Pamela Evette tells podcast host Frank Knapp about her surprise when Governor Henry McMaster called her to his office and asked her to be his running mate as Lt. Governor—something they had not previously discussed.

The Lt. Governor position has enabled her to promote technical training as well as hard and soft skills for the state’s youth. She has used her office to start a statewide initiative to promote youth employment, which she says teaches personal fiscal responsibility and character development. As Governor, Evette sees as her priority to create the best opportunities for our youth.

Lt. Governor Evette also believes South Carolina should work toward the elimination of the state income tax. Replacing the $14.5 billion the state gets from the income tax would require a comprehensive look at how to do that.

When pointed out that she has not generated a lot of publicity from attacking her opponents, she says that she never though being nice was bad. The Lt. Governor has said that to voters that “you can choose from a menu of career politicians who say pretty things, but cant and will never deliver.” That line, she says, was aimed at all her opponents.

Karen Riordan, president and CEO of Together SC (formerly the SC Association of Nonprofit Organizations) talks with podcast host Frank Knapp about how she got from the smallest state in the nation, Rhode Island, to running a SC association. She describes the extensive services her 28-year organization provides to the 1000 nonprofits in their network.

In addition to direct services, Together SC within the last year has begun advocacy at the state and federal level, supporting or opposing policy that impacts nonprofits. Particular policy being supported include access to healthcare, economic development and affordable housing. Riordan says that SC Senator Tim Scott has been thanked by many nonprofits for his leadership in moving his Renewing Opportunity in the American Dream (ROAD) to Housing Act of 2025.

Together SC is very vocal on its concern about an anit-DEI (diversity, equity and inclusion) bill passed by the SC House this passed session. Riordan agrees that the state can have any policy it wants for itself and local government receiving state funding. But the state should not be telling private nonprofits that they cannot use private donations to engage in work that is considered promoting DEI. Knapp shared that the SC Small Business Chamber of Commerce has the same position against the state telling private businesses that they cannot have a DEI policy if they want to bid on any state contracts.

First elected in 2024, Representative Hamilton Grant of Richland County went into his first year as a legislature with no expectations. He cites his leadership experience, including being a drum major at South Carolina State University, as his preparation for serving as a legislator. His business experience working with small business lending needs has given him an understanding that entrepreneurs are having more difficulty in obtaining loans. This is particularly true in rural and underserved communities. He particularly points out the difficulties black churches experience. Rep. Grant has sponsored legislation to help small businesses survive when the businesses are harmed by road construction projects that go beyond the initial completion date. His bill would establish a loan program for these businesses that would be administered by the SC Department of Commerce.

Senator Ed Sutton, an active reserve Air Force pilot, experienced his first session in the legislature that turned out to be more contentious than usual. He tells podcast host Frank Knapp that his Charleston district probably has more bars and restaurants than any other and he wanted to help them with the rising cost of liquor liability insurance. He did vote to pass the bill that largely addressed the issue but says that if his constituent small businesses do not see premium relief soon that he and others will have to revisit the issue. Senator Sutton says that he voted against the big energy bill that passed because provisions that protected consumers from paying for energy costs driven by data centers and a requirement that data centers report how much water they are using were stricken from the bill. He also is a co-sponsor of a bill to increase childcare access in the state by providing higher tax credits to businesses and individuals for using childcare centers.

Representative Heather Bauer shares her story about how a high school guidance counselor/ volleyball coach turned her life around by opening the door for her going to college. Now in her third year in the SC House where she is in the minority party, she believes that bipartisanship is important for being successful on legislation. However, Rep. Bauer also believes that the House Democratic Caucus should be doing a better job standing up for a legislative agenda that the public agrees with. “There is no fight…we’re not focused on the right issues”, she says and suggests that this issue could be discussed by the House democrats come January. Rep. Bauer also has a strong opinion of the House not taking action on the State Treasurer who the Senate voted to remove. She also talks about her marial arts background and desire for a black belt.

First year Representative Robert Reese gives his professional and volunteerism background and how he came to run for office. He says that his first year was “revelatory”.

Rep. Reese tells the story of how a dormant family farm, on which his great grandmother grew and picked cotton, led him to ask to serve on the House Agriculture Committee. He shares how he felt compelled, due to his decades of professional experience in running diversity and inclusion programs, to explain to the full House what DEI really is.

As the one of only two members to raise a question before the House voted to strip consumer protections from a big energy bill that passed, Rep. Reese is committed to getting those protections passed.

Senator Rex Rice of Pickens County believes that this past legislative session was one of the best. He gives credit to the leadership of Senators Thomas Alexander, Harvey Peeler and Shane Massey. Senator Rice discusses ear marks in the budget that were not allowed this year. He cites the quality of the many new Senators and working across party lines for the Senate having a great year. Senator Rice talks about the critical legislation passed to protect children; tort reform and its impact on insurance premiums; and the energy bill that had consumer protections stripped out by the House.

Rep. Seth Rose of Richland County shares his enthusiasm for any sport that translates from tennis. The former First Team All-America Singles Tennis Player at the University of South Carolina has found a new love, padel tennis, which he describes as fast growing in popularity. On the legislative front Rep. Rose says that he is greatly concerned about the information being fed to our youth via social media that can be misinformation with the intent to influence opinions. He has introduced legislation that would create a pilot program on media literacy and critical thinking in our schools. He also talks about the need for pretrial intervention programs for individuals on the autism spectrum who commit certain crimes. Rep. Rose also discusses his efforts to obtain funding for major infrastructure projects in Columbia that will make areas of the city, such as Five Points, safer for pedestrians and friendlier to small businesses.

As a new Senator, Allen Blackmon talks about lessons learned in his first year. He discusses with the host, Frank Knapp, his assessment of the major energy bill passed without some important consumer protections. Specifically he raises concern that data centers were not held responsible for paying their own way for the new electrical generation they need and that they will not have to report annually on their water consumption, which is enormous. He regrets that the Senate was not given much time to debate the final bill, which he feels was a strategy of the House, He also talks about the process on passing tort reform, in which he was a co-sponsor of the Senate bill. He encourages people to watch the Senate's hearing that resulted in that body voting to remove the State Treasurer from office, He believes that it did not have to come to that if more congenial conversations between the Treasurer and Senate leaders had taken place earlier in the session.

First elected to the SC House in 1992, Rep. Jerry Govan of Orangeburg remarks about the present generation of elected leaders whose experiences are vastly different from those who came before.

He offers that legislation to ban diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) in the public and private sectors is not needed. Rep. Govan points out that programs to make sure all Americans are treated the same have not held back the state’s economy which is booming.

Rep. Govan also comments that he sees anti-DEI legislation that passed the House did not follow proper procedures and appears to be just a political statement.