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An e-mail smear targeting the seventeen year-old daughter of GOP vice-presidential pick Sarah Palin is burning up South Carolina inboxes - and may have originated from a South Carolina public school e-mail account. According to a copy of the e-mail (entitled “Sarah Palin’s Drunken Daughter”) obtained exclusively by FITSNews, five pictures alleged to portray Palin’s underage daughter possessing alcoholic beverages (and one allegedly portraying her holding a gun) were attached to the following message: “(P)ics of Sarah Palin’s knocked up daughter Bristol kicking it. Yeah boozing it up is pretty standard for a seventeen year-old, especially in Alaska where it...

GREENVILLE, S.C. -- Greenville County deputies said they are investigating a home invasion that ended with an exchange of gunfire between the resident of the home and the burglar. The break-in happened at 669 Rutherford Road at the Magnolia Place Apartments just before 5:30 a.m. Wednesday. Investigators said someone forced their way into one of the apartments. They said once the burglar was inside, the resident of the apartment opened fire, hitting the burglar twice. The burglar also opened fire, they said. The intruder was taken to Greenville Memorial Hospital to be treated for his injuries. The resident was not...

PICKENS — Illegal immigrants arrested in Pickens County are walking back into the shadows after serving their time or paying their fines, according to officials. More than half of arrested illegal immigrants are released on the orders of U.S. Immigrations and Customs Enforcement (ICE), said Capt. Phil Sargent, jail administrator for Pickens County. The mission of ICE is “to more effectively enforce our immigration and customs laws,” but most of the agency’s Web site is devoted to anti-terrorist activities. Numerous phone calls by the Independent-Mail to various ICE offices, including one in Puerto Rico, led to dead ends in trying...

On a plane from Denver to Charlotte following the Democrats' convention, I found myself seated behind former National Chairman of the Democratic National Committee Don Fowler and Congressman John Spratt of South Carolina. Their conversation was interesting to say the least. For example, they made fun of Sarah Palin for several minutes, Fowler calling her "Dan Quayle" on steroids and Spratt creatively describing her as "just terrible." They both agreed that, "Other than the simple fact that she's a female," she has nothing to offer. Then there was this gem of a moment from Fowler: VIDEO So you see, it's...

On a plane from Denver to Charlotte following the Democrats' convention, I found myself seated behind former National Chairman of the Democratic National Committee Don Fowler and Congressman John Spratt of South Carolina. Their conversation was interesting to say the least.For example, they made fun of Sarah Palin for several minutes, Fowler calling her "Dan Quayle" on steroids and Spratt creatively describing her as "just terrible." They both agreed that, "Other than the simple fact that she's a female," she has nothing to offer.Then there was this gem of a moment from Fowler:   Click for Video So you see, it's...

Coalition air forces in Iraq unleashed a new precision guided weapon against anti-Iraqi forces August 12. Two F-16 pilots with the 77th EFS executed the first-ever combat deployment of an GBU-54 Laser JDAM against a moving enemy vehicle in Diyala Province. The GBU-54 is the U.S. Air Force's newest 500-pound precision weapon, equipped with a special targeting system that uses a combination of GPS and laser guidance to accurately engage and destroy moving targets. "This employment first represents a great step in our Air Force's ability to deliver precise effects across the spectrum of combat," said Lt. Gen. Gary North,...

8/28/2008 - CHARLESTON AIR FORCE BASE, S.C. (AFPN) -- More than 130 Charleston Air Force Base Airmen deployed from here Aug. 27 to a forward-deployed location in Southwest Asia to support operations Enduring Freedom and Iraqi Freedom. Members of the 15th Airlift Squadron, 437th Operations Support Squadron and 437th Maintenance Group will fly and manage missions in and out of Iraq and Afghanistan. The squadron will assume control of the 816th Expeditionary Airlift Squadron from the 14th Airlift Squadron based out of Charleston AFB, who will return home. Lt. Col. John Lamontagne, the 15th AS commander, said there was no...

presented to you by the South Carolina GOP http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mtzb0Krz-9Q

FORT JACKSON, S.C. (AP) - Austin Swarner left high school to care for his mother while she fought a losing battle with cancer. Tony Brown wanted to begin supporting himself and left two classes shy of a diploma. Haelee Holden got tired of trying to make it through school while flipping burgers until 1 a.m. But the U.S. Army, eager to fill its ranks amid wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, doesn't see them as dropouts. They are recruits who only need a GED before they're ready to begin basic training. And so, the Army formally opens its first prep school...

