Tyranny in the Legislative State
Posted on June 4, 2009
My first year as a senator in the South Carolina General Assembly confirmed for me why I decided to seek public office in the first place – our state’s government is badly structured, badly managed and badly in need of reform. I believe this now more than ever.
What I no longer believe, however, is that I should frame my concerns diplomatically in order to avoid “offending anyone” in Columbia. It is clear to me now that the legislature is almost entirely to blame for our high unemployment rate, our low graduation rate and our declining prosperity as a state.
I campaigned on changing this failed system, as did many others. But in spite of the best efforts of a growing group of reformers in Columbia, change didn’t happen this year, and the public deserves to know why.
This year’s budget fiasco provides the perfect opportunity to explain that.
As I write this, the South Carolina Supreme Court is deliberating over who has the authority to spend $700 million in federal stimulus dollars – Gov. Sanford or the legislature. The governor wants to put the money toward our state’s massive debt; the legislature simply wants to spend it.
In other states, governors run the executive branch – implementing the laws passed by the legislative body. Not so in South Carolina, where the legislature passes the laws and then dictates how they are executed through a complex system of provisos.
If legislators don’t agree with the governor – even on decisions the governor has the authority to make – lawmakers simply change the law and do it their way. For example, a few powerful legislators didn’t like the way Gov. Sanford administered security for the State House grounds, so they passed a law creating a brand-new Capitol Police Force run entirely by legislators.
Similarly, legislators were horrified when Gov. Sanford decided to use his portion of the federal stimulus money to pay down debt – even though this represented less than a tenth of the $8 billion our state is receiving.
And so they passed a law that stripped the governor’s power over that money, and then they spent it.
That decision will likely be upheld by the state’s Supreme Court, which relies on and lobbies lawmakers for its funding and whose members are elected by the legislature.
I am not attacking the Court’s integrity, but the undeniable fact is that lawmakers totally control the structure, makeup and funding of the courts that interpret our laws.
Essentially, in addition to having the traditional powers of a legislature, the South Carolina General Assembly also effectively controls the execution and interpretation of our laws.
In the Federalist Papers, James Madison said: “The accumulation of all powers, legislative, executive, and judiciary, in the same hands, whether of one, a few, or many, and whether hereditary, self-appointed, or elective, may justly be pronounced the very definition of tyranny.”
And that’s precisely what we have in South Carolina – a tyranny by the legislature. As John Stuart Mill noted in one of his early essays, “Parliament can act as a tyrant just as much as a King can.”
In defiance of that tyranny, I joined thirteen other Senators this year in voting against a budget that will grow government and create new programs that we do not need and cannot afford. Such irresponsible spending is bad policy in the best of economic times, but it frankly borders on immoral when families are losing their savings, their jobs and their homes.
No business or household could function if it were run like our state – and yet so much of this flawed process remains hidden from public view.
In fact, a recent report from the SC Policy Council revealed that more than a third of our state’s budget – about $7 billion – is funded with fees and fines, and spent on projects that are not examined or publicly debated. I asked for a review of those funds to see where we could achieve savings, but my request was put on a shelf and ignored.
The bottom line is that our structurally flawed system breeds inefficiency at best and corruption at worst. Citizens have far too little say in how our state is run and how their dollars are spent – which, given our legislature’s uber-dominance, is not surprising. As Aristotle knew, the defining characteristic of a tyranny is the placing of the interests of a small group over the best interests of the general population.
Powerful legislative leaders simply close the door on the public (and the rest of the people’s elected representatives) and craft budgets that keep their pet projects alive and power intact.
Some of us proposed a budget that would have cut spending, paid down debt and funded necessary government programs (including education at its highest level ever), but ultimately only 13 senators voted to support our fiscally responsible budget.
The public is tired of putting more money into state government (especially in these hard economic times) and getting the same unsatisfactory results.
South Carolinians deserve a true representative democracy, one in which the governor they elect implements our laws and an independent judiciary interprets our laws.
