Glenn F. McConnell

Glenn F. McConnell (born December 11, 1947) is an American politician currently serving as the 89th Lieutenant Governor of South Carolina, entering the office on March 13, 2012.

He was previously a member of the South Carolina Senate, representing the 41st District from 1981 to March 13, 2012, when he ascended to the office of Lieutenant Governor, as he was the incumbent Senate President Pro Tempore.^[1] The office of Lt. Governor had become vacant because of the resignation of Ken Ard on March 9, 2012.^[2]

Early life, education, and early career

Glenn was born in 1947 in Charleston, South Carolina to the late Samuel W. McConnell and the late Evelyn McDaniel McConnell. He is a lifelong resident of the city and graduated from Saint Paul High School in 1965. He attended the College of Charleston. While there, he was active in the Alpha Chapter of the Pi Kappa Phi fraternity, served in student government, and was elected president of the student body. He graduated with a B.S. in 1969 and a J.D. from University of South Carolina School of Law in 1972.

He first served as a staff attorney with the Charleston City Legal Assistance Program. He became a Labor Management Relations Specialist with the Charleston Naval Shipyard and afterwards went into private practice. He retired from law to manage his family business, CSA Galleries.^[3] He is also a Co-Owner of The Wild House LTD.

Early political career

McConnell served as Chairman for County Republican Party from 1978 to 1982. He was a delegate at the Republican National Convention in 1980, 1984, and 1988.

South Carolina Senate (1981-2012)

Elections

He was first elected to South Carolina's 41st Senate District in 1980, and has been re-elected every four years until his last re-election in 2008. He was rarely challenged by a Democrat.^[4]

Tenure

Party leadership

McConnell was the Senate President Pro Tempore from 2001-2012

Boeing

McConnell was one of several South Carolina politicians credited with playing a key role in getting Boeing Co. to announce plans to build a 787 Dreamliner assembly plant in North Charleston, S.C. in October 2009.

After the deal was finalized, it was unclear how much the company was to receive in incentives. Initial figures valued the incentives package offered to Boeing at $450 million.^[5] Analysis by the Post and Courier newspaper reported it was unclear at that time exactly how much incentive money the company will receive. The Post and Courier newspaper report estimated Boeing could receive more than $900 million incentives.^[5]

Confederate Flag

Lt. Governor McConnell is a member of the Sons of Confederate Veterans, Secession Camp #4.^[6] The Sons of Confederate Veterans were charged in 1906 by Lt. General Stephen Dill Lee, Commander General of the United Confederate Veterans, with "the vindication of the cause for which we fought."^[7]

During a 1999 appearance on ABC News' Nightline,^[8] then-Senator McConnell made the following statements about the flag:

• I see honor, courage, valor. I see the red, white and blue and the blood of sacrifice that ran through that battle and the people that carried that flag. I don't see black and white. I don't see racism.

• It hurts us to see groups like the Klan holding that flag. You want to talk about a sick feeling? Our group, our historical groups, we are disgusted when we see it. But we're equally disgusted and sickened by the political rhetoric and people say it's an emblem of racism, it's an emblem of hate, it's shameful and all of this. How do they think we feel when it's the emblem of our ancestors? They hurt our feelings.

• We will teach generations to come about the honor of these people and if they are going to choose the road of trying to stereotype us as racists and as hate mongers, then we are forever divided.

In 2000, when the Confederate flag was brought down from atop the dome of the State House, Senator McConnell successfully advocated for flying another Confederate flag from a flagpole in the front of the Statehouse, on the grounds, near the Confederate Soldier Monument.^[9] He rejected the suggestion that the Confederate flag be placed in a glass case by saying, "Encasement represents entombment," and by saying that he wanted "no part in symbolically burying the Confederate banner."^[10] The resulting bill that was passed in 2000 was called a compromise.^[11] Senator McConnell vigorously fights attempts to take down the currently-flying Confederate flag, and he declares such attempts as having the goal of carrying out a "cultural genocide."^[12] He has been featured as a guest on The Political Cesspool, a radio show that also promotes the Confederacy.^[13]

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  Flags Atop the Dome, 2008

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  Confederate Flag Behind Confederate Soldier Monument, 2008

Committee assignments

• Senate Rules Committee (Previous Chairman)
• Senate Judiciary Committee (Chairman)^[14]
• Senate Banking and Insurance Committee
• Senate Ethics Committee
• Senate Interstate Cooperation Committee
• Senate Labor, Commerce, and Industry Committee

Lieutenant Governor (2012-Present)

Incumbent Republican Lieutenant Governor Ken Ard resigned his position in March 2012 because of ethics violations. The State Senate President Pro Tempore becomes the Lieutenant Governor when the position becomes vacant, leading to McConnell resigning his senate seat to become the Lieutenant Governor.

References

External links

• South Carolina Lieutenant Governor's website
• South Carolina's Office on Aging website
• Project Vote Smart - Senator Glenn F. McConnell (SC) profile
• Follow the Money - Glenn McConnell
  • 2006 2004 2002 2000 1996 campaign contributions