Democrat Bob Conley may use cardboard cutouts of U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham if he won't commit to debates. Conley's campaign manager Lee Griggs said Monday the campaign may resort to cutouts if the first term Republican won't show up for public discussions.

Make sure to let the ACLU of South Carolina know that Communism as a goal should be their last priority, that they should focus more on defending the Second Amendment, and the rights of the unborn. We are certain that they will ignore your requests, but hey!….they are asking for it. We can only blame ourselves if we don’t answer with our suggestions

Five Beaufort County residents who came in contact with a stray cat are under the care of a physician after the cat tested positive for rabies, the S.C. Department of Health and Environmental Control said today. “The stray cat had been in the Lady’s Island area for some months and was being fed by several people. The cat became ill and was taken to a veterinarian,” said Sue Ferguson of DHEC's Bureau of Environmental Health. “The cat was euthanized and tested positive for rabies.” Ferguson said once the rabies virus reaches the brain, the disease is fatal to humans and...

Republican Sen. John McCain enjoys a 16-point lead -- 51 percent to 35 percent -- among Southern voters over rival Democrat Sen. Barack Obama, a new poll by Winthrop University and ETV shows. And, the further into the South you go, the larger McCain's lead grows, the poll of likely voters in 11 Southern states shows. Likely voters in the Deep South -- those in Mississippi, Alabama, Georgia, Louisiana and South Carolina -- preferred McCain by a 25-point margin, 56 percent to 31 percent. Southern voters said what they want most in a president is honesty, experience and shared values....

When it comes to John McCain’s running mate, several political observers are saying U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham shouldn’t be counted out. “I don’t think (his selection is) out of the realm of possibility,” said state Republican Party chairman Katon Dawson. He added that “it’s very exciting and a compliment to Lindsey Graham to be on the short list for vice president.”

--Snip-- On this date: In 1863, Federal batteries and ships began bombarding South Carolina's Fort Sumter in Charleston harbor during the Civil War, but the Confederates managed to hold on despite several days of pounding.

U.S. Rep. Henry Brown on Thursday defended a bill that would help future homeowners on the undeveloped southwestern end of Kiawah Island qualify for federally subsidized flood insurance. Brown, R-S.C., said he introduced the bill last month at the behest of the town of Kiawah Island, and that "I had no idea there was a developer" connected with the legislation.

Federal agents have arrested five additional House of Raeford Farms employees and continue to search for others as part of their investigation into alleged immigration violations at the company's Greenville poultry plant. On Wednesday, Victor Cruz-Soto, Daniel Badillo-Baca, and Nain Zarate-Camarero were indicted on charges of using counterfeit IDs to gain employment, identify theft, and making a false statement to a federal agency, according to federal records. The three men were arrested in July. U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents arrested Federico Torres-Perez and Juan Francisco Martinez-Olivares last month on similar charges. The plant's human resource manager, Elaine Crump, was...

View This E-mail As A Web Page The American people are telling our elected officials: "Drill Here and Drill Now!" But five Republicans-in-Name-Only (RINOs) are siding with the NO NEW DRILLING CROWD in Congress and basically betraying American families suffering severe financial hardship because of the high price of gasoline at the pump. You've probably already heard the news. Five RINOs are trying to strike a deal with the devil and they're calling it a "compromise." But like last year's so-called attempted "compromise" on amnesty for 12-20 million illegal aliens... it is NO SUCH THING! In actuality, it's a complete and...

FORT JACKSON, S.C. - A new national cemetery, which will be adjacent to Fort Jackson, is scheduled to open in the fall and will be named the "Fort Jackson National Cemetery." Columbia, S.C., is one of four sites nationwide where national cemeteries are being built and the land for the 585-acre facility was donated by Fort Jackson "(The) VA is keeping its promise to our nation's veterans by building this new shrine, said Secretary of Veterans Affairs Dr. James B. Peake. "The Columbia area deserves a magnificent, lasting tribute to the service of its military veterans." Construction began earlier this...

Here are the misguided Senators who joined the Gang of 10. Please let them know what you think of their actions. I've included their contact information and the press releases bragging about their participation in the gang of 10. Sen. Lindsey Graham:http://lgraham.senate.gov/public/ Email:http://lgraham.senate.gov/public/index.cfm?FuseAction=Contact.EmailSenatorGrahamSenator Graham Press Relases Contact: Wes Hickman (202) 224-5972 or Kevin Bishop (864) 250-1417 Date: 08/01/2008'Gang of 10' Introduces Bipartisan Energy Proposal WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Lindsey Graham (R-South Carolina) helped draft and signed on to a bipartisan energy proposal that enables our nation become more energy independent.  The proposal, New Energy Reform Act of 2008 from the...