If we ever want to prosper as a state, the tyranny of the legislature must be broken, and that means substantive restructuring that provides for a true separation of powers.
Frankly, such structural reform will be harder to achieve in South Carolina than in any other state; here, before the people can ever cast a vote on amending our state’s constitution, the proposed amendment must be approved by a two-thirds vote in the House and the Senate. But I want my constituents, my colleagues and my opponents to understand that I intend to lead that fight.
Every day that we let the tyranny of the legislature go unchecked and unchallenged, prosperity gets a little further out of reach and true representative democracy is eroded. But real change is possible if citizens fully engage in the cause, and they are the ones who will ultimately empower the reformers who have stood for change and are eager to deliver it.
Tom,
Well thought out and well said. I hope you and the reformers in the legislature are successful and you have my support.
Best regards, Bill Haley
You sound shocked, Tom as if you’ve never seen nor experienced something like this before. Have you already forgotten the previous deplorable 8 years we suffered under the King Bush administrative, legislative and the judicial branches? It’s no different. You are so naive….
Senator Davis
The PUBLIC wants South Carolina to PROPERLY FUND EDCUATION IN SOUTH CAROLINA….the TYRANNY is on the part of Governor Sanford for refusing to accept the stimilus money for its required purpose.
As one of the ten worst Governors in our Nation he has no leg to stand on anyway. The legislators are listening to the PEOPLE and the Governor is NOT.
Tom - just want to thank you for working so hard and for being so outspoken - and to let you know that your letter of today is beautifully written - thank you for keeping us so well informed - please continue to fight and I wish I could do more to help - one of my biggest concerns is that everyday citizens are either too busy and/or overwhelmed with their own problems or just too complacent or intimidated by the system to take notice where tax dollars go - or to take a serious interest in who is in control - I continue to try and find ways to light a grassroots kind of fire - Tamela
Tom,
Keep up the good work. You are fighting the “good old boy” network and there is nothing harder. They need to be exposed. Where is our ever vigilent press? The only way this can be stopped is from the inside. Surely there are others like you who can not stand the waste and fraud that is occuring in our legislature.
Thank you for taking time to clarify what I suspected!
Rich
Tom: Where have you been all these years. Bravo!You have my vote. JKC
Dear Senator Davis,
I applaud you for making your views known. I am an Independent who believes in open government and citizens having access to all the intricacies of its states operation.
I also applaud your support for analyzing what makes sense economically. All too often we spend money without regards to root issues and how best to solve those issues. It makes sense to paid off debt and then to address means to encourage growth.
That being said, while it makes sense I am convinced that Governor Sanford initiated this brillant ploy as a political strategy. Perhaps he has visions for the White House? Or perhaps his passions lay in keeping the status quo in tact and out of the hands of those who are different from him and the established status quo. Perhaps he is a part of that Good Ole’ Boy system and this is his way of saying, “We won’t let him tell us what to do”
I hope it isn’t that simple. God forbid Governor Sanford is really interested in the welfare of South Carolina’s financial outcome and I like thousands of others are judging him unjustly. But if his intentions are pure why was it necessary for him to raise the public’s attention in this matter. Why didn’t he approach the powers that are, Obama and say I have an idea: In order for my state to become healthy we first need to pay off our debt. Given the current adminstrations committment to reach across the isle this would have been an opportunity for Sanford to heal the divisive bi partisan wound while at the same time heal our state economically.
And who knows, if he does have higher aspirations he could have killed one bird with two stones.
While the gist of your comments aren’t lost perhaps the workings of the government or lack thereof really is an issue independent of all other issues.
I again commend you for going against the grain of the way things have been done in the past. And I hope to meet and talk with you one day. Keep up the good work.
FINALLY! A letter worth reading! And worth passing along. For too many years to count, I have contended that nothing will change in local, state or national government until people in positions of power muster the courage to speak the truth. Somewhere along the way, conscience, convictions, principles went out the window. Do what is RIGHT. Let the chips fall where they may but do what is RIGHT, what is HONORABLE. We need statesmen, not politicians. I hope you are serious about attempting to bring about much needed change.
