- 1 year ago
Rep. Nancy Mace (R-SC) launches her campaign for South Carolina Governor in Charleston, South Carolina.
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00:00Good morning.
00:13Excuse me, don't test me.
00:15What do I want?
00:21One, two.
00:23No audio.
00:25We had it. We don't have it now.
00:27You got me now.
00:43Hey, how's everybody doing?
00:47740 in the morning on a Monday morning.
00:52How about it?
00:54So, guys, today's all about history. History's been on my heart today.
00:58And that's all I've been thinking about for the past week is history.
01:02And do you realize where we're standing right here, right across the river, on the Ashton River, is where the first settlers in Charleston settled in 1670.
01:12What were they? They were game changers. Game changers.
01:16This is history in the making here.
01:18This military college that we're standing in the central was formed in 1842, but not at this campus.
01:30This campus did not come to fruition until 1922.
01:38And guess what happened in 1977?
01:42Can anybody guess?
01:44Our Congresswoman Nancy Mace was born.
01:50So, I'll tell you a wild story.
01:54We were at the Trump inauguration of the Liberty Ball, and with Mary Mace right there.
02:01And Nancy looked at me and said that I want to be in Congress.
02:05I said, well, sister, if you want to be in Congress, you need to go get Jim Merrill's house seat that he's giving up.
02:12So, determined Nancy came and won that house seat, and she represented her state in the State House for a couple years.
02:22And then Madison Reed is here today from Georgia.
02:26We were sitting in the Italian restaurant on Daniel Island, and she looked at us, and she said, I'm ready to run for Congress.
02:32I said, well, okay, let's start raising some money.
02:35So, the next thing you know, we were in the Hall of Events space raising money.
02:38And now our Congresswoman is in her third term.
02:41So, today is all about making history.
02:45And so, we need to start out with the pledge.
02:49Because we've got to remember God and country.
02:52Yes.
02:53So, we'll bring up our former town council member from Mount Pleasant, Kevin Gernay.
03:07Ladies and gentlemen, face the flag.
03:11I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America.
03:16To the Republic of the United States of America.
03:19By the nation under God.
03:20And the faithful.
03:21That The Red Sea of America.
03:22To have threats to God.
03:28Ok.
03:29I'm also the preacher this morning.
03:31Can I hear an amen?
03:33Amen.
03:34Let us pray.
03:36Our Father, thank you that you are the great God, the healer, the King of all Kings,
03:41and the mighty savior who saves and protects yours is the greatest of power and the majesty
03:48thank you for the promise of overwhelming victory through jesus christ triumph over the grave and
03:55all forces of the darkness your words say that you are fighting our battles and making us more
04:02than a conqueror and a victor i declare your power to strengthen us in times of difficulty
04:10is greater than the greatest force that can ever come against us we will stay in peace knowing that
04:17no obstacle that stands in our way can stop your plan i pray for peace and healing of our city state
04:26and nation i pray for safety for all those leaders military first responders police and all those who
04:35serve this great nation i pray that you wrap your loving arms around our loving servant congresswoman
04:43nancy maize as she follows the call from the inside of our service heart i believe that you will do
04:52exceedingly and abundantly above all i ask or think in jesus name we all say amen
05:00amen next up the azusa family has a story and they're going to introduce nancy come on up
05:17to it and now i read the last day ofosh tomorrow morning good morning everyone my name is keith
05:22lesura i'm here today with our son hannah we are just an ordinary south carolina family
05:31raising our kids, managing school and sports and going to church, doing life
05:37like so many of you. But on May 1st of this year our world was shaken in a way
05:43we could never have imagined. Our son Tanner, brave and strong and full of life
05:50was nearly murdered by a violent criminal who should not be on the streets.
05:55As a mother, nothing prepares you for the moment when you get that horrific phone
06:01call. My phone rang and I was told there was an incident. Our school was
06:08attacked. Tanner was hit by a car and he's pinned underneath it. Despite the sheer
06:16evil of this atrocity, God was greater. He protected Tanner and all the victims
06:23that day. As Tanner began to heal, I was no longer just heartbroken. I was
06:30angry and I wanted justice. In moments like these, we look to our public
06:36servants for help. Our elected leaders are entrusted to represent us and to
06:41fight for those who can't fight for themselves. That's when I found a
06:46fighter, Congresswoman Nancy Mace. But we're here today not just to share our
06:52story. We're here to introduce someone who stepped up and stepped in for us.
