Image by Flickr user Ti H2O Image by 20091018-money.jpg
South Carolina lawmakers are scrambling to figure out how best to fix a problem that has emerged after the Legislature (essentially) forgot to file a piece of paperwork that would have allowed unemployment benefits to flow longer in high-unemployment South Carolina.
Head over to The Post and Courier to get a sense of what's going on.
I'm not usually an advocate of re-printing online comments but these two on the Greenville News' site struck me.
Gov Sanford, Senators and Congressmen, I am a single parent who has played by the rules. My monthly mortgage payment is $650, I do not use credit cards, I cancelled my cell phone. A outing for me and my child is the bi-weekly trip to the grocery store totaling $120 (I don't qualify for food stamps because UB are considered unearned income (I don't have a problem with that). I send out approx. 15 resumes weekly since early 2009 and I've only received two call backs, no offers. There was no vacation, nor money for my child to participate in a club or sports. Monthly utilities run $150 . My child's school clothes are hand-me downs or flea market finds. There's nothing else I can cut and my savings are gone. Just ONE missed month of unemployment checks ($330 per week) and everything I've fought so hard to keep is gone. Where do we go? What do I tell my child, "our state officials failed to read and understand a report, so we're going to live in our car". Please do something!
This is another example of how South Carolina's politicians fail their constituents day in and day out. It was a very simple process of following the guidelines in the stimulus package, but most of the elected officials let this fall by the wayside because of partisan politics. Esspecially your esteemed (lover boy) Governor, Mark Sanford. There is one bit of salvation. If those that are unemployed and those facing unemployment want this stimulus money for those out of work, a special session could be called for and get this passed before the end of the year. But, you know, I'll bet that won't happen because these politicians will continue to fail their constituents day in and day out. Someone will come up with a hair brained idea that Obama is being a socialist or partisan politics will cloud the issue.