Eleanor Tillman
THANK YOU !!!!!! KEEP UP THE GOOD WORK !!!!!!
JOANNE
Tom, Thank you for taking a stand against our ‘good ‘ole boy’ system of SC government. I hope that you and the other senators that voted with you can raise awareness in our public; I hope that the voters will stand up and ask you to fight for us, for what is the democratic right that we should expect. Reform has to start with awareness, but can only have a true chance in the voting booth (if that is not also corrupted by overturning the voice of the Public). Fight on, fight for me, fight for all of us.
Thank you for the opinion and analysis, I did not realize our legislative branch had so much influence. Is this a trend that can be changed to more of a balance? The information about the fees and fines and the not-so-public assignment of those funds is disturbing. SC is not in the intelligence business so undisclosed spending seems overly protective and should attract the attention of public watch groups for exposure.
Regards
John Hanlin
HHI, SC and Colorado
Very well put. You have my support!
What does a semi-retired person like me to to help you change the system? Write Letters to the Editor? How would that influence those legislators who are “the problem”?
Thank you for speaking out. Thank you for your Town Hall Meetings. Thank you for caring. I live in Sun City-Hilton Head.
1. Having a legislature that can band together and override an “executive” when that “executive” is not acting in the interests of his constituents is one of the most important safeguards in our democracy. Otherwise, it’s just a dictatorship. Just because a person is elected Governor, or President, they are not the final say. The constitution has provided these safeguards at length.
2. Governor Sanford had his veto over-ridden. Then he tries to sue, and is likely to be unsuccessful. 0 for 2. Now he’s calling for “restructuring” because his power is not absolute. It sounds to me like Governor Sanford is being tyrannical.
3. The stimulus money has always been meant to spend. To stimulate the economy. Now Governor Sanford wants to use it to pay down debt, which he had a hand in creating. And then he can claim he balanced the state budget in the next election. All this strikes me as being very self-serving.
Our state can use that money. Thousands of South Carolinians are in need of jobs. Governor Sanford has a job.
It’s easy for him to turn his nose up at it.
I think the Governor may be right about “restructuring”. Perhaps we should “restructure” him out of office next election.
This was an impressive letter although very discouraging. Should there be a new political party in South Carolina? I’d like to see one nationally. As I said to some friends lately, there are four main political groups in this country — liberals, conservatives, crazy right wingers and dirty red rats, and the last two are growing stronger all the time. Strange as it seems, I think that there is room for a Liberal Conservative party that takes a Libertarian Freedom view of society coupled with fiscal conservatism.
Thank you, Tom, for explaining the debacle as it truly is. The public is being held hostage to the proprietary interests of the very powerful few. Change will come but we need it now in order for our children to have opportunities just as we did.
Tom
I don’t know why I took the time out of a helacious day to read your piece. I guess I was interested in your reflection on your first year. I am glad I took the time.
Very well written, direct to the extreme without going over, and just plain true. Good luck in your quest. Keep doing what you are doing and you will “break on through to the other side…”
JT
Tom
I don’t know why I took the time out of a helacious day to read your piece. I guess I was interested in your reflection on your first year. I am glad I took the time.
Very well written, direct to the extreme without going over, and just plain true. Good luck in your quest. Keep doing what you are doing and you will “break on through to the other side…”
JT
Very good information. You are going to be in the hot seat and those good old boys will do every thing to get you in line or make it so hard and miserable for you that you can not function. Hopefully, you will get more help in the legislature to change the tide. I know that you are going to need more outside help such as the local papers and other groups to help you get the message out- not just once but continually.
I know you know that it is going to be a long hard battle and I really appreciate your efforts. One caution-don’t sacrifice too much if it hurts your family. You have a lovely wife and young family and they come first.