06:57Someone who reached out not as a politician, but as a mom. Someone who
07:04understands that protecting families and defending our children isn't
07:09political. It's a priority. It's a line drawn in the sand to protect our future
07:16generation. Nancy Mace leads with her heart. She notices people, she hears them, and she
07:24stands with them. She's a trailblazer and a servant leader who puts South Carolina
07:30families first. So please join Tanner and me in welcoming a woman of faith, courage, and conviction,
07:38courage, and conviction. The Honorable Congresswoman Nancy Mace.
07:44The Honorable Congresswoman Nancy Mace.
08:08Good morning, South Carolina.
08:10Thank you for waking up early before you head into work today. It's bright and early. Beautiful
08:17day here in Charleston, South Carolina on hallowed ground at the Citadel, the military college
08:24of South Carolina. This morning, I'm making it official. I am running to be your governor
08:33governor of the great state of South Carolina.
08:40Okay, Miss South Carolina first. I want to thank Kevin Tugate, who's a 9-11 first responder,
08:47firefighter in New York. When he came up here, he was there on 9-11 on day one. So thank you,
08:52Kevin, for your service to your country. And the Cesura family. When I met the Cesuras and
09:00Sweet Tanner, who was run over by that vehicle on Sullivan's Island, that family brought me
09:08to tears. And that's what this is about. It's not about me. It's about the people of South Carolina.
09:15I come to join the club. They don't want me. And I don't want them. I came to hold the line.
09:30They said, stay quiet. I spoke up. They said, sit down. I stood up. They said, play nice.
09:39And I fought back. South Carolina is tired of politicians who smile for the cameras, lie to
09:47your face, and then vanish when it's time to lead. I'm not one of them. I'm running for governor
09:55because South Carolina doesn't need another empty suit. It needs a governor who will fight for you
10:02and your values. South Carolina needs a governor who will drag the truth into sunlight and flip the
10:09tables if that's what it takes. South Carolina doesn't need another politician who falls when
10:17things get tough. And he's a governor who will always stand tall no matter the odds. I walked into
10:26firestorms, and I've come out swinging. I didn't flinch. I don't fold. And you know, I never run.
10:36While others played it safe, I said what needed to be said. And I did what needed to be done. This
10:44isn't about playing defense. This is about going on offense for you, for your family, for your freedom,
10:52and for your future right here in South Carolina. I wasn't built to kiss the ring. I just wear one.
11:02I don't answer to the establishment. I don't know those in the back room, a single thing.
11:09I answer to the people. And the people, let me tell you, are fed up. I've been all across the state
11:15of South Carolina over the last couple months, and the people are fed up. They're fed up with
11:20sanctuary sheriffs who refuse to enforce the law. Yes, that happened right here in South Carolina,
11:28where we had leadership across the state, statewide, that stood silent as we had a sanctuary
11:34sheriff in our great state letting out illegals who are rapists, letting out illegals who are
11:40murderers, and letting out illegals who are pedophiles and child molesters. That happened right
11:47underneath our noses right here in South Carolina. You know what I did last year? I stood up. I spoke
11:54out. I basically ran against the sheriff and the good people of Charleston County, right where we are
11:59today. You voted in a new sheriff who on day one started working with ICE. You did that.
12:06They're fed up with statewide officials who always stay quiet, the ones who say nothing, do nothing,
12:14and stand for nothing. They're fed up with violent criminals getting a slap on the wrist while good
12:21law-abiding citizens get ignored. They're fed up with schools that push politics instead of reading,
12:28writing, writing, and arithmetic. They're fed up with weak leaders who talk tough on TV. Then cave when it
12:36comes time to vote. Caving is what got us into this mess. I will never cave. I came to draw the line
12:49today and hold it, and we will do this together. So before I tell you where we're going, let me tell
12:55you where I came from. My dad was a retired Army General. My mom was here this morning with her
13:01shades on looking good, mama.
