Exclusive: Next SC House speaker gives insight into how he’ll ‘govern from the bottom up’
Sitting in front of a framed newspaper article highlighting the so-called eating caucus, where new State House members would go out to lunch together, Murrell Smith reflects on how he was afraid to speak in front of the chamber.
“When I got up here, I was petrified to speak in front of the body,” Smith said. “Am I gonna embarrass myself?”
But 22 years later, the Sumter County lawmaker who used to only feel comfortable speaking in courtrooms will now become speaker of the House on May 12.
Smith, who turns 54 next month, initially thought he would only serve eight to 10 years, but said he had been encouraged to stay longer to gain seniority in the chamber to benefit Sumter County. It was a recommendation that resonated with him and ultimately led to a path where he will lead the chamber.
In an interview this week ahead of his election as speaker, Smith told The State newspaper he still needs to develop what big items he wants to tackle as speaker, but he plans to govern by inclusion and collaboration.
“I think those are the first things that you need to do in order to be an effective leader,” Smith said. “I want to make sure that I’m accessible to all the members and make sure that they are treated with respect, and that also we demand respect back from the members.”
Smith said the biggest issue facing the state right now is a potential slowdown in the economy especially because of events like the war in Ukraine and inflation, and how that could affect the state’s ability to provide services challenges the state faced during the 2001-2002 recession and the 2008-2009 recession.
“I never want to return back to those (days) and that’s why I’ve been very cautious and building reserves over here and making sure that if that day ever comes, at least there’s a way to soften that blow instead of the precipitous drop of revenue and slashing of agencies,” said Smith, the chairman of the House’s budget-writing committee who will resign from that position at the end of day May 12, when he assumes the speaker role.
He says his style as speaker will be similar to how he handled leading the Ways and Means Committee last four years.
“I think every member is entitled to have a say in the process. At the end of the day nobody should be ignored in this body,” he said.
But he anticipates listening to all members, even those who are new to the body, recognizing freshmen at times don’t have much input into the process.
“I like to govern from the bottom up,” Smith said. “I like to have people that organically grow the issues and the ideas and build consensus to those and we have to realize that while I would prefer something, I’ve also got to be able to negotiate and be willing to have some type of concessions in order to get a bill and that’s politics. Politics is just the art of compromise.”
In the last two years, the House has taken up issues such as banning abortion after six weeks into a pregnancy, banning transgender women from participating in women’s sports, banning the teaching of critical race theory, and fighting against vaccine mandates, issues that play well with GOP primary voters.
“I think those are issues that seem to be resonating and that people around the state are concerned with,” Smith said. “I think the press likes to bring out that these are wedge issues and things of that effect, and I don’t see those as wedge issues. I see a lot of those issues as very important.”
“Speaker Lucas has engaged in policy driven issues and it’s my intention to follow in the same suit.”
This story was originally published April 28, 2022 at 2:23 PM.
