We’re a little late with this — you’ll have to forgive me, I was painting my son’s room over the weekend and was a little swamped, no pictures please! But anyway a group called S.C. Club for Growth has made an endorsement in the House District 123 race.
The club is backing Stu Rodman in his bid for the seat. The Republican incumbent is Richard Chalk. Chalk will face Rodman and former County Councilwoman Starletta Hairston in June’s Republican primary.

Here’s how the club describes itself on its Web site:
The South Carolina Club for Growth is a group of citizens dedicated to expanding the prosperity of working families through the Reagan Doctrine of lower taxes, smaller government and strong free enterprise. As the South Carolina affiliate for a rapidly growing national organization, we are committed to seeing that South Carolinians regain their voice in state politics. For far too long, elected officials who claim to be fiscal conservatives have cast aside their beliefs to partake in a bloated government that insists on taking more and more from families trying to achieve the American Dream.

And here’s what the club had to say about Stu:
Stu Rodman is a proven, reform-minded leader who will bring his fiscally conservative principles to Columbia. He currently serves on the Beaufort County Council and was elected to the Beaufort School Board, giving him valuable insights into government.
As a businessman with an M.B.A. and an engineering degree, Stu understands how important it is for South Carolina to be competitive in the global marketplace by lowering taxes, limiting government bureaucracy, and improving educational opportunities for our children. Stu also served on Governor Sanford’s 2003 State Commission on Management, Accountability and Performance, which suggested ways to restructure and streamline state government.
Stu is challenging incumbent Richard Chalk. Chalk received an “F” in 2007 on the S.C. Club for Growth’s scorecard, which reflects his poor voting record on fiscal issues. Chalk supported a higher gas tax on working families and was one of the few Republicans to vote to overturn Governor Sanford’s vetoes on all fifty budget items in the Club’s “Lard List.” One can only assume Chalk was trying to send a message when he voted to overturn Governor Sanford’s veto of pork items like $150,000 for a new pottery program, over $8 million for Senator Hugh Leatherman’s pet projects in Florence and $9 million for a program editorial writers called “a legislative slush fund.” We hope you will send a message to Chalk by supporting Stu Rodman.

In light of this endorsement, I guess it’s a good thing Chalk has his own club, the “Reform Caucus.” See more about that here: http://www.beaufortgazette.com/local/story/223172.html

Best,
Ian