“My vision for South Carolina is to get back to basics,” said 5th District Congressman and gubernatorial candidate Ralph Norman recently at First Monday, a Republican club in Greenville.
Norman, who announced his bid for governor in July, will be vying against several other GOP contenders for the state's highest office – ist District Congresswoman Nancy Mace, Attorney General Alan Wilson, Lieutenant Governor Pam Evette and State Senator Josh Kimbrell.
One of those basics is infrastructure. “We're going to put a priority on roads,” said Norman. He said that the state leads the nation in fatalities on secondary roads. He also mentioned the large number of unsafe bridges.
“It's unacceptable,” he said. He said that he will get it back in shape. “I will do that,” he promised,
Norman said that as governor he would tackle government waste. “I will put a DOGE commission in place,” he said. “We'll examine every agency of the government.” He said that his lieutenant governor would be a working lieutenant governor and would head up the DOGE commission.
Norman lamented that government in the state has grown over the last ten years. He said that he is disappointed in the politicians who have let that happen.
He continued, “You've got a lot of abuse in Columbia, you've got a lot of waste. . . Folks, it's not going to happen under a Norman administration.”
“Zero-based budgeting hasn't been done. That's how we're $9 billion in debt.” Zero-based budgeting is required by statute but has not been done since 2009.
Norman wants to redo each of the state commissions and put people in who are professionals. He said that he will work to get good people in office and root out the bad ones.
There is a challenge before the state, he said. “It starts with good people, godly people who are willing to put their name on the line.”
He added, “You've got to be willing and have the courage to veto the bills that don't make sense and make sure our money is going where it needs to go.”
“I'm from the business community,” said Norman, a real estate developer. Thus, he understands the concerns of businessmen and women. He said he wants to cut regulations and will consult the business community on that subject..
Norman also noted that frivolous lawsuits against businesses have “gotten way out of hand.” He said that as governor he would institute a loser pays system.
When asked about the practice of giving incentives to lure economic development to the state, he replied, “We're giving away too much money.” He added, “i'm all for growth but it's got to be controlled.” He cited two examples, however, BMW and Boeing, in which this practice has turned out good for the state.
Norman said he supports offshore energy development and that the state needs more nuclear reactors. “ You need to get politicians out of the nuclear business,” he said.
Norman also touched on the subject of judicial reform, which he supports. He noted that only two states, South Carolina and Virginia, let politicians elect judges, whom he said have been soft on crime. “How is that different than letting Clemson and Carolina pick their own referees?” he asked. “We're going to change that.”