Thank you for all the information and meetings that you have had to keep us all informed. You are doing a super job.
Please continue your efforts to expand your coalition of like-minded Senators. The legislative body you find yourelf in is the result of such a high percentage of citizens with very limited education. Fortunately much of the population growth during the past ten years is retirement relocation.
No matter how discouraged you become, don’t stop doing what is right and just.
Tony Schopp
Tom:
My anger with Gov. Sanford has lessened based on your explanation of our legislative system in this state.
My concern is of course that the stimulus money will be denied to South Carolina and we will still suffer the tax burden to pay it back with no benefit of having it improve the states economy. I understand the need to pay down debt but I also know that our citizens are really suffering.
Please explain why Lindsey Graham encouraged Gov. Sanford to take the money as offered in the stimulus package?
We are horrified at the behavior of everyone in Columbia and we only hope common ground can be established to solve this crisis.
Good Luck,
Marcia Hunter
Because a Governor with bad ideas can’t get his way this is tyranny ? Last time I check you were a Republican , it is the majority party , Whats your problem ? I love this ….”I am not attacking the Court’s integrity” then without even taking a break you say “but the undeniable fact is that lawmakers totally control the structure, makeup and funding of the courts that interpret our laws.Essentially, in addition to having the traditional powers of a legislature, the South Carolina General Assembly also effectively controls the execution and interpretation of our laws.” WEll OF COURSE YOU ARE ! Then why not get a backbone and say it instead of this sorry attempt at political rhetoric .
You reference the S.C policy council ,their ideas are about as fresh as the republican party is united . You will fight the tyranny for a new constitution when you were on the wrong side of a 3-1 budget vote ? Well don’t hurt yourself now. If your letter exuded frustration , I can only imagine the next . After you waste your time on the wrong side of an issue. I understand your history with the Governor but siding with a Governor whose term is surly his last , is tantamount to political suicide . It is my opinion that you are on the wrong side of this debate .I deal with dozens of people everyday and It is an unofficial consensus that Sanford’s stance on the stimulus enforced the countries stereotype of S.C as conservative to it’s own death , last in education , the highest unemployment rate , but “dang” we got some good ideas . You are the majority party and I see no progress . Although change would be good , it is becoming quite evident that you or the republican party provide few new ideas . Respectfully , Robert Gala
I know the Governor is not eligible for another term, but that doesn’t mean he’s guaranteed the rest of this term.
Especially if he continues to conspire to keep money OUT of our state.
Thanks for the information. What you described is eye opening and very troubling. How can I do to help?
Mary Grove
877 Ribaut Road
Beaufort, SC 29902
Tom, A clearer, more concise explanation of our legislative problem I have not seen. Thank you. I support your intended fight and hope your Columbia colleagues quickly see the light and do their duty in support of you. We need more “good guys” in our legislature.
I look forward to your first steps in the fight and, even more so, a grasp of your strategy for carrying this good cause forward to sucess, if it won’t tip your hand to the “bad guys”.
Sincerely, Pat
I believe that a well run business requires a strong executive. The legislature should try to work with the Governor to allow him the liberty to how best to manage government. I don’t agree however that the entire $700 million should be used to pay down debt when there are other shortages. I hope the court will straighten this out. Meanwhile I support governmental reform that limits the legislature to writing law and leaving administration of government in the hands of the Governor.
This is what I call “laying it on the line”. Bravo!
I agree with you.
It will be difficult, but please continue in your efforts to bring about the needed changes.
I have read Tom Davis’ June 4, 2009 letter. It was an eye opener.
It also inspired me to become more supportive of Tom Davis’ efforts. I am now 100 percent sure that I voted for the right man.
High time to shake up the “good ole’ boy” network, i. e. legislature, and remind them why and whom they are serving.
I realize that it took a lot of political courage to take your position, Tom. I hope that you will perservere.
Tom,
Hope you’re well. I don’t agree with all of what you’ve written, but you make some good points. I’d be interested in a condensed version for Statehouse Report next week…(up to 600 words).
