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Article published Jun 4, 2004
This
legislative session was marked by lawmakers' drive to hold on to
power
Lawmakers ended the legislative session Thursday having
preserved all of their power and privileges.Throughout the conflicts of this
year, lawmakers united behind the drive to hold on to their authority.It wasn't
just the obvious, the refusal to enact government restructuring, which would
create a more efficient and accountable state government structure but which
would also take patronage positions away from lawmakers. The drive to preserve
lawmakers' power motivated many other conflicts.It was the driving force behind
the fight over the Life Sciences Act. This popular economic development bill was
laden down with local projects that didn't make sense for the state as a whole.
But lawmakers want to keep their ability to obtain those local projects, so they
fought to preserve the projects attached to the Life Sciences Act.It was behind
the instant override of105 of Gov. Mark Sanford's 106 budget vetoes by the
House. Lawmakers wanted the governor and the rest of the state to know that the
budget is theirs. They don't want the governor to be sticking his hands into it,
and if he does, they will slap him down.This drive to preserve lawmakers'
privilege was also behind the Senate's failure to take up many bills. That body
wasted a great deal of time on a couple of filibusters. It allowed a handful of
senators to block all progress until they got their way, whether it was over
seat belt enforcement or reducing the state income tax.Senators allowed a few of
their colleagues to obstruct progress so that they may be able to do it in the
future. Senators like that power, the idea that even one senator can bring the
body to a halt.In each major conflict of the legislative year, you can see an
effort at reform being blocked by a united group of lawmakers insisting that
their power and privilege is sacred.They believe that no one should dare ask
them to give up their ability to thwart statewide goals in order to channel more
money to their districts, to give up their sole authority over state spending,
to give up their ability to stop any legislation.And when someone does ask them
to give up some of these privileges, they react with outrage.We have seen that
outrage in many votes this year, in many lawmakers' comments. What we need to
see is the outrage of voters who want a more efficient and accountable state
government, who want progress rather than obstruction, who want statewide goals
to take precedence over the local interests of powerful politicians.Voters
should be outraged by a legislative session marked by such obvious
self-interest.