Governor Nikki Haley’s EthicsReforms – Style Trumps Substance
By Paul Gable
Gov. Nikki Haley’s run around the state this week promoting ethics reform was a perfect example of disingenuous political posturing.
Haley must be given credit for several things. She knows how to define the message and present herself in the best possible political light. After this week’s demonstration, one could almost think Haley supports real ethics reform.
Nothing could be further from the truth. She supposedly supports transparency in government while her administration continuously refuses to follow the guidelines of the state’s weak freedom of information act.
“Actions speak louder than words, except in politics, where b__s__ political rhetoric is often mistaken for action. Haley’s actions show her to be an extremely ethically challenged politician (that’s probably an oxymoron).”
Haley wants to do away with the House and Senate ethics committees even though it was the House Ethics Committee’s lack of will that saved her from a real ethics investigation into her past actions.
She is now calling for total disclosure of all income by candidates and incumbents in office, even though she hid tens of thousands of income while a ‘consultant’ to a business that was in danger of losing a state contract.
Haley’s call for mandatory recusal on conflicts of interest has no substance. Read state ethics laws and you discover it is almost impossible to have a conflict of interest in this state.
Just a few weeks after being saved by what passes for ethics inquiries in South Carolina, Haley is now trying to take on the role of reformer. Where were your personal ethics, governor, when you were a House member?
Actions speak louder than words, except in politics, where b__s__ political rhetoric is often mistaken for action. Haley’s actions show her to be an extremely ethically challenged politician (that’s probably an oxymoron).
However, her state ethics tour this week is designed to play well in Tampa at the Republican Convention, not to lead to any attempt at real ethics reform in South Carolina.
Nikki the reformer on prime time television addressing the Republican conventioneers. Who woulda thunk it?
Speak Up…