Carolina Politics Online

ANDERSON — South Carolina residents have been misled about needing a passport to fly if the state does not comply with the federally-mandated Real ID Act, Gov. Mark Sanford’s office said Monday.

The act, approved by Congress in 2005, establishes national requirements for state-issued driver’s licenses.

The South Carolina General Assembly passed a law in 2007 saying the state would not implement Real ID Act because of the costs associated with it, said Joel Sawyer, spokesman for the governor’s office.

Gov. Sanford sided with the General Assembly at that time, Mr. Sawyer said.

State House members sent a non-binding resolution last week asking the governor to seek an extension to give the state more time decide whether to implement the act.

Some state legislators and news reports have said unless the state agrees to the requirements of the act, or received an extension by March 31, a passport would be required to board a commercial airplane, enter a federal building or go to work at a nuclear site, beginning May 11.

But Mr. Sawyer said a passport would not be required.

The Independent Mail

That is correct.  A passport will not be required to fly.  That is another Homeland Security scare tactic.  South Carolina residents without a passport will simply have to go through an additional screening which takes only a few more minutes.

The legislature is correct in standing up to the Feds on this and they shouldn’t back down.  This is a huge power grab by the Federal Government and it has to stop.  We aren’t the only state fighting this and we need to stand strong with the others to get this act repealed by Congress.

COLUMBIA, S.C. — About 100 people gathered at the Statehouse to protest illegal immigration and call on legislators to pass a more strict reform bill.A conference committee of House and Senate members will continue meeting this week to hash out differences in their chambers’ separate immigration bills. Both versions require employers to check the legal status of their employees.

But the House bill doesn’t extend to private businesses, and critics say the Senate version includes a large loophole in how employers can check citizenship.

Contractors said they’re losing business to competitors who undercut their bids by hiring illegal workers for cheap.

The Sun News

Rep. Virginia Foxx, R-N.C., has been named to a panel that oversees Congressional student pages, her office said Monday, giving her authority over a troubled program that was at the center of an explosive Washington sex scandal.

The page program brings high school students from all over the country to Washington to run errands for lawmakers in the House. While in Washington, the pages live in dorms and attend school.

Foxx said she hopes to use her position to restore confidence in a program plagued by scandal and mismanagement in recent years.

Statesville Record & Landmark

CONCORD - The Cabarrus Board of County Commissioners may plan to seek a bill from the N.C. General Assembly to enlarge the five-member commission to a seven-member board.

“We’re going to become a community that needs the representation of (seven commissioners),” said Commission Chairman Jay White at a planning retreat Saturday.

Commissioners discussed the possibility that five board members could represent the five Cabarrus municipalities or districts, leaving two at-large seats.

However, the board said it would be important that all seven commissioners be elected through a countywide vote, so as not to strictly represent the interests of their respective districts.

The Independent Tribune

I agree with their position on this. The Charlotte Metro area is booming with no slow down in site. More people will require more representatives and that will produce more effective representation. I have been an advocate for a long time of expanding the size of Congress for precisely this reason. How can a member of the House effectively represent 700,000 people?

LAURENS, S.C. - A black civil rights activist is fighting to close a store that sells KKK robes and T-shirts emblazoned with racial slurs. David Kennedy is confident he can make it happen. After all, he says he owns the building.

Since 1996, the Redneck Shop has operated in an old movie theater that, according to court records, was transferred in 1997 to Kennedy and the Baptist church he leads.

“Our ownership puts an end to that history as far as violence and hatred, racism being practiced in that place and also the recruiting of the Klan,” Kennedy said. “This is the same place that we had to go up into the balcony to go to the movies before the Klan took it. So there’s a lot of history there.”

But legal documents also indicate that the man who runs the store, 62-year-old John Howard, is entitled to operate his business in the building until he dies. Now the dispute may go to court.

Associated Press

This is going to be an interesting case to watch unfold.  I am no legal expert, but I would think that there isn’t much Kennedy can do from a judicial stand point.  Howard isn’t engaging in anything illegal.  Unfortunately, one of the down sides of freedom is having the freedom to harbor ignorance.

The Charlotte City Council hits the nation’s capital this week, seeking more bucks for light rail and streetcars.The council’s annual lobbying trip to the nation’s capital today through Wednesday will be led by Mayor Pro Tem Susan Burgess and City Manager Curt Walton.

The busy agenda includes a meeting with Holland & Knight, the lobbying firm that represents the city’s interests in Washington, and receptions with the N.C. congressional delegation, including Sen. Elizabeth Dole, R-N.C.

City Council member Edwin Peacock said continuing to build “a phenomenal transportation plan” would help Charlotte thrive economically and avoid problems other fast-growing Southern cities often face.

Charlotte Observer

While the lite rail and half cent transit tax to partially fund it have been controversial, I am in support of continuing to expand the lite rail. Charlotte is growing rapidly and by getting better transportation systems built preemptively we can avoid the congestion issues of other large cities like Atlanta. Better to head it off than wait until the problem is causing a million headaches.