Richland senator accused of threatening county employee’s job in profanity-laced rant
When state Sen. Dick Harpootlian saw that the annual press release advertising open spots on Richland County boards had mysteriously left out four controversial openings at the Columbia Metropolitan Airport, he had one question:
“What the f--- is going on?”
But the Columbia Democrat’s decision to confront the county employee responsible and ask that exact question has led to a letter accusing Harpootlian of threatening that employee’s job in a profanity-laced tirade.
Harpootlian’s impromptu meeting last Friday with James C. Brown, a top aide to Richland County’s legislative delegation, has stirred up controversy yet again among Richland County lawmakers who are divided over the freshman senator’s slash-and-burn campaign against a government he perceives as broken.
“That is no way to treat anyone, much less someone that works for you,” said House Minority Leader Todd Rutherford, a Columbia Democrat who has periodically quarreled with Harpootlian. “It is beneath the dignity of being a South Carolina senator, and he owes them an apology.”
The delegation’s chairman, meanwhile, has Harpootlian’s back. State Rep. Jimmy Bales, D-Richland, told The State the situation could have been avoided if the delegation’s employees had done their jobs.
“Dick is a brilliant lawyer, and he’s really good at getting things done,” Bales said. “He has a problem with people who just fool around and don’t move and get things done. ... He’s impatient. That’s the kind of guy you want.”
Harpootlian, who provided Brown’s letter to The State, acknowledged using the F-word several times in the meeting at Brown’s Main Street office. But he denied raising his voice or threatening Brown’s job, even as he wondered how an office that costs county taxpayers $270,000 a year can’t send out a press release correctly.
“I wasn’t elected to make friends,” he said.
Mounting frustrations
Harpootlian’s frustration over the press release has a backstory.
The sharp-tongued Columbia attorney and two-time state Democratic Party chairman has had the Columbia Metropolitan Airport in his crosshairs for nearly a year, even as he also has made headlines for going after the Richland County Election Commission, shutting down bars in Five Points and excoriating a deal to offer the Carolina Panthers $115 million in tax breaks to relocate to South Carolina.
He has accused the airport’s 12-member board, including five who are appointed by Richland County lawmakers, of wasting money on marketing campaigns and luxury suites at University of South Carolina sports events while flights out of South Carolina’s capital city remain expensive and limited.
He also has campaigned to replace three members who have illegally remained on the board for years after their 8-year term limits expired. Harpootlian says some of his colleagues on the Richland County legislative delegation have quietly resisted replacing those members, but he won’t call them out publicly.
This fall, Bales put Harpootlian in charge of soliciting applications for volunteer county boards, including the airport commission. Harpootlian said he has worked with the delegation’s staff for weeks to draft and distribute the press release advertising those positions.
That’s why, he said, he was livid when last Thursday’s press release was sent out without mention of the airport board. It’s also why his frustration grew as the delegation staff, led by Brown, failed to distribute a corrected press release.
Harpootlian’s law firm wound up distributing the corrected press release Friday afternoon.
(If no Richland County residents apply for the airport commission, the incumbent board members would keep their seats).
“Somebody over there has decided they want to protect the incumbents on the airport commission,” Harpootlian told The State.
‘You don’t curse people out’
Friday morning, Harpootlian and a researcher from his law firm visited Brown’s office.
In a letter that afternoon to all 17 members of the legislative delegation, 75-year-old Brown wrote that Harpootlian delivered a “brief, profanity laced rant” about the incorrect press release and threatened to have his office defunded.
“He specifically mentioned that he would have myself and Dr. Kim Janha (the delegation’s legislative services coordinator) terminated immediately,” Brown wrote. Harpootlian says he never said that.
Brown told lawmakers that Harpootlian called back later that morning to apologize. But Brown wrote that he and Janha do not deserve to be treated “with such disrespect” by any legislator.
Brown wrote that he tried to explain to Harpootlian that the omission of the airport board seats was nothing more than an unintentional oversight.
He said a corrected press release wasn’t sent because Janha was out of the office Thursday afternoon and their email system was down Friday morning.
“As Director of this office, I take full responsibility for this mishap,” Brown wrote.
Reached by phone Tuesday, Brown declined to comment further.
State Rep. Leon Howard, D-Richland, said he plans to have a conversation with Harpootlian about the incident. Howard and Rutherford said they believe the press release was a simple mistake, not an act of insubordination.
“These people are good people,” Howard said. “They’ve worked at the delegation office for 20 to 25 years, and never have they had this kind of behavior, and they’re very undeserving of that. I’m disappointed.”
“Even if it wasn’t a simple mistake,” Howard continued, “there is still a way to handle things. You don’t curse people out and create a hostile environment.”
State Rep. Wendy Brawley, D-Richland, said she has pushed Bales to address the incident at a delegation meeting. Richland County lawmakers are scheduled to meet Dec. 12.
“The delegation should go on record with the note that this is unacceptable,” Brawley said. “We are not condoning this type of behavior.”
Harpootlian said Brown is making a big deal over profanity in a private meeting of three grown men. He noted Brown is an Army veteran who fought in Vietnam and has probably heard profanity before.
“Did I raise my voice? No,” Harpootlian said. “Did I threaten him? No. These are crocodile tears.”
This story was originally published November 26, 2019 at 2:32 PM.
