Latest news with #PalmettoState
Yahoo
6 days ago
- Automotive
- Yahoo
Is driving slow in left lane illegal in South Carolina? What to know about Move Right Law
Drivers in South Carolina tend to use the left lane to coast down the highway, passing cars that aren't in a rush to reach their destination. It can be especially frustrating when a slowpoke driver moves in front of you, the arrival time on the GPS increasing minute by minute. However, what most Palmetto State drivers fail to recognize is that the left lane is not intended just for putting your pedal to the metal. If you are not using the left lane to pass another vehicle, expect to receive a fine, according to S.C.'s Move Right Law. What is the Move Right Law? The Move Right Law requires drivers only to use the "far left-hand lane on controlled-access highways when overtaking and passing another vehicle," per South Carolina's Department of Public Safety. Controlled-access highways include common interstate highways and S.C.'s highways SC-22, SC-31, and SC-277. When did the Move Right Law go into effect? The Move Right Law took effect on August 15, 2021. Warning tickets were issued within the first 90 days the law took effect. Is driving in the left lane a criminal offense? Although driving in the left lane is not categorized as a criminal offense within the state, it is still a civil law violation. Breaking it may result in a fine of $25. Court costs will not be assessed in addition to the fine, and a violator will not be arrested for the offense. Even so, residents should adhere to this law regardless of safety reasons. When can I drive in the left lane? S.C. state law outlines the following exceptions for driving in the left lane: When no other vehicle is directly behind the car in the left lane. When traffic conditions and congestion make it impractical to drive in the right lane. When snow and other inclement weather conditions make it safer to drive in the left lane. When obstructions or hazards exist in the right lane. When, due to highway design, a vehicle must be driven in the left lane while preparing to exit. To law enforcement vehicles, ambulances, and other emergency vehicles engaged in official duties, as well as vehicles involved in highway maintenance and construction operations. When a driver of a tractor-trailer commercial motor vehicle combination is unable to move into the right lane safely due to another vehicle overtaking or passing his truck to the right. When a driver of a vehicle requiring a commercial motor vehicle license to operate is unable to move into the right lane safely due to a highway grade or another vehicle overtaking or passing his vehicle on the right. Nina Tran covers trending topics for The Greenville News. Reach her via email at ntran@ This article originally appeared on Greenville News: Is it illegal to drive slow in the left lane in South Carolina? Solve the daily Crossword
Yahoo
16-07-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Two key Democratic politicians turn their focus to South Carolina with upcoming visits
Two national Democratic politicians are following in California Gov. Gavin Newsom's footsteps with summer visits to South Carolina. Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear and California Congressman Ro Khanna, both Democrats, will visit the Palmetto State this week. Both candidates join a long list of politicians who choose to stop in South Carolina for a chance to connect with voters as they build traction on a national political stage. South Carolina is a notable state every election cycle because it is the first Southern state to hold a primary, which can significantly boost a candidate's campaign momentum. The Palmetto State was credited with playing a significant role in sending former President Joe Biden to the White House in 2020, following a landslide win that gave him an edge over competitors Bernie Sanders and Pete Buttigieg. More: Gavin Newsom speaks in the Upstate as part of a SCDP event to engage with rural voters Beshear will start his two-day South Carolina tour at the AC Hotel in Greenville for the state's American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations (AFL-CIO) convention. He will speak at 10:45 a.m. and is expected to discuss a new initiative aimed at combating anti-union laws in South Carolina. He will later meet with the chairs of the Greenville County Democratic Party and the Spartanburg County Democratic Party before heading to Columbia, Charleston, and Pawleys Island. Beshear's name gained national prominence amid speculation that former Vice President Kamala Harris was considering him as a potential running mate in 2024. Beshear said he would "take a look at" a run for office in 2028 during an appearance on NBC, according to a report from USA Today. Khanna has served as the representative of California's 17th congressional district since his election in 2016. He has spent 2025 touring across the country and holding town halls in red districts to mobilize voters. Khanna will stop in two South Carolina cities — Goose Creek and Greenville — as part of his "Benefits Over Billionaires" tour. He will first meet with State Rep. JA Moore (D-Charleston) in Goose Creek on July 19 before landing in Greenville for an event to engage with Black voters. He said he chose Greenville because it was the birthplace of civil rights leader, the Rev. Jesse Jackson. One of Jackson's sons, Rep. Jonathan Jackson (D-Illinois), will join Khanna in Greenville as they urge people to get involved in elections. "I was inspired by his (Rev. Jackson's) campaigns in 1984 and 1988," Khanna said. "Reverend Jackson ran, saying we need Medicare for all. We need to have a living wage. We need to make sure we are helping the working class." Khanna said his tour is centered on states where more people rely on Medicaid and plans to address the federal reconciliation bill, which cut roughly $1 trillion from the program. "It (South Carolina) is a state that has a high population that needs Medicaid and that has a high population on food assistance," Khanna said. "We want to highlight a place that people are getting hurt." He said he is stopping in the districts of Republican Representatives Nancy Mace and William Timmons to hold them accountable for their vote in favor of a bill that harms their constituents. He also wants event attendees to leave each town hall feeling motivated for the upcoming elections. The Greenville town hall will be held at the Mountain View Baptist Church at 5:30 p.m. on July 20. Organizers with Pastors United for Action and Parish House Community Development are hosting their "Unite Our Vote" event immediately preceding the town hall, featuring voter registration booths and civic engagement resources. Bella Carpentier covers the South Carolina legislature, state, and Greenville County politics. Contact her at bcarpentier@ This article originally appeared on Greenville News: Democratic party leaders Beshear, Khanna plan visits to Greenville
Washington Post
10-07-2025
- Politics
- Washington Post
Newsom excites red-state Democrats, but some worry about a Californian
PICKENS, S.C. — Gavin Newsom played coy about his 2028 White House ambitions as he traveled to churches, community centers and coffee shops in eight of South Carolina's rural counties this week — insisting he was here to energize red-state Democrats and pressure the Trump administration for federal disaster relief. But Rep. James E. Clyburn — the Democratic kingmaker in this state that holds a pivotal early presidential primary — quickly punched through that pretense. Clyburn told some 200 activists packed into a sweltering meeting room Tuesday, during Newsom's fifth stop of the day, that they should lean on the excitement generated by these 'presidential candidates' visiting the Palmetto State to help Democrats win control of Congress in the midterm elections. To laughter, Newsom playfully peered over his shoulder and out the back door as if to ask who Clyburn could be referring to. The California governor may not be ready to reveal his thinking about 2028. But he has cemented his standing in the top tier of potential Democratic contenders, thanks in part to last month's dramatic clashes with President Donald Trump over federal immigration raids in his state and the president's deployment of the U.S. military amid the ensuing protests in Los Angeles. Interviews with more than two dozen Democratic and independent voters who came to see Newsom here showed many want a brawler, and appreciate his willingness to confront what they see as Trump's brash tactics and authoritarian leanings. 'He's up for the fight,' said Joanne Peterson, a 78-year-old retired health care administrator from Wallace, South Carolina. 'And I'm up for the fight with him.' But Newsom's rural tour also illustrated the obstacles he will face if he decides to run after his final term as governor ends next year. Some Democrats said they worried that he would be an easy mark for his GOP opponents who would cast him as a California liberal who struggled to fix the state's homelessness and housing affordability crises. They fretted that his combativeness and defense of abortion and LGBTQ rights make him a lightning rod on the right. 'We think his history could be used against him, even though we think it's positive,' said Ann Carroll, a 64-year-old Democrat who owns a furniture store with her husband. 'It almost seems like a candidate with no history is better. We're just thinking, because California has had a lot of crime, problems with wildfires — all of those issues, Donald Trump will use that stuff against somebody.' Tim Hauser, a 65-year-old Army veteran and retired teacher, brushed aside concerns about Newsom, including some from the left who chafe at Newsom for inviting conservative guests like Stephen K. Bannon and Charlie Kirk onto his podcast. 'If you don't understand what the other people are saying, how are you going to craft a message against it?' said Hauser, an independent who came to see Newsom at a church-owned coffee shop in Mullins and now ranks him in his top five 2028 contenders. Johnnie McLendon, the senior pastor at Fisher Hill Community Baptist Church in Chesterfield County, said the governor had emerged as someone who 'has been through the storm, the trials and everything — and he's still standing strong.' 'He's bringing hope, he's bringing encouragement, he's bringing stability,' said McLendon, who told Newsom that he would help organize voters in the surrounding rural counties if he runs. 'That's what we want: stability, because that's what this country has always had.' But protesters also turned out at Newsom's low-key events in Seneca, Pickens and Laurens, holding signs with slogans like 'Abortion Salesman' and 'Where's your mask Gavin?' — accusing him of following different rules than his constituents during the coronavirus lockdowns in his state. 'I fled California,' another sign read. 'Newsom: Go Home!' 'He stands for everything we are against as a majority in this part of the country,' said Melissa Smith, a 45-year-old stay-at-home mom and Republican from Pickens, South Carolina. 'He stands for abortion rights, which we do not. And I don't like the behavior that he exhibited during the 2020 lockdowns — the way that he believes the rules are for other people and not for him.' 'You can't afford to live in California,' said Tim Scott, a 78-year-old Republican and Air Force veteran who came to listen to Newsom in Mullins. 'We don't want the rest of this country to be like California. Nobody does.' Patty Hampton, a 69-year-old veteran and Democrat from Myrtle Beach, cited some of those same concerns about California's affordability crisis and homelessness issues as baggage that could hinder Newsom and his party if he were to become the Democratic nominee in 2028. After listening to Newsom in Mullins, she said she hoped to see former transportation secretary Pete Buttigieg run: 'He's got good moral standing. Plus he's been in the military,' she said. Newsom began his red-state travels in 2023 when he launched his Campaign for Democracy political action committee with the aim of fighting what he characterized as rising authoritarianism and bolstering struggling state and local parties in Alabama, Arkansas, Mississippi and other deep-red states. Before he had even touched down in South Carolina this week, he raised about $160,000 for the South Carolina Democratic Party through a text and email solicitation, according to his aides and officials with the party. Across 10 stops, Newsom gave different variations of a stump speech, warning against giving in to cynicism, anxiety and fear. The president 'has declared a war within' America, he said, 'on our people and our values.' He recounted the scene of masked and armed immigration agents sweeping through a Los Angeles park on horseback on Monday, calling it an intimidation tactic. 'Cruelty is the point, but the point as well is to instill a sense of unease, is to reinforce your anxiety, your fear, so you become apathetic and cynical, so that you no longer have agency, that you become a bystander as he rolls back the last half-century [of progress] and that's why I'm here. We cannot allow that to happen,' Newsom told the crowd in Mullins. In Pickens, Newsom said rural working-class voters 'got screwed' by the tax and spending bill signed by Trump last week that cuts more than $1 trillion from Medicaid, Medicare and the Affordable Care Act. 'They lied to you. They said they'd have your back — they don't have your back. You're going to get slammed,' he said. 'There's 15 rural hospitals in South Carolina. Five are going out of business. I assure you the hundreds of thousands of people who are going to lose their Medicaid is only going to make that condition worse.' Newsom deflected numerous questions from voters about his plans, whether South Carolina should remain the first-in-the-nation primary state and even whether he favored vinegar- or mustard-based barbecue. 'Trick question,' he said. 'You're running for president, right?' one man asked him as he thanked him for his 'courage' and shook his hand at Fisher Hill Baptist Church. 'Who the hell knows,' Newsom answered, laughing.
Yahoo
02-07-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
MAGA rival attempts to push longtime Trump ally out of Senate
A top Senate ally of President Donald Trump is facing a primary challenge from the right. Former South Carolina Lt. Gov. Andre Bauer is running for the Senate in 2026, mounting a Republican primary challenge against longtime GOP Sen. Lindsey Graham. "Lindsey Graham has lost his way, and South Carolinians deserve a true conservative fighter to represent them in the United States Senate – 100% guaranteed," Bauer, a wealthy developer and longtime Trump backer, charged in a statement early Wednesday, as he declared his candidacy. Graham in February kicked off his campaign for a fifth six-year term representing the red state of South Carolina in the Senate. On U.s. Strike On Iran, Graham Says Trump Showed There's 'A New Sheriff In Town' The senator was endorsed by Trump in March and this week he announced that veteran Republican consultant Chris LaCivita, who served as co-chair of the president's 2024 campaign to win back the White House, was coming on board as his re-election campaign's senior advisor. Read On The Fox News App Bauer – who unsuccessfully ran for governor in 2010 (in an election won by now-former governor, former ambassador to the U.N. and 2024 GOP presidential candidate Nikki Haley) and Congress in 2012 after serving eight years as the Palmetto State's lieutenant governor – touted his Trump and MAGA credentials. First On Fox: Former Trump Ambassador Launches Senate Bid "One of the first leaders in the country to endorse Trump in early 2016, André has been on the front lines of the America First movement, and has stood firmly with Trump on every issue," his campaign touted in their email release. "André is a proven conservative fighter who will unapologetically stand with President Trump and put South Carolina first." Bauer stood alongside Trump at the South Carolina Statehouse in January 2023, as the former president announced his leadership team in the key early-voting primary state. Trump, at the time, called Bauer "a friend of mine, somebody that could I think run for almost any office and win." Graham, along with Republican Gov. Howie McMaster of South Carolina, also stood alongside Trump at that event. Eight years earlier, Graham was highly critical of Trump as he was part of a large field of rivals who ran against the real estate mogul and reality TV star for the 2016 Republican presidential nomination. But Graham became a close friend and top ally to Trump during the president's first term. The senator has survived primary challenges from the right in his past re-election campaigns, and has been attacked for his more moderate stances on the issues of illegal immigration and climate change, as well as his advocacy for a muscular U.S. national security and foreign policy. Ahead of last month's U.S. strike on Iran's nuclear facilities, Graham urged Trump to "go all-in" to prevent Tehran from acquiring nuclear weapons. Bauer, in his campaign launch, attacked the senator as "Globalist Lindsey Graham" and charged that he "has spent three decades sending your tax dollars overseas and funding regime change wars all over the world instead of helping South Carolinians. Lindsey voted over and over again for big spending and that has grown the national debt by trillions." Bauer also argued that "Graham has repeatedly called for amnesty for illegal immigrants." Graham, on Tuesday, hours ahead of Bauer's launch, spotlighted his efforts to help Trump's so-called "big beautiful" landmark spending and tax cut bill pass the Senate by a razor-thin one-vote margin. "I just had a great phone call with President @realDonaldTrump about his excitement regarding the Senate's passage of the One Big Beautiful Bill," Graham wrote in a social media post. And he highlighted that he's "incredibly proud to have led the fight to move President Trump's 'One Big Beautiful Bill' through the Senate Budget Committee and onto full passage by the United States Senate." Graham re-election campaign spokeswoman Abby Zilch also took aim at Bauer. "Andre Bauer has spent his career chasing titles to feed his ego, running for five different offices and even trying to leverage Senator Graham and the White House for an ambassadorship. When that failed, he launched his sixth campaign – proving once again, this is all about Making Andre Great Again," Zilch claimed in a statement. Republicans dominate statewide elections in South Carolina and the winner of next year's GOP Senate primary will be considered the clear frontrunner in the 2026 general article source: MAGA rival attempts to push longtime Trump ally out of Senate
Fox News
24-06-2025
- Politics
- Fox News
South Carolina AG mounts gubernatorial bid, advocates for abolishing state income tax, DOGE-ing government
South Carolina Attorney General Alan Wilson, an adopted son of U.S. Rep. Joe Wilson, R-S.C., has announced a Palmetto State gubernatorial bid. "As your governor, we'll deliver meaningful relief to hard-working people. We're going to finally eliminate the state income tax," Wilson, who has served as the state's attorney general since 2011, said during a speech on Monday. "We're going to DOGE South Carolina government from top to bottom," he declared. "We will root out waste, fraud, and abuse, and we will expose it." U.S. Rep. Nancy Mace, R-S.C., who has said that she is considering running for governor, has previously accused Wilson of protecting pedophiles. "How does Alan Wilson explain his record of protecting kids vs. protecting p*dos? You either protect kids or you protect p*dos. You can't do both. Alan Wilson chose p*dophiles. Hold the line," Mace wrote in an April post on X. Robert Kittle, spokesperson for the state attorney general's office, called Mace's accusations "ridiculous," telling Fox News Digital in an email on Tuesday that as an assistant attorney general, Wilson previously "prosecuted, and put behind bars, people who sexually abused children." Wilson appeared to push back against Mace's attacks in a lengthy post on X in May. "I will not stand by and allow someone to lie about, not only me, but the dedicated men and women in my office who've been in the trenches protecting kids for years. A would-be candidate for Governor is attacking me, prosecutors, and our law enforcement partners who put their life on the line to protect children and catch predators. Enough is enough. Over the course of the last several weeks, this would-be candidate has peddled lies and mistruths for her own political ambitions and clicks on social media," he asserted. "Specifically, she has brought up a handful of cases from the last decade related to offenders that obtained illegal images of children. Let me be clear, our ICAC (Internet Crimes Against Children) division has worked to get these criminals before a judge and hold them accountable. Our objective is to indict, prosecute, and get them added to the Sex Offender Registry," he noted in part of the long post. "When the would-be candidate for Governor criticizes the Attorney General's Office, she's purposefully omitting the fact that judges give sentences, not prosecutors. When she criticizes the prosecutors, she's ignorant to the fact that often, our office is working in sync with a federal agencies that can get more time," Wilson declared. Mace fired back at the time, describing the post as "a very long-winded deflection full of excuses, half-truths and lies, as to why you can't seem to do your job effectively as South Carolina Attorney General." Current Gov. Henry McMaster, a Republican, is not eligible to seek another term in 2026 because the state constitution stipulates, "No person shall be elected Governor for more than two successive terms." McMaster, who became governor in 2017 after Gov. Nikki Haley, also a Republican, stepped down to become U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, won the state's 2018 and 2022 gubernatorial elections.
