The restructuring bill

Imagine what could happen if South Carolina had a Legislature that was able to act like a legislature and a governor who was allowed to act like a governor.

Lawmakers would know much more about how state agencies operate, so they could make better laws and better decisions about which programs are working well and should be funded, which ones aren't working at all or are inefficient and need to be eliminated or fixed.

The governor would have the power to make sure those agencies do the job they're supposed to, and the incentive to do so -- the knowledge that if things don't work, the voters will blame him and him alone.

A bill awaiting Senate debate would move us in that direction -- taking a big step on the first count and another baby step on the second.

The legislation is built around the notion Sen. Vincent Sheheen has been pushing that government restructuring doesn't have to be a zero-sum game, where the governor becomes more powerful, making the Legislature less powerful by comparison.

... This bill doesn't upset the balance of power -- the Legislature will still be the dominant political force in this state if it passes. What it does is make our government a little more responsive to the public, and a little more efficient, and probably even a little more competent. And we certainly need that.