As to your comment about: “high unemployment rate, our low graduation rate and our declining prosperity as a state,” how many bills did you sponsor or co-sponsor to boost jobs, improve prosperity and improve the graduation rate? And what where they?
Best,
Andy
I knew it was bad, but did not realize it was THIS bad. Keep up the fight! We need it. I read not too long ago that the reason S.C. legislature held all the power was because they were afraid that someday, there would be a black governor and they wanted to make sure that person wouldn’t be able to do anything. Don’t know if its true, but certainly sounds plausible.
Where do Chalk & Herbkersman stand vis-a-vis “good old boys club?” Are they for us or for themselves?
I agree wholeheartedly. I hope you will lead this fight and make something happen. This is the problem across the entire country if you ask me. I think they should start with a zero budget approach and build up to see what we really need to spend.
Tom,
Thanks very much. This was a real eye-opener for me.
Regards,
Bob
Very interesting.What planning is needed to create a change?
People, resources and mechanism?
Unfortunaely none of oue Beaufort county Reps supported the Governor. I had admonished Rich Chalk prior to his vote but it did not do any good.
I am sending your E*Mail to all the Republicans I know.
Please keep working on this issue, it is critically important. The Supreme Court ruling is incomprehensible it will permit spending money on programs that can not be sustained once Stimulus money runs out without increased taxation of South Carolina citizens.
Whisper to Governor Sanford that he might consider running for a seat in the legislature after his term ends. This could make a difference.
Thank you for your hard work and choosing to take on this battle. You describe what I feared was the case in our state government.
Regarding the federal stimulus funds, the popular, and easier, position would be to accept the federal funds to make sure we get our “fair share” here in SC. It’s a false promise to believe that more spending, regardless of the source of funding, will bring us back to prosperity. Someone will have to pay the price, someday. It will be our children. I don’t want the money and the debt that comes with it. Sanford is right.
You will have my support and my vote - don’t ever give up.
This is a good idea as long as we have governors of Sanford’s caliper….but if for some reason we ended up with a governor like some of those in the northern liberal states, we will wish we had left things alone. Irregardless of the way our state government is organized it is still one of the best states to live in.
Tom,
It seems to me that requiring transparency as to how state funds are being spent (including fines, etc.) would be a good first step. Would it be possible to mount a campaign in the media to accomplish this? No one should be able to argue against it, but it would require other lawmakers to operate in the light. ONly then might they feel obligated to do what is right, not just what they think is best.
Hi Tom,
Thank you so much for your bravery and tenacity to take on the selfishness and power hunger of our state legislature. During the imminent threat of terrorists, there is a rampant fear flowing through everyone’s veins. However, we sometimes put that fear on the back burner because we don’t see it as a day to day threat in our personal lives, which is incorrect. With our lives being so invaded now with threats of no jobs, losing our homes, or our life savings disappearing, the fear is living at our doorsteps in a definitely personal way. The common men and women who have made this land so great are exactly the ones who now seem to throw up their hands and hopes in disbelief that we have never expected nor seen our country in such danger….and that threat of danger now comes from within. The ones in power, that you are trying so hard to combat, seem to no longer care about what our husbands, fathers, grandfathers and great grandfathers struggled to hand down to their children….the belief that we are a country founded on our belief in God, truth and integrity. We should not have to live in fear.
Thank you for your strength and honesty. I will be praying for you.
Dear Tom,
Thank you for the detailed explanation of the inside dealings of our state legislature. Few of us have the opportunity or the time to know what is going on. You have presented this picture brilliantly and I hope that you are able to exert an influence and make some big changes.
We need people like you not only in our state but in many state governments. This is the level that we can all have the greatest impact.
There can not be a government of the people unless the people know how to influence this government for the good of all. Things are so complex today it is hard to know what to support. Please continue to keep us informed and let your constituency know how we can help you.
You have my support and prayers.