Deputy Charged In BeatingGREENVILLE COUNTY, S.C. -- An 18-year-old was punched 13 times in the face by a deputy, and it was all caught on tape. The deputy, Brian Tollison, has been fired and had been charged in the incident. WYFF was exclusively given excerpts from the video that was recorded on the deputy's dash camera on May 15. The video shows Tollison, who was working undercover, trying to take a driver into custody after he pulled him over in the Judson community. In the video, a back-up deputy appears to hold onto the teen while Tollison hits him. When...

WASHINGTON — U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham said Friday he’s leading a new, bipartisan “Gang of 10� senators who’ve drafted a comprehensive energy bill that would lift decades-old bans on offshore drilling and nuclear-waste reprocessing. The New Energy Reform Act of 2008 is a bid to bridge the divide between Democrats and Republicans who spent July accusing each other of neglecting the impact of record gasoline prices on their constituents. “There is no greater problem facing average Americans and small businesses today than high fuel costs and our nation’s dependency on foreign oil,� Graham said. “Our proposal is not perfect, but...

Asking for animal shelter donations instead of presents for his 11th birthday was “no biggie” for Mac Gandy, but it makes him a hero to the Florence Area Humane Society. Mac decided after a visit to the shelter in early July, a couple of weeks before his birthday, that he wanted to help the animals in need of a good home. “I felt bad for them,” he said after he and his mother, Michelle Gandy, delivered the food, cleaning supplies and other items he’d collected. “It always tugs at his heart,” his mother said. The Gandys aren’t sure exactly how...

Asking for animal shelter donations instead of presents for his 11th birthday was “no biggie” for Mac Gandy, but it makes him a hero to the Florence Area Humane Society. Mac decided after a visit to the shelter in early July, a couple of weeks before his birthday, that he wanted to help the animals in need of a good home. “I felt bad for them,” he said after he and his mother, Michelle Gandy, delivered the food, cleaning supplies and other items he’d collected. “It always tugs at his heart,” his mother said. The Gandys aren’t sure exactly how...

-- A South Carolina senator is fielding negative reactions after he posted a picture of Barack Obama and Osama bin Laden with a controversial comment on the state legislative Web site. S.C. Sen. Kevin Bryant said he "wanted to make people think." But after the public reacted negatively to the image, Bryant said he will take it down. The image shows bin Laden and Obama with the text: "the difference between Obama and Osama is just a little b.s."

COLUMBIA, SC (WIS) - A Republican state senator from South Carolina is being criticized for a post on his blog that shows photos of Barack Obama and Osama bin Laden wearing similar clothing, along with a line that states the difference between the two is "a little B.S." The image was posted on Sen. Kevin Bryant's blog on Friday without an explanation from the politician. It appears to be a photo of a T-shirt, with images of bin Laden and Obama wearing turbans and the words "OBAMA" AND "OSAMA," with the "B" and "S" each highlighted in red. The American-Arab...

Expect to see this one on the cable shows this week:South Carolina State Senator Kevin Bryant (R-3rd District) is drawing fire for posting this image on his blog kevinbryant.comThe AP published an article about the photo of the t-shirt on Bryant's blog. However, it can't be posted to FR.So far, Bryant's not apologizing.

ABC News' Jan Simmonds reports: Republican vice presidential prospect Gov. Mark Sanford, R-S.C., told reporters today that removing the Confederate flag from the grounds of South Carolina's Statehouse would not be a priority during his final years in office.

URL only posted..... 2008 © Copyright by The Times Examiner.

“The Appalachian voting bloc will be critical in the … 2008 presidential election,” former Democratic National Committee executive director Mark Siegel says. Yet his broad statement comes with its own geopolitical caveat: location. “It all depends on what part of Appalachia you are talking about,” says Siegel. “If they live in Pennsylvania and Ohio, then, yes, without a doubt they are the key voters. If they live in West Virginia, then no, because for the Democrats that is not a state that is in play.” Appalachia is not a single state but a region that has its own unique frame...

Americans should pick a president they think they can trust. John McCain should pick a running mate he knows he can trust. McCain knows he can trust Lindsey Graham.