13:07And she's a retired school teacher. She actually taught at the school that I dropped out.
13:11Yeah, I dropped out of. And I made one of the worst decisions of my life to drop by the school at the
13:16age of 17. My parents didn't call me. They said it to me straight. They said, if you're going to stop
13:22going to school, you have to start going to work. So I took a job at the fine dining establishment
13:29known as the Waffle House. There we go. My Waffle House people. Denny's was a little too highbrow.
13:35Right, mom? Exit 203 in Ladson. My first job, I learned how to work hard. And while Waffle House was an
13:44important part of my journey, it would not be my destination. So I went from making waffles to making
13:50history right here where we are standing on hallowed ground this morning. The Citadel,
13:58the Military College of South Carolina. Because 26 years ago, this summer, this high school dropout,
14:05became the first woman ever to graduate from the Citadel or of cadets right here in South Carolina.
14:12In college, we don't burn American flags. We salute them. And right here on this hollow ground, I guess
14:25almost 30 years ago, 29 years ago, I came storming into the gates, the main gate of the Citadel,
14:32probably shaking, nervous. I asked my father to help me drop my goods off in my dorm in the barracks,
14:38number two barracks, Patrick Thomas Barracks. And he said no. I had to do it on my own. I remember
14:43my parents, my mom, my dad, dropped me off in the barracks here at the Citadel. I asked for a hug,
14:48my dad shook my hand. And he said, don't call home if you want to quit. Just put on your shoes
14:55and start walking. And I didn't quit because I had something to prove to myself. Because when everyone
15:01said no, Nancy, you can't do that. No, Nancy, you will never make it. No, Nancy, you have you don't
15:08have the ability to be successful. No, Nancy will win. I said, watch me. And I learned about having
15:16courage. I learned about having discipline. I learned what it takes to lead no matter the odds. Because
15:25working is leading a district, a state, a country means you have to do hard work. When you're doing
15:32it right, it's hard. It's not easy. And I learned right here at the Citadel how to hold the line
15:40no matter the odds. And now I'm ready to hold the line for something bigger. And that means putting
15:46South Carolinians first. That means putting your families first, putting our workers first,
15:52putting our laws first, and our values first. Something that's been ignored for decades here in
16:00the great state of South Carolina. Not the illegals who are flooding our state. We have Sinaloa cartel
16:05here. We have MS-13. We have Train de Agua. They are all here. And we will work with ICE better than ever
16:13to ensure that anyone who is here illegally gets deported immediately. We will work with ICE in every
16:20respect. If we need housing price, we have it. If we need to have boots on the ground to help ICE,
16:26we will do it. We can do everything in our power. And we will not let another sanctuary sheriff
16:33dictate who gets to stay here when they're here illegally. We will not allow another sanctuary
16:38sheriff to let out rapists, murderers, and illegals who are here who are child molesters out
16:42under the streets of South Carolina. Not on my watch. Now, we will hold the line against the gender
16:53poll that has invaded our schools. And we've seen it. Just a few months ago, I noted how Clemson
16:59University had 15 genders on a form. Did you know male and female were not two of the options? So you know
17:07what we did? We made a statement about it. And you know what Clemson did three hours later? They took
17:14the form down. And I'm not even governor yet. So imagine what we could do from the state,
17:21from the capital of Columbia, when we are governor. We're going to hold the line against the elites who
17:27are claiming to power. We're not going to support the lawbreakers. We're not going to support the
17:32brainwashers, not the back room. South Carolina belongs to you, her people. I will hold the line
17:39on taxes by giving the state a plan to cut taxes down to 0% over the next five years. And we'll get
17:45to that in a minute. Because the fastest way to kill your freedom is to tax it. I will hold the line
17:51on illegal immigration by defunding officials to defy the law and promote sanctuary policies. Former
17:59Sanctuary Sheriff Kristen Braziano, this one's real. If any sheriff unenforce the law, you will not get
18:09a dime. I will hold the line on jobs by punishing businesses that hire illegal labor instead of real
18:16hardworking South Carolinians. If you cheat the system, you're going to pay the price. If you're a
18:24solicitor and you aren't prosecuting crime, I want you to listen up because I am coming for you.
