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Government
must be prudent, Sanford says
Governor:
‘We need to put some money under the mattress’
April
29, 2006
By VIC
MacDONALD
Index-Journal
regional editor
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| Gov. Mark Sanford, right,
talks to Karl Clegg, owner of Triangle True Value
Hardware in Greenwood, about the trencher that Clegg
bought this week for his rental business. Clegg talked
to Sanford on Friday about the hardware business and and
his commitment to customer service.
| Walking into a place where
the business of South Carolina is transacted every day, Gov.
Mark Sanford learned lessons Friday about the value of
hometown customer service, commitment to values, trenching and
welding.
Sanford came to Triangle True Value Hardware in
Greenwood as part of a tour across the state to promote
saving, instead of spending, additional state revenues this
year.
With an economic upswing, the state’s revenue picture
looks better now than in years past, he said, but the
temptation to spend the additional revenue is always with the
General Assembly.
“We’re fifth best in the U.S. in new
revenues coming in,” Sanford said. “The government is going to
grow, but we do not need to get ahead of ourselves. We need to
put some money under the mattress.”
Just three more weeks
are left in the process by which South Carolina collects and
budgets its revenue, the governor said, so people who are
concerned about spending need to get their legislators to
listen.
“Just like a household, we need to be prudent,” he
said. “If you win the lottery one year, you don’t budget to
win the lottery next year.”
Triangle owners Karl and Gail
Clegg gave Sanford lessons in small business survival.
Karl
Clegg said that this week he had to purchase a trencher
because the business needed a new one for contractors who
lease the machine to install water and electrical lines and
sprinkler systems. Gail said she didn’t have any “veto power”
over the purchase, but Karl said it wasn’t a luxury — it was
something the businesses had to have.
“We needed this piece
of equipment and we bought it in South Carolina — in
Simpsonville,” Karl said. “We buy supplies locally. It keeps
things rolling.”
Clegg also explained to Sanford that
because of his Christian faith, the business will not open on
Sundays, despite intense pressure from larger competitors.
Faithway Inc. is the incorporated name of the business.
He
said he and Gail have to come to the business on Sundays to
place orders so merchandise can be delivered in a timely
manner.
“The average taxpayer gets it,” Sanford said of his
push to put additional revenues in the state’s savings
accounts. “I’m not saying money should not go back to
districts, but we have to keep it at a sustainable level. If
we spend everything we bring in the door, we’ll grow spending
by 13 percent. Average people say, ‘My household is not
growing by 13 percent.’”
Sanford toured the Cleggs’
business through the hardware area, the rental shop and the
machine shop in the rear. When the governor expressed an
interest in improving the welding he does at his farm, Clegg
showed him a piece of metal that had been welded in the
shop.
Although they didn’t have time to fire up the welding
torch, Sanford learned a technique he said he would try the
next time he is welding.
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