BULLETIN TROPICAL DEPRESSION THREE INTERMEDIATE ADVISORY NUMBER 1A NWS TPC/NATIONAL HURRICANE CENTER MIAMI FL AL032008 200 AM EDT SAT JUL 19 2008 ...TROPICAL DEPRESSION MOVING TOWARD THE NORTHEAST WITH LITTLE CHANGE IN ORGANIZATION... A TROPICAL STORM WARNING IS IN EFFECT FROM SOUTH SANTEE RIVER SOUTH CAROLINA TO CURRITUCK BEACH LIGHT NORTH CAROLINA...INCLUDING PAMLICO SOUND. A TROPICAL STORM WARNING MEANS THAT TROPICAL STORM CONDITIONS ARE EXPECTED WITHIN THE WARNING AREA WITHIN THE NEXT 24 HOURS. A TROPICAL STORM WATCH IS IN EFFECT FROM NORTH OF EDISTO BEACH SOUTH CAROLINA TO SOUTH SANTEE RIVER. A TROPICAL STORM WATCH MEANS THAT TROPICAL...

Violence broke out Sunday in Anderson when an 18-year-old man returned home from a gay pride parade and was assaulted by his father. According to the Anderson County Sheriff's Office, the battering took place about 1 p.m. Sunday on P Street. During the assault, the teen's 49-year-old father yelled, cursed, swung a baseball bat, prayed and tried to “cast the demon of homosexuality out of him,” according to the teen's version of events to Deputy S.C. Weymouth, the incident report states. About 2 p.m. Wednesday, the teen said his father punched him when he returned to the house for clothes...

A clerk at a local convenience store on North Kings Highway shot at a man who tried to rob the store last night, according to Myrtle Beach police officials. The incident happened around 6 p.m. Tuesday when a man walked into the store and demanded money. The clerk pulled out a handgun from under the counter, shot at the man, and missed, said Capt. David Knipes, Myrtle Beach Police's public information officer. The bullet hit a wall, Knipes said. He said the man fled out the door. The case is under investigation.

COLUMBIA, S.C. — The flap over an ad promoting South Carolina as “So Gay� will cost the state tourism dollars, according to an industry expert. Gay and lesbian travelers will likely be turned off by the political posturing surrounding the ads, which were pulled by the state tourism agency and led one employee to resign. “We experience discrimination every day, so we certainly don't want to when we travel,� said Wesley Combs of the Washington-based communication firm Witeck-Combs, which specializes in gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender travel. Combs noted that national media attention about the ad, including jokes on Conan...

he national NAACP has again said it will step up a campaign against South Carolina for flying the Confederate flag at the State House. The organization declared it would exert continued pressure to discourage NCAA sporting events and film production in South Carolina.“This is unfinished business,” said Lonnie Randolph, state NAACP president, echoing the message delivered Monday by NAACP interim president and CEO Dennis Hayes, at the organization’s 99th national convention in Cincinnati. Hayes told the Associated Press the organization is still working on its plan to discourage tourism and film production in the state. The National Association for the...

A state employee has resigned and officials have disavowed an international advertising campaign that led to calls for an investigation of tourism posters proclaiming “South Carolina is so gay.” The campaign, which plastered the London subway with posters advertising the charms of South Carolina and five major U.S. cities to gay European tourists, landed with a resounding thud in South Carolina, where the issue of gay rights has long been a political flashpoint. The advertisements were timed for London’s Gay Pride Week, which ended Saturday. The posters touted the attractions of the state to gay tourists, including its “gay beaches”...

Every suspected illegal immigrant booked in the Beaufort County jail since the beginning of the month -- regardless of the severity of the crime -- is being turned over to federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents. It's called Operation Surge, and local law enforcement officials say it's the start of a major new crackdown on illegal immigrants in the county, home to one of the largest Hispanic communities in the state. So far this month, 55 inmates are being held for ICE, compared with 16 in June. ICE is a branch of the Department of Homeland Security formerly known as...

South Carolina’s top tourism agency has canceled an overseas advertising campaign targeting gay tourists. The campaign, tied to gay pride week celebrations in London, included ads that proclaimed “South Carolina is so gay.” A handful of other U.S. destinations joined the campaign, including Atlanta, Boston and New Orleans. After learning last week the state had agreed to spend tax money on the campaign — and spurred by a post on The Palmetto Scoop blog — the Department of Parks, Recreation and Tourism said Thursday it would not pay the tour operator. Parks, Recreation and Tourism director Chad Prosser said an...

