From the daily archives:

Friday, June 12, 2009

State lawmakers return to the statehouse Tuesday for a brief stay of only a day or two to deal with  Gov. Mark Sanford’s vetoes. Among the bills at the top of the agenda is payday lending legislation, an issue which the General Assembly finally compromised on after years of debate. Richland County Senator Joel Lourie says he hopes to override the veto, but he says, ”You never know… There are a couple of things I don’t predict.  I don’t predict how the Gamecocks are going to play, and I don’t predict what the legislature is going to do.  But I’m cautiously optimistic.  Based on the votes needed to pass the bill, I think we can override.  But…you never know what’s going on that day.”

Lourie says he’s not aware of any state where a governor has overridden payday lending restrictions.

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Riverbanks Zoo gorilla escapes, shoves man, returns to exhibit

by Tom Hayes 06/12/09 6:53 PM

photo of a western lowland gorilla
Five minutes of freedom was enough for a gorilla who escaped briefly Friday morning from his gated sleeping area at the Riverbanks Zoo and Gardens in Columbia before returning to his exhibit area. In his short flirtation with freedom, the gorilla did manage an encounter with a food service employee [...]

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Climatologist warns not to waste water

by William Christopher 06/12/09 6:53 PM

State Climatologist Hope Mizzell says even though no part of South Carolina is now under a drought classification, no one should be wasting water.  Mizzell announced last week that for the first time since August of 2006, no area of the state is under a drought declaration, thanks to increased rainfall over the last six [...]

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Economist: Manufacturing is still key to SC

by Ashley Byrd 06/12/09 6:21 PM

Economist Don Schunk,Coastal Carolina University, briefs Board of Economic Advisors

One of the state’s leading economists says South Carolina is not stabilizing its manufacturing sector, which could hurt the state’s economy in the long term.

At its monthly meeting, the state’s Board of Economic Advisors called in economist Don Schunk to hep them to discern what lies [...]

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DeMint: Sotomayor’s confirmation hearing is rushed

by Michael Brown 06/12/09 2:24 PM

Some members of the Republican party are not happy with the timetable for Sonia Sotomayor’s Supreme Court confirmation hearing.

U.S. Senator Jim DeMint
U.S. Senator Jim DeMint, Republican, says the they should take more time on Sotomayor because she has been a part of over 3,000 decisions in which they have to consider before confirmation. DeMint has [...]

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