Posted on Thu, Jan. 18, 2007

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Sanford on S.C.

A look back, year by year, at Gov. Mark Sanford’s five State of the State speeches

2003

First State of the State laid out the five precepts that have guided Sanford’s policies: government accountability, sustainable spending, education, creating wealth and quality of life.

Called for:

• Tougher drunken-driving law

• Caps on enrollment at elementary, middle and high schools to encourage “neighborhood schools”

• Government restructuring

Key quote: “Let me make this, my first State of the State, one that focuses not on more money for programs but on the root causes. Root causes, the structure of our government, have contributed to the situation we find ourselves in.”

2004

• Said top priority was job creation

• Said he wanted families to get tax credits to send their children to private schools

• Personally challenged S.C. residents to exercise more and eat better

• Again called for government restructuring

Key quote: “We need jobs, and we need to improve our economy, and I don’t think we can afford to delay. This is my No. 1 priority, and I strongly ask for your help.”

2005

• Urged lawmakers to cut state’s income tax to 4.75 percent from 7 percent

• Reiterated call for tuition tax credits for parents to send children to private schools

Key quote: “It is again a time for choosing, between a tax system that holds us back and a tax system that allows us to better compete with the rest of the world.”

2006

• Mentioned columnist Thomas Friedman’s “flat-Earth” theory of economics at least five times

• Did not mention tax credits for parents of students attending private schools

• Called for cap on college tuition increases

• Asked for constitutional amendment to limit state spending

• Called on lawmakers to increase the number of black judges

Key quote: “It used to be that if you were born in a country like Burma ... you were just flat out of luck. You may well have had one of the brightest minds in the world, but unless you got a ticket out of the place, there was no way to capitalize on your intellect.

“Now, with globalization and the Internet, you can stay right there and export whatever your brain has to offer to the rest of the world.”

2007

• Called for government restructuring

• Said state’s drunken-driving laws are too weak

• Advocated for school choice, but without specifics

• Said the global economy continues to force South Carolina to adapt to survive

Key quote: “I can’t possibly make these changes on my own. I need your help.”

— Aaron Gould Sheinin