Drastic times may call for drastic actions according to Sen. Jim DeMint (R-S.C.). DeMint told participants in a “national Tele Town Hall meeting” on July 9 there was a movement among senators to shut down the Senate floor if an up-or-down vote was not held on the offshore exploration for oil and natural gas. The senator maintained the added energy was an issue of national security to prevent the nation from being held “hostage” by OPEC. “One of the things that we’re looking at here – a few of us have been meeting about ways that we might just close...

He quit rather than lower flag Ryan Teague Beckwith, Staff Writer Eason, head of a state lab, retired at 51. RALEIGH - L.F. Eason III gave up the only job he'd ever had rather than lower a flag to honor former U.S. Sen. Jesse Helms. Eason, a 29-year veteran of the state Department of Agriculture, instructed his staff at a small Raleigh lab not to fly the U.S. or North Carolina flags at half-staff Monday, as called for in a directive to all state agencies by Gov. Mike Easley. When a superior ordered the lab to follow the directive, Eason...

WASHINGTON — If Andrew Jackson created the notion of a president’s “Kitchen Cabinet,” Sen. John McCain is reinventing it months before his possible election to the White House. And Sen. Lindsey Graham seems to be McCain’s one-man Kitchen Cabinet. Graham’s visibility as the Arizona senator’s closest political confidant has risen in recent weeks as the two men crisscross the country and travel abroad on McCain’s presidential quest.

A Greenwood man was arrested Wednesday afternoon after allegedly giving a postal employee a Bible with a pornographic picture in it, along with a letter inviting the worker to come to his house and watch pornographic movies. Greenwood Police arrested Prince Woodrow Quarles, 44, of 102-C Pinetree Apartments, and charged him with lewd conduct. According to police reports, officer Daniel Watt responded to the U.S. Post Office on Northcreek Boulevard just after 1 p.m. Wednesday. He made contact with the victim, a 29-year-old woman. The woman said Quarles had been coming into the post office regularly for some time. She...

THE interim between the primaries and the parties’ nominating conventions is, according to ancient writ, a fertile period for presidential campaigns to talk about how they plan to expand the political map in the fall. This year is no different. Barack Obama’s strategists are suggesting that the first African-American presidential nominee of a major political party can parlay increased turnout among black voters into a string of victories in the South. Given that roughly half of all African-Americans live in the 11 former Confederate states, the idea seems intuitive enough. It’s also wrong. Prying Southern electoral votes away from the...

ARLINGTON, Va. — The Army will extend boot camp from nine to 10 weeks for all recruits beginning Oct. 1, an official at the U.S. Army Training and Doctrine Command confirmed Monday. Last October, TRADOC leaders said that they would add an extra week to boot camp in the fall of 2008, following a pilot program involving five of the Army’s basic training facilities, TRADOC spokesman Harvey Perritt said Monday. Army officials started the 10-week Basic Combat Training pilot course on Nov. 2, marking the first time boot camp had been lengthened since the program went from eight weeks to...

In an occasional series, The Post and Courier has been exploring the potential consequences of illegal immigration on people in business, law enforcement, health and education. Ana-Cecilia de Marquez, 43, rubs her belly when she talks. The illegal immigrant has bothersome and sometimes painful symptoms that require her to stay close to her Goose Creek mobile home. "It's ... like I'm going to deliver a baby," de Marquez said. "It feels like a wound inside." De Marquez, who moved from El Salvador to the United States three years ago, is uninsured. She said she has been bounced around the health...

Denise GallagherJune 30, 1956 - June 29, 2008

This is Carolina Day, the 232nd anniversary of the Battle of Fort Sullivan. If you are not a native of South Carolinian (and possibly even if you are), you likely have never heard of Fort Sullivan and the significance of this day. Most American school children have heard stirring stories of the battles of Concord Bridge and Lexington Green, relatively minor skirmishes fought by the Minutemen of Revolutionary lore. These were fought in April 1775, and at Concord Bridge was fired the "shot heard 'round the world." But it was at an unfinished, palmetto-log fort on Sullivan's Island where the...

June 26, 2008 Mark Sanford: A Different Kind of Republican If you want to see why Mark Sanford is different from a lot of the other Republican names being bandied about for VP, take a look at what just happened in South Carolina's local elections. While other governors are shy with the veto pen or refuse to fight for conservative policies, Sanford is not the type to sit silently and let the Legislature steamroll him. It is important to note that although South Carolina's Legislature is controlled by Republicans, these are anti-reform Republicans who like to keep government big, spending...