18:35The days of letting criminals walk the streets of South Carolina, not being charged, not being
18:41indicted, not being prosecuted. The days of treating victims like criminals and criminals like victims
18:47are over. The culture of coddling criminals and punishing victims is over the governor. I will hold
18:54the line on women and kids insanity and education by vetoing any funding to any college that pushes
19:02gender ideology and refuses to define what a woman is. If a school erases women, it erases its right to
19:12your tax dollars. I will hold the line for parents because parents, not the government,
19:18hit the final say in their child's education. I will not. I'm not here to fault. I'm here to fight
19:26for you and your values. Together we will make South Carolina more prosperous, more educated, more healthy,
19:33and more safe. This isn't just a campaign. It's a calling. A calling for common sense, a calling for
19:43courage and a call to put South Carolina first. So to the establishment this morning and the cow was
19:53hiding behind their long written press releases, buckle up. To the radical left, brace yourselves.
20:02And to the great people of the great state of South Carolina, help is on the way.
20:14You and me, this is where our mission begins. God is not done with South Carolina and neither am I.
20:22I'm Nancy Mace. I'm running for governor of South Carolina. I will hold the line. I will fight for you.
20:28And I will always put South Carolina first. Thank you.
20:38Okay. I'm going to unveil some policies in the coming weeks and months ahead.
20:44I'm going to roll out the path to prosperity with South Carolina. When I am done
20:49with this presentation on some initial policy proposals as governor of South Carolina, we will do
20:54a photo line up front. So just a few more minutes and we will do that patiently. So thank you for your
21:00patience. So this morning, I want to unveil South Carolina's path to prosperity. Number one,
21:06you all know firsthand that we pay the highest state income tax in the southeast.
21:12Every year your state legislature says, oh, we're going to cut one tenth of a point,
21:16two tenths of a point. We're still at six percent or higher in the state income tax.
21:22Other states like Florida, Tennessee, Texas have zero state income tax. North Carolina and Georgia,
21:29as you can see in this map, are not far behind. Everybody, including Mississippi,
21:34are on the fast track to zero percent state income tax. There are a couple different ways we can do
21:40this. And I will propose more than one way to go to zero percent income tax over five years. The first
21:46thing I want you to know is that South Carolina's state budget is just over 40 billion a year. And there
21:53are three different buckets that spending goes into. One is called the general fund. The general fund has been
21:59increasing increasing in spending year over year without any uh without any pauses or controls in
22:05place to give your money back to you in a permanent tax cut. So the first proposal that I have is to
22:11freeze the government uh the general fund spending at around 11.6 billion dollars. So that would be
22:17around 2022 to 2023 fiscal year for South Carolina. If we were to just freeze the general fund spending
22:25and if revenues continue to grow this uh at fiscal year 24-25 we expected 13.2 billion dollars. If
22:33they continue to grow at this level we can reduce uh and give back enough money from the general fund
22:39as a permanent tax cut to residents to reduce the state income tax to zero percent in five years. Now if
22:45we need to accelerate that we can also look at earmarks. The state has the debt earmarks pre-COVID earmarks for
22:52around 30 million dollars in 2019. Now most recently you can see on the chart here earmarks in the 2023-2024
23:00fiscal year or 700 million dollars. So if we take a look at I mean I'm gonna get rid of the earmarks.
23:08Let's just say we take half of earmarks annually and we don't spend them. That will help accelerate
23:15us to getting to zero percent state income tax in five years. I want to use every dollar above
23:21that cap at 11.6 billion to reduce state income tax until it hits zero. We'll pause and reduce or
23:27eliminate earmarks to accelerate that process. I also want to mandate that every single state agency
23:33find three to four percent annually to cut. We know we can find it. If we need to have a program to have
23:39early retirement for state government employees we will do it. If we need to freeze hiring for state
23:44government employees we will do it. This isn't about austerity. This is about building a robust and
23:50prosperous future for South Carolina. We know that South Carolina's economy is built on the backs of
23:57small businesses. Who benefits the most from a zero percent state income taxes? It is the hard-working
24:03people of South Carolina and the equally it is the LLCs and small businesses that are running our state.
