Government Can Promote Economic Freedom
Government can’t create jobs, but government can promote economic freedom by getting out of the way.
As your Representative, I’ve pushed pro-growth legislation that helps create jobs by limiting government. That’s why I’ve been endorsed by the South Carolina Chamber of Commerce, the unified voice of business. Click here to read the endorsement.
In just a few years in Columbia, I’ve pushed bills that…
- Restructure South Carolina’s outdated government structure to increase efficiency, reduce waste and save you tax money.
- Makes the Attorney General fight for your rights when Washington liberals pushed a government takeover of health care
on our nation.
- Constitutionally limits the amount of money Columbia politicians can spend each year.
- Demands spending transparency by putting more votes on the record.
– Cuts taxes on Spartanburg County businesses so that they can hire new employees and create jobs in our region.
- Eliminates the frivolous lawsuits that are closing the doors of too many small businesses.
- Revamps South Carolina’s criminal laws, saving taxpayer dollars and keeping violent criminals in prison.
- Reduces the mountains of government regulation and red tape on local businesses.
I’m proud to receive the Chamber of Commerce Endorsement but I’m even more proud to help put South Carolina families back to work.
Politicians and Their Secret Spending
When I got to Columbia, I was shocked that your elected officials can spend your money in secret. That’s right… in secret.
Politicians could vote for extreme wasteful spending and insert pork barrel projects into the budget and you would never know. Not only is this irresponsible, but it breeds the kind of corruption that allows special interests to control government.
I’ve fought this sort of unethical behavior and I’ll continue to do so as your Representative.
I’m sure that you’ve heard about Senator Jim DeMint’s crusade against earmarks at the federal level. We had that same problem here in South Carolina too. Politicians could insert secret spending projects into the budget and most of us would never even know they were there. These projects were expanding our budgets and lacing them with needless projects requested by lobbyists and special interest groups. Last year I supported a historic rules change that makes any legislator who requests one of these projects put their name on the request. We can’t stop legislators from requesting these projects, but we can make it public and we can call them out for wasting your money.
Just two weeks ago I proudly voted for a roll call voting bill that puts nearly all votes “on the record.” Currently many votes can be taken on a voice vote where we all just yell Yea or Ney. It is virtually impossible to know how your legislator voted. We passed a rules change demanding more on the record votes and now we have passed a law making us to do the same.
Folks, we can’t create jobs and grow our economy until we can lower taxes and produce an environment adequate for economic success. And we can’t do that until we clean up government, hold down spending and make the politicians accountable.
I’ll continue fighting for transparency and accountability as long as I’m in Columbia.
Your Representative,
Keith Kelly
My View on Term Limits
Hello everyone. I hope you are having a great week. I’ve been extremely busy the last few weeks knocking on doors, working for you in Columbia, running my business and trying to spend a little time with the family. Finding time to sleep has become difficult, but that’s okay. I truly love serving you in the State House.
Last week I got a questionnaire from the Upstate Tea Party folks asking me my view on term limits. Like them, I believe whole-heartedly in transparency, so I want to tell you exactly how I feel about the subject.
I believe that part of the problem with both Washington and Columbia is the seniority system. Basing leadership on the number of years in a legislative body is a recipe for disaster. Special interests dominate the system and that breeds corruption, good ole boy politics and a tax-and-spend mentality.
I support term limits legislation because it will clean up the system.
However, I will not term limit myself without every other legislator doing so also. Here’s why: right now the upstate is at a massive disadvantage. Besides Senate Majority Leader Harvey Peeler in Gaffney, the upstate has virtually no leadership. All the big decision makers are from Charleston, the Pee Dee, and the Midlands. We have lost all our leadership positions and now the upstate is being terribly ignored when it comes to the economic development projects that create jobs.
I supported the Boeing project because it will help many upstate suppliers, but we have to start recruiting those type industries here in Spartanburg County, too. That won’t happen if we term limit ourselves and let Charleston soak up more and more power. They already have the three most powerful men in South Carolina – the Governor, the Speaker of the House, and the President Pro Tempore of the Senate.
Until we fix this broken seniority system, upstate residents must band together and elect leaders who can bring jobs to our area. As your Representative, my top priority will remain economic growth in the upstate.
Your Representative,
Keith Kelly
I will fight for the rights of our unborn children
I have always been pro-life. But my beliefs were confirmed the first time I saw my daughter’s eyes. Now a father of three girls, I know that life begins at conception. And I can’t imagine why anyone would ever want to abort or harm an unborn child.
