The Biggest Story You Missed Last Week: Haley's Most Recent Coverup
Governor Nikki Haley and her administration knew children were dying on her watch and, instead of working to fix the tragic problem, tried to cover it up. You might have missed the story – but it’s been the dominant news in South Carolina over the last week.
Instead of taking action and firing the Department of Social Services commissioner, the Haley administration resorted to political threats, intimidation, and scare tactics to shield Haley from accountability. Haley’s Chief of Staff threatened Republican Senator Katrina Shealy, who sits on the DSS investigative panel, over speaking out against the DSS or Haley, “hoping to mute the blowback from a scandal over tragically flawed child welfare services.”
This isn’t the first time the Haley administration has tried to cover up her incompetence – millions of South Carolinians have had their personal financial information hacked and children have been put at risk from a tuberculosis outbreak in public schools. In both cases, the governor and her team went to great lengths to cover it up.
Nikki Haley has proven that she just can’t be trusted to lead or take responsibility for what happens on her watch. That’s why the DSS story has dominated the news in South Carolina over the last week.
Here’s a sample of the coverage:
The Free Times: Sen. Shealy: Haley Staffers Tried to Quash DSS Investigation
The Post and Courier Editorial: Demand action on DSS
Associated Press: Sheheen again calls on Haley to fire DSS director
WACH Fox: Sheheen: Governor’s Abuse of Power is Impeding DSS Investigation
The Post and Courier: Sen. Vincent Sheheen calls on Gov. Nikki Haley to fire DSS Director Lillian Koller
The State: Sen. Sheheen wants probe of SC Gov. Nikki Haley over Social Services investigation
The Free Times: “An insider account of a backroom maneuver by Gov. Nikki Haley’s staffers indicates that the governor’s office has been running political calculations, hoping to mute the blowback from a scandal over tragically flawed child welfare services at her Department of Social Services.”
The State: State Sen. Vincent Sheheen, the Democratic challenger for governor, has called for a special committee to investigate allegations that Republican Gov. Nikki Haley and her staff tried to obstruct a Senate probe into child deaths related to the S.C. Department of Social Services.
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