24:09I will eliminate departments, boards, and commissions that don't serve key functions. Did you know
24:15that there are over 250 boards, departments, commissions, etc. in the state of South Carolina? I'm not even sure
24:24what they do. I'm not sure the state knows what they do so we will reevaluate that as well. I want to audit
24:30the all-administrative overhead and sunset low-impact and duplicative government programs. The second thing
24:39I want to bring up this morning is law and order. Last year as many of you know here in South Carolina
24:44we had a sanctuary sheriff and former sheriff Kristen Graziano in a red state that said they banned sanctuary
24:51policies. Not a single statewide elected official in South Carolina stood up and told sanctuary sheriff
25:02Christine Graziano no. One person did in federal office. I did that. I was assisted by some of our
25:10local leaders here in Charleston County but not many. Not enough. So when I'm a governor we will end all
25:18sanctuary new polls. There will not be a sanctuary sheriff who will step foot in the state of South Carolina
25:25when I am governor. If you are a business employing illegal aliens we will hunt you down and we will
25:31find you find find you and we will find you a thousand dollars a day until you learn from your mistake
25:39and you employ real hard-working South Carolinians. We will work with ICE and DHS to provide facilities to
25:46how to house illegals for deportations. Between all of our state facilities across the state of South
25:53Carolina there are hundreds of beds that we can utilize. The Naval Brig for example or other facilities
26:00we've identified hundreds of places uh beds and facilities that we can use to work with ICE and yes DHS
26:08and ICE do uh compensate states uh for housing illegal immigrants. That will be a part of our program.
26:14We'll increase penalties for violent crimes and sexual abuse. You should see some of the ridiculous
26:23plea deals that are happening in our state and the third degree plea deals that they get
26:28a hundred dollar fine for this uh you know and not prosecuting pedophiles. We will increase penalties
26:34for violent crimes and sexual abuse. We will expand our statewide statistics our annual report
26:40that is provided to the state of South Carolina via SLED and other agencies. Right now they only want
26:46to tell you they only have the ability to tell you how many arrests they're making in every county.
26:51That is going to change when I'm governor because you have a right to know not only how many arrests the
26:56state local county municipalities are making for what crimes. You have a right to know how many
27:02indictments were made out of those arrests and how many were prosecuted. You have the right to know how
27:08many convictions there are in this state. You have the right to know what the sentencing is and need
27:13I remind you about convicted pedophile Donald Gresh who was found with 1900 images of toddlers as young
27:23as three being raped by animals. He was facing 60 years
27:29and your attorney general Allen Wilson pled down to one indictment. He was facing 60 years. They negotiated
27:41Donald Gresh. The AG negotiated Donald Gresh's sentencing in 15 minutes and you know how many days he served
27:52in jail? He served one day in jail. So the days of pedophiles serving one day in jail are over. If you are an AG or a solicitor
28:07who thinks it's okay to allow these people to walk the streets and put your kid in danger,
28:15that ends because I'm coming for you. We will modernize our technology systems maintaining criminal data
28:21and mandate reporting to the fusion center. We will aggressively pursue federal grant funding. Most
28:28recently in Berkeley County, we assisted Berkeley County with getting a $500,000 grant to hire three law
28:36enforcement officers to help curtail the use of illegal firearms and violent crimes in Berkeley County.
28:43We will do this for every county across the state. If you need resources, we will find them and we
28:50will aggressively pursue them. We will defund any office agency or department who refuses to follow
28:56state and federal law. The days of rogue judges, rogue solicitors, rogue prosecutors, and rogue attorney
29:04generals are over. We will create a mechanism to remove all of the rogue AG solicitors and judges and
29:10sheriffs who don't follow the letter of the law. And we will clean up our streets by enacting and
29:14enforcing aggressive vagrancy laws. On education, as you all know, I am a high school dropout
29:23in South Carolina. This is an issue that is near and dear to my heart. Not much has changed the last 30
29:30years. I see stemming the tide of our failing education. There are two things that I believe
29:36that we can do immediately. Now, yes, I support expanding school choice. I support the state of
29:41South Carolina in that. But there are two things we can immediately do on day one. Number one,
29:47we need to focus on literacy. So if a child cannot read or write in the third grade, they don't go on
29:54to fourth grade. Now, we have some policies in place for this now, but it's not mandatory.
