COLOMBIA, SC (AP) – Here is the text prepared by South Carolina Senator Mia McLeod of Columbia, giving the Democratic response to Governor Henry McMaster’s speech on the state of the state on Wednesday:
Good evening, my fellow South Carolina. I’m Senator Mia McLeod.
COVID-19 infected at least 350,000 South Carolinaians and killed 6,000 of our mothers, fathers, brothers, sisters and grandparents. According to a recent White House report, Greenville ranks first in the country for medium-sized cities and Spartanburg ranks ninth. This virus is wreaking havoc in South Carolina and Governor McMaster has yet to come up with a plan to deal with it.
The Department of Health and Environmental Control, the agency we call DHEC, is responsible for South Carolina’s response to COVID-19, including the launch and distribution of the vaccine.
Let’s be clear, our governor appoints the president of DHEC and the board After trying to manipulate the agency’s scientists, Governor McMaster and his administration created unnecessary turbulence and turnover. Now, they are playing the blame game, so it is not surprising that the launch of the vaccine in our state was abysmal, or that Republicans and Democrats are equally critical of their ability to lead and protect the people of this state.
And with new cases reaching 34% positive rates, South Carolina has only managed to administer about a third of the vaccines that our state has received. This colossal failure belongs to our CEO…. Governor Henry McMaster.
Democrats across South Carolina are grateful for our women and men who are on the front lines … working day and night to save lives and keep essential services running. And we mourn and pray for those who have already lost loved ones to this deadly virus.
It doesn’t have to be that way.
With all due respect, Governor, because you failed to lead us, the current state of our state … is bleak.
As a single mother, a small business owner and someone who knows the struggles of a pre-existing disease like sickle cell anemia very well, I understand the seriousness of the challenges we face and the courage, empathy and compassion that true leadership requires right now unprecedented.
How can you proclaim a strong economy, governor, when more than 810,000 South Carolinaians have already filed for unemployment? Many are still trying to obtain assistance for a pandemic that will help cover basic living expenses, such as food, medicine, mortgage payments and rent.
Who said we can’t be pro-business and pro-people? The two are not mutually exclusive.
If you and your fellow Republican leaders simply took this virus seriously months ago, issuing a temporary statewide masking mandate and a brief stay at home; if you had listened to our public health experts and armed us with the TRUTH instead of divisive and partisan rhetoric … South Carolina could very well be on its way to taking us back to work, school and life, with safety.
Instead, Governor, you told us that everything was fine … bent on reversals and rhetoric and the use of politicized masks. Last week, while record cases continued to rise, you insisted that our schools open 5 days a week for face-to-face classes.
As doctors warned of a second, more deadly wave, you said, “Come in … we’re open …” bragging that … “South Carolina’s business is business … and proving that the politics and profits really outweigh the health and safety of our people.
When Hurricane Hugo devastated South Carolina’s economy, our elected leaders used all available government resources to rebuild our state. Shouldn’t we be doing this now … during a global pandemic?
Why can’t we use state reserve funds to help keep small businesses running?
Why don’t we raise our minimum wage like more than 20 other states have done this year?
Why don’t we create tax incentives for companies that provide vaccines and other pandemic benefits to employees?
Why aren’t we partnering with our county health departments to help vaccinate our most vulnerable citizens?
And why aren’t we joining 39 other Democratic and Republican-controlled states that have expanded Medicaid to facilitate overcrowded emergency rooms and ICUs and bring medical facilities and staff to poor counties and underserved communities?
Now, more than ever, we must work together to leave this virus behind, so that we can focus on other important issues, such as: education, racial justice, health, living wages, broadband, public services, infrastructure, air and water clean, green jobs and other systemic reforms that deserve our attention. COVID-19 is killing us now. That’s where our focus is … and where yours should be.
The truth is that our economy cannot recover until we do. And without leadership, this virus will continue to wreak havoc … shutting down our lives and livelihoods in the near future.
Protecting life in the womb has become the politically convenient mantra of Republicans in South Carolina. In fact, you and other Republican leaders have made an unconstitutional bill their number one priority again this session, instead of focusing on protecting the 5 millions of living human beings who are already here.
Governor, no matter how much it gets worse … you said you wouldn’t do anything different. We need a PLAN that includes a statewide masking mandate, a moratorium on evictions and foreclosures, and clear security guidelines for schools, businesses and employees.
Where are the federal aid dollars you promised? Where are the vaccines for our essential workers and most vulnerable populations? We deserve a leader who doesn’t play political games … like trying to send $ 32 million to private schools, while our public schools and teachers struggle.
Governor, who will help us to rebuild a post-pandemic economy if you can’t even get us through this first wave safely?
Our state motto is: “While I breathe, I wait.” But “we can’t breathe” while COVID-19 and systemic racism continue to kill more black and brown South Carolinas than ever before. And it is hard to hope when communities of color do not have equal access to quality medical care and are the last on the list to be vaccinated.
You can change that, Governor, by putting EVERYONE in South Carolina first, because our state cannot be “open for business” until COVID-19 is “out of business.”