Editorials from around South Carolina: Offshore drilling, certificate of need program, Clemson football

Offshore drilling

Every coastal municipality in South Carolina has said “No.” So have Congressmen Mark Sanford, Jim Clyburn and Tom Rice, who represent all of the coastal districts in South Carolina. And so has Lt. Gov. Henry McMaster.

Now more than 400 business leaders throughout South Carolina have joined the already significant ranks opposing offshore oil and gas drilling along the state’s coast.

Those business owners and associations, in an effort led by Don’t Drill Lowcountry, a non-profit organization opposing offshore drilling in the Atlantic, have sent a letter to Gov. Nikki Haley asking that she withdraw the state from federal plans that would open up vast swaths of Atlantic waters to drilling. …

Each additional voice that says “No” to this risky, unnecessary plan should make it tougher for the governor to maintain a position that would satisfy the oil industry but not her own constituents. The same should be the case for those members of the state’s congressional delegation who continue the ill-advised support of offshore drilling.

Maybe they have lost touch with their state.

After all, they are elected to serve South Carolina — and an increasing number of South Carolinians are emphatically saying “No” to offshore oil.

Certificate of need

The federal government on Monday recommended South Carolina repeal requirements that health facilities get state permission for many kinds of construction and expansion, backing up something Gov. Nikki Haley has sought for years.

In a letter and attached statement to Haley, who sought officials’ opinion in November, the Department of Justice and the Federal Trade Commission wrote that laws requiring something known as a certificate of need impede competition and make such projects more expensive.…

South Carolina is among several dozen states that require the regulatory review of major medical projects. A 1974 federal law required states to enact the process in an effort to control health care costs. Congress repealed the law 13 years later, after studies showed it had little effect.

Since then, more than a dozen states have repealed their certificate of need programs.

If South Carolina decides to do away with the CON, we must do so in a way that continues to ensure a fair market as well as a free one.

Clemson football

There is no reason for the Clemson Tigers, their fans or anyone in the Upstate to hang their head after Monday’s college football championship game.

Clemson’s football team, ranked No. 1 in the nation for much of the season, went to the title game and stood toe-to-toe with one of the most storied programs in all of NCAA football. It sounds like a cliche, but at the end of the day Clemson was about two plays away from a national title.…

It’s also worth remembering that this is a college football program that focuses on more than just the game. For five straight years, Clemson has been one of the best programs in the nation when it comes to ensuring its athletes get an education, too.

The school graduates 83.6 percent of its football players, according to a report earlier this year by ESPN. That’s second best in the country.

The Upstate, and all of South Carolina, have reason to be proud of this football program (if only for a moment or two, Gamecocks fans).

This story was originally published January 18, 2016 at 3:01 PM with the headline "Editorials from around South Carolina: Offshore drilling, certificate of need program, Clemson football."