29:59As governor, I would make it automatic and mandatory, and I would narrow down the exceptions for our
30:06students who cannot read and write by third grade. And if they can't read and write by third grade,
30:11they will be assigned a reading mentor, and they'll be required to read 90 minutes a day while they're
30:17in school. Whatever it takes so those young children can get to fourth grade and graduate. Because if
30:23they're not ready by fourth grade, they will not be ready by middle school. And if they're not ready by
30:28middle school, they will not be ready by high school. We as a state are about 24th or 25th in the nation
30:35and what we spend per student per year across the country. And we were still almost dead last in
30:45outcomes. We are behind Mississippi. They have run circles around South Carolina for the last seven
30:54years, and they're beating us in this. We cannot be last in education because we have, you're the 10th
31:01fastest growing state in the country right now. And we have so many jobs that are opening up in South
31:06Carolina. These jobs are being imported to people from outside our state. I want to have the best
31:12South Carolinians with the best degrees, the best certifications, the best qualifications
31:20to take the best jobs in the state of South Carolina. The second piece to my education plan
31:27is that we need to have a real bona fide, we have a little one right now, degree. I want to see two
31:35tracks for high school diplomas. The traditional track for the traditional student is going to go on
31:40to a two or four-year degree. But we need a second or well-defined track with greater requirements that if
31:49a student isn't going to make it to college, that they make it to get certified in a vocation, whether that's
31:55plumbing, carpentry, electric, as an electrician, or a welder, or getting their CDL, or getting their
32:03cosmetology degree. If you are certified in a trade and you are ready for work the day after you
32:09graduate from high school, you should be qualified to get a high school diploma equivalent to your
32:14vocational training and certification. If you are, and the kids who are listening today, if you graduate
32:19high school with a welding certificate, your starting salary at the age of 18 is $80,000.
32:27If you get your commercial driver's license, certification at Trident Technical College or any
32:32community college or in high school and you're ready to drive as a commercial truck driver, your starting
32:38salary in some places of South Carolina is $80,000 a year. If you have your nuclear welding certificate
32:46as a welder, your starting salary in South Carolina is $110,000 a year. Who's had a plumber come to their
32:54house lately? I don't know about you, but I'm paying about $250 an hour. I swear to God, it's a two-hour
33:00minimum. I'm paying $500 every time my plumber comes over. And my plumber, by the way, vacations in Cape
33:07County get caught every summer. So I missed out on that gig, but they are making money hand over fist.
33:14The same thing with electricians. We don't have enough people for these jobs from South Carolina.
33:19I want our kids and our students certified for those jobs when they graduate. We're going to ban
33:24child porn in libraries. You should see some of the books I have seen recently. We're going to expand
33:30adult education as well. We're going to ban pronouns in the classroom. I don't want to see any glitter
33:37parties. I want kids coming home with A's and B's, not they and them. We're going to have tech-free
33:43school zones. I want to protect teacher wages. And let me be very clear, no state dollars to any K
33:51through 12 school, college, or university that teaches there are more than two genders. We will
33:58not fund any schools that allow biological men in women's bathrooms or locker rooms that allow men to
34:03compete in women's sports or schools that push gender ideology. Let me tell you today, as governor,
34:10you will be cut off. And when it comes to women and children, I want to increase fines and sentences
34:17for violent crimes and sexual abuse. We're going to prosecute all crimes, but especially those
34:24against children. Donald Gresh is not the only case of a convicted pedophile let off for one day in jail.
