I was teaching a workshop in Columbia, S.C. over the weekend for the South Carolina Broadcasters Association and spotted
this story in
The State
newspaper. I appreciated how the paper explained why the story was news:
South Carolina's lawmakers are far more armed than their constituents.
About one in 50 South Carolinians 21 and older has a permit to legally carry a concealed firearm.
One in five state lawmakers has a concealed-weapons permit.
According
to an analysis by The State newspaper, 37 lawmakers -- seven of 46 state
senators and 30 of 124 state representatives -- can carry a firearm
legally.
How many state lawmakers carry concealed weapons has become an issue because of two proposals before the Legislature.
One
would make secret the now-public list of South Carolinians who can
carry concealed weapons. The other proposal -- watered down last week --
would allow anyone to keep a weapon in a car while parked at the State
House.
Lawmakers who pack heat interviewed by The State say they carry concealed weapons primarily out of fear of the unknown.
"Lawmakers
fall into that category of people who sometimes become targets," said
Rep. Todd Rutherford, D-Richland, who doesn't have a concealed-weapons
permit but keeps a Glock in his car.