Every child should have the chance to live. As your State Representative, I have made it a top priority to stop abortions in South Carolina and increase penalties for criminals who harm unborn victims in violent crime. Just this year I supported a new law that makes women wait 24 hours before having an abortion. Our current law states that a woman has to wait just 1 hour before having an abortion. Believe it or not, that’s the lowest waiting period in the entire country. Our new law will require women to go home and come back the next day, giving them more time to think about the life they are about to end. I also strongly supported a push this year to end taxpayer funded abortions in South Carolina.
I’ve been a strong advocate for unborn children and that’s why South Carolina Citizens for Life has endorsed my re-election candidacy. I hope you will too.
Click here to read the endorsement letter from SC Citizens for Life.
Sincerely,
Keith Kelly
PS – I would appreciate your support in the June 8th primary.
Working Today To Keep Your Family Safe
We are working hard in Columbia today. The balcony is full of law enforcement from across the state because we have the warrantless searches bill back up today. This bill will allow law enforcement to search criminals who are out on parole if they are suspected of engaging in unlawful activity.
I’ve been leading the fight in Columbia to pass this bill for one simple reason – criminals who are on parole are still under the watch of South Carolina’s judicial system. Parole is not the same as being set free. These people are still being punished for their crimes. Just because they have been released from prison does not mean their punishment is over. They have loss rights granted to normal citizens because they broke our laws.
I’m taking the floor today and pushing this bill as hard as I can because we must give law enforcement the tools they need to keep our families safe.
Keith
PS – Here’s what a couple Chiefs of Police said about my fight this morning.
“It’s obvious that Keith Kelly has been a staunch supporter of South Carolina’s law enforcement.”
- Columbia Chief of Police Tandy P. Carter
“Keith Kelly has been there for law enforcement from the beginning. He’s made sure we have the tools to keep South Carolina families safe.”
- Charleston Chief of Police Gregory G. Mullen
We Need Spending Transparency
Keith Kelly gives you a quick update from the State House and talks about his view on spending.
Gov. Sanford Calls for Passage of Sentencing Reform
LEGISLATION AIMED AT SAVING TAXPAYER DOLLARS, REDUCING RECIDIVISM
Columbia, S.C. – April 21, 2010 – Gov. Mark Sanford today joined legislative leaders and state officials to call for passage of the sentencing reform bill (S.1154) now being debated in the South Carolina House of Representatives. These reforms would reverse the trend toward incarcerating non-violent criminals who pose little or no risk to the public, discourage recidivism by providing inmates with a more closely supervised transition to society once their sentences have been served, and at the same time save taxpayers more than $400 million over the next five years. Read more
Fighting Violent Crime
Representative Keith Kelly is the lead House sponsor of the Sentencing Reform Act, keeping violent criminals behind bars while saving taxpayer dollars.
S.C. needs sentencing reform
I thought you would be interested in this article detailing the need to pass sentencing reform, which I helped draft over the last year.
- Keith
People without children might not care so much about public education (although they should).
And people who have solid jobs might not be so distressed about unemployment (although they should be, too).
But everyone in South Carolina is vulnerable to crime — from a stolen bicycle to a drive-by shooting. And everyone should encourage the state House of Representatives to vote in favor of a Senate bill that would reform criminal sentencing.
The comprehensive, bipartisan bill aims to preserve public safety and reduce crime — two worthy goals. To do that, it would provide consistency in sentencing classifications and assign punishments proportional for the offenses committed.
It would keep violent criminals behind bars, by toughening penalties for some of the most serious crimes.
But it would manage some not-so-bad lawbreakers, who don’t need to fill beds in the state’s dangerously overcrowded prisons, with community supervision.
The bill, scheduled for discussion in a House judicial subcommittee today, presumes that a drug user, for example, might become a productive citizen with appropriate counseling and oversight in the community. It recognizes that prisons aren’t ideal places for rehabilitation, as the high recidivism rate for inmates attests.
Indeed, about half of the state’s prisoners are non-violent offenders. And 24 percent of all prisoners return to prison — many for non-criminal offenses.
If things continue as they are, the Department of Corrections estimates it will take $317 million to build more prisons to meet the state’s growing needs. This is money the state can ill afford, but would have to provide for the safety of the public.
With sentencing reform, the existing prisons would be adequate — and the state would save money because the cost of community supervision is a fraction of the cost of incarceration.
The sentencing reform bill would ensure that prisons have room for the bad guys. The public deserves that security.
It also provides for the best use of public dollars in parceling out cell space — something that hard-pressed taxpayers deserve.
Happy Easter
Happy Easter
This weekend we pause to enjoy the beautiful South Carolina weather with our families and to thank God for the sacrifice he made for us.
Have a wonderful Easter. I’ll be seeing you on the campaign trail in the very near future.
God Bless,
Keith