34:32I want to ensure that SLED and all of our men and women in blue have the resources, staffing, and
34:38technology to process rain kits and doom for all their forensic lab work without delay. We're going to
34:45stop treating victims like criminals and criminals like victims. We will follow federal guidelines for
34:51trauma-informed investigations and treat victims with dignity and respect. I want to review and audit South
35:00Carolina's child welfare system and build out a strategic plan with measurable outcomes. No child left
35:08behind. And I will sign a bathroom bill into law because mentally ill men don't belong in women's spaces.
35:18I recently, in the National Defense Authorization Act, got passed an amendment that would
35:30make child rapists in the UCMJ Uniform Code of Military Justice to give the death penalty for child rapists.
35:38That is something else I support. The last two I want to talk about are infrastructure and energy. As you
35:43know, our roads are crumbling. I want to audit SCDOT spending. I want to aggressively pursue federal grant
35:50applications for infrastructure. What the media won't tell you, they want to write articles about
35:55my memes and my pajamas. But they won't tell you, I'm actually in the top 1.59 percent of members of
36:04Congress who write policy and legislation. What if you know that I write two to three bills a week in
36:13Congress. But the mainstream media, the fake news on the stage behind you won't tell you that. They also
36:21want to tell you we assisted. We have probably gotten more grant funding than anybody else in the state
36:26of South Carolina. Recently, we helped assist get the largest infrastructure grant in South Carolina
36:33history. That was $195 million for Long Point Road. We recently helped Dorchester County get funding to
36:39the tune of $24 million. And in Newford County, we helped the airport get over $20 million in grant funding.
36:46The list goes on and on and on. Authorizations, appropriations, whether it's for veterans or
36:53citizens, we've done it all. We want to expedite permitting reform and increase communications with
36:59the Army Corps of Engineers. Something I have learned is it's not just our ideas, but we're not shovel ready.
37:05We're not shovel ready because of the roadblocks and permitting. And I want to be sure that we have the
37:10Army Corps of Engineers on speed dial. The mainstream media will not tell you that people have called me
37:15asking for help, whether it was for a bridge, whether it was for dredging in Berkeley County.
37:20If they needed help, wouldn't you know that day we called the Army Corps of Engineers and we got
37:25those permits expedited within 24 hours. We will do that as governor and we will do it for every county
37:32in the state. When it comes to energy, we have an energy crisis on our hands. And a few weeks ago,
37:40our state actually had to shut down a few facilities to keep up with the energy across the state. We need
37:45to reduce our energy costs through efficient infrastructure. We're going to get creative
37:49using dynamic line rating, distributed energy resources, consumer choice. We have to avoid
37:55the costly failures of the past. B.C. summer cost the state $9 billion for a nuclear facility,
38:04and we have nothing to show for it. I will have an all of the above approach. I would like to take
38:09advantage of all of President Trump's EPA reforms. There was a recent ruling with the EPA that the
38:14press, of course, didn't report on that I also assisted with clarifying that the EPA will allow 50
38:22hours a year at maximum capacity for any facility to generate energy with their backup generators,
38:28it's called Rice-NESHAP, to sell that energy back under the grid. Any facility in South Carolina,
38:33I want to work to ensure that you understand what the Rice-NESHAP policy is. You can generate energy
38:39with your backup generators and sell it back to the grid, whether it's the airport, whether it's data
38:43centers or other facilities who have that backup generator energy. We're going to make sure you
38:49sell it. You're able to sell it back to the grid and provide energy for our state. We'll streamline
38:53regulations and avoid radical environmental mandates and collaborate with the PSC to meet
38:59our growing energy demand. We're going to accelerate and support the acceleration of
39:03infrastructure development pipelines, LNG transmission, to leverage South Carolina's resources,
39:09attract talent, and draw power-intensive industries like AI data centers and advanced manufacturing.
39:16In the coming weeks and months ahead, we'll be rolling these policies out, white papers, etc.
39:21I wrote these ideas myself. I've talked to policy experts. There is no bad idea. If you have an
39:28idea, we want to hear from you. So please tell us at nancymace.org. We're here today if you want to buy
39:35swag. We've got Peter checking people out at the end of the day. I will now ask my staff to create a line
39:42over here so we can do some photos before it really starts raining. I love you. I appreciate you. We need
39:48all the help we can get. God bless you and God bless the great state of South Carolina.
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