in these debates,” he said. Haley said her numbers come from the state's budget.

Sheheen then asked Haley what positions she thought should be cut from the agency. Haley said she wants bus services privatized, which she said would save the state money in maintenance services. She said more funding needs to go to the classroom, but Sheheen said Haley doesn’t count principals or cooks as core classroom costs.

“You want the teachers to cook,” he said to laughter.

More jokes like that, Vince!

On the subject of the federal government's healthcare plan, Sheheen said he likes parts of the plan, such as allowing children to be covered for pre-existing conditions or preventing women with breast cancer from having their insurance canceled.

But Haley said Sheheen “can't split the cow,” arguing the plan will cost the state $1 billion, a cost she said the state cannot afford.

One of the evening's most heated exchanges came after Sheheen was asked about his work as a lawyer representing clients before state agencies.

Sheheen said while Haley has accused him of suing the state, his firm has only defended clients whose property the government wanted to take, identifying a couple in the audience whom he represented.

Haley said Sheheen represents workers before the worker's compensation commission, in effect suing businesses, a practice she said has brought him and his law firm a lot of business and fees.

She said lawyer-legislators shouldn’t be on committees appointing members of the worker's comp board.

“We need to make sure they can't have both their hands in both their pockets,” she said. “He has made hundreds of thousands of dollars being a lawyer-legislator. That's one great part-time job."

Ummm, at least he showed up for work!

Do you believe Haley's chutzpah? (She's something else, no?)

Sheheen talked of Haley's jobs after becoming a legislator working as a consultant for an engineering firm that does government work and as a fundraiser for a hospital foundation.

“It gets a little bit old listening to her preach to me,” he said, “when I follow ethics laws, when I recuse myself from voting on commissioners.”

Haley said Sheheen has spent the majority of his ad campaign attacking her and “every director of the Department of Revenue, every ethics commissioner has said I've done nothing wrong...I've never made money off the state.”

She told the audience in her closing statement that she wants voters to “join the movement,” arguing they have a clear choice and should say no to the “status quo political insider hierarchy” and yes to “real people.”

Sheheen closed by saying the race is about having “government you can trust again.”“I'm not looking for a movement,” he said. “I'm looking for a governor.”Asked at the end by the debate's moderator whether they personally like each other, Haley said, “I used to."

Not bad, Vince, but I still think you need to bring the machete next time and talk about the fact that she has never needed to actually APPLY for a job like ordinary folks, and has NEVER found one the old fashioned way (despite her claims to the contrary).

LACERATIONS, please, not little love-nips.

And let me hasten to add that this was not a real "debate" with all sides fairly represented, since Dr Morgan Bruce Reeves, our Green Party candidate for governor, was not included.

(sigh)

As stated above and many times before, please do not vote for this woman.

Stay tuned, sports fans.

Will Folks claims to have had trysts with Nikki Haley

Steamy sexual accusations against South Carolina Republican gubernatorial candidate Nikki Haley have once again resurfaced and heated up (haha) in these tense weeks before the election.

FITSnews blogger Will Folks, who certainly knows how to drive up hits on his blog, has now come forward with hot stories of trysts in the back of Haley's SUV.

Tell me more, tell me more, did you get very far? (link to pdf file of Folks' sworn affidavit) Apparently so, sports fans!

Some of the juicier bits:

Republican Haley and I shared our first kiss while sitting in her parked car outside of MacDougal's restaurant and bar in downtown Columbia, SC. This kiss took place in early 2007 following an evening with friends at the nearby Liberty Taproom. After this first kiss, Rep. Haley drove us to the parking lot behind the neighborhood center at Emily Douglas Park where we parked for approximately 45 minutes. There we slid back the seats of her Cadillac SUV so that Rep. Haley could climb on top of me.

(((fans self))) These are Republicans, do you believe?!?!? (Well, after Mark Sanford's lovesick hymn to tan lines, I guess we shouldn't be surprised.)

Folks swears they even got it on in her State House office (this one sounds perilously close to a porn-reel, to me)... as well as in his apartment and of course, more hot SUV action. Phone records confirm many late-night phone calls, and there isn't any argument about that from the Haley campaign. But what might they have been talking about? (giggles)

And it gets better! Folks is calling for a forensic examination of her laptop, if you want the dirty emails between them. (And we DO, oh yes we DO.) But I sincerely doubt a subpoena of Haley's computer is forthcoming.

And BTW, these aren't the only accusations... lobbyist Larry Marchant, who came forward to say he had a one-night stand with Haley in 2007, told The Associated Press he will also provide an affidavit. (from Huffington Post story here)

Not sure what I think of all this. During the primary, it was fairly obvious what was happening, but now? Why are all of these Republicans coming forward now? Are they trying to lose the election? Does that make any sense?

Haley is in political agreement with Folks... in fact, that seems to have been one of the attractions between them.

As Matt Drudge would say: Developing...