Staff reports | With the holidays comes a slowdown of political and policy news, but you might want to know about these items:
Lawmakers funnel big bucks to pet projects. Here’s a confidence booster on state government: More than $20 million was spent in the last state budget toward pet projects like hometown walking trails and expanding a tennis court complex. Some lawmakers defend the practice, saying the state is helping cash-strapped locals to pay for needs. But the process is also less than transparent as the budget is drafted. More: The State.
Under fire. S.C. Rep. Mandy Powers Norrell, D-Lancaster, caught flak after tweeting and then deleting a comment alleging “cruel and disrespectful” white power signs from cadets at the Army-Navy football game in Philadelphia, according to Fox News. She later apologized after a review showed cadets were playing a game, not flashing a symbol.
2020 race. Faith and politics are getting attention as evangelicals are tussling over support for President Trump after Christianity Today, a top Christian magazine, called for him to be removed from office. More than 100 conservative evangelicals later closed ranks to support Trump. Meanwhile, former Vice President Joe Biden, a Democratic presidential candidate, announced support from 100 S.C. faith leaders.
Pay to play? S.C. Sens. Marlon Kimpson, D-Charleston, and Mia McLeod, D-Richland, want state rules that would let college athletes in the state get paid while in school, according to The State.
A wet holiday. Yards across the state were soggy on Christmas after buckets of rain dumped on the state early in the holiday week. Some areas along the coast got as much as 8 inches of water over 48 hours. Roads were shut down due to flooding. Rivers rose dangerously high. The Midlands had flood watches. Holiday traffic snarled after wrecks on highways. And 50,000 gallons of diluted wastewater entered a reservoir near Walhalla after a Monday sewer overflow.
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