Ethics probe of S.C. Gov. Haley shines light on dark side of state's politics
COLUMBIA, S.C. — The probe into whether Gov. Nikki Haley broke state ethics laws could give South Carolinians a look at the dark underbelly of S.C. politics, where some lawmakers use their elected positions to benefit their employers and themselves.
It also is reviving debate about how to rein in that self-serving culture.
Often, the legislators’ money-making activities are legal, even portrayed as standard behavior at the Capitol. Haley’s attorneys have made the “common practice” argument, saying in a filing with the House Ethics Committee that the Lexington Republican “has not done anything that is not already the norm of members of the General Assembly.”
But even if public politics for personal profit is legal, it is not what many South Carolinians want happening at the State House. And it does not serve the public